How can you avoid promoting harmful products or services in your storytelling?

1 Know your sponsors

Before you accept any sponsorship or advertising deal, do your research on the company and the product or service they offer. Check their reputation, reviews, credentials, and claims. Make sure they align with your values, mission, and niche. Don't be afraid to ask questions, negotiate terms, and decline offers that don't meet your standards. You are responsible for the messages you send to your listeners, so choose your sponsors wisely.

2 Disclose your affiliations

Transparency is key to building trust and loyalty with your audience. Whenever you mention a product or service that you are affiliated with, either as a sponsor, partner, or affiliate, make sure you disclose it clearly and honestly. You can use verbal cues, such as "this episode is brought to you by..." or "I'm an affiliate of...", or visual cues, such as logos, banners, or links, to indicate your relationship with the product or service. You should also follow the guidelines and regulations of your platform and jurisdiction regarding disclosure and disclaimer.

3 Balance your content

While it's tempting to focus on the positive aspects of a product or service that you are promoting, you should also be fair and objective in your content. Don't exaggerate, mislead, or omit relevant information that might affect your listeners' decisions or opinions. Provide both pros and cons, benefits and risks, facts and opinions, and sources and references. You should also balance your promotional content with your educational, entertaining, or inspirational content, so that you don't lose your audience's interest or respect.

5 Learn from others

One of the best ways to avoid promoting harmful products or services in your podcasting is to learn from other podcasters who have done it well or poorly. Listen to podcasts that are similar to yours, or that target the same audience, and observe how they handle sponsorship and advertising. Take note of what works and what doesn't, what appeals and what repels, what inspires and what irritates. You can also seek advice, guidance, or mentorship from other podcasters who have more experience or expertise in this area.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?