Description
Summary We are looking for an experienced software developer or development team to build a platform that helps businesses, founders and professionals find relevant podcasts and contact podcast hosts automatically. The software should work similarly to podcast outreach platforms that allow users to: 1. Search a large database of podcasts. 2. Identify podcasts relevant to their business, expertise or target audience. 3. Find publicly available host and contact information. 4. Create personalised outreach emails using AI. 5. Send and manage outreach campaigns. 6. Track replies, follow-ups, bookings and campaign performance. The aim is to build an internal platform initially, with the potential to develop it into a subscription-based SaaS product later. Example User Journey A user creates a profile containing: * Their name and company * Website * Areas of expertise * Topics they can discuss * Target industries and audiences * Preferred podcast locations or countries * Previous media appearances * Biography and achievements The user can then search for suitable podcasts using filters such as: * Podcast topic * Industry * Country * Language * Audience type * Estimated popularity * Number of episodes * Recent publishing activity * Guest interview format * Relevant keywords The platform should recommend the most suitable podcasts and explain why each podcast is a good match. Core Features Required 1. Podcast Database The platform should collect or access podcast information through legitimate APIs, licensed databases, RSS feeds and publicly available sources. Information should include where available: * Podcast name * Podcast description * Host name * Website * Email address or contact page * Social media links * Podcast category * Country * Language * Recent episodes * Publishing frequency * Relevant keywords * Apple Podcasts and Spotify links * Estimated audience or authority indicators Applicants should explain how they propose to obtain and maintain this data legally and reliably. 2. AI Podcast Matching The system should use AI to match users with relevant podcasts based on: * Expertise * Industry * Target audience * Proposed interview topics * Podcast description * Previous guests * Recent episode subjects * Geographic preferences Each result should receive a relevance score and a short explanation of why it was selected. 3. AI Email Personalisation The platform should generate personalised outreach emails for each host. Emails should reference relevant information such as: * The podcast name * Recent episodes * The host’s interests * Why the user would be a suitable guest * Suggested interview topics * The value the guest could provide to the audience Users must be able to review and edit emails before they are sent. 4. Email Campaign Management Required functionality may include: * Gmail and Microsoft Outlook integration * Scheduled email sending * Automated follow-up sequences * Daily sending limits * Email templates * Personalised subject lines * Reply detection * Bounce tracking * Unsubscribe management * Campaign pausing * Mailbox health and deliverability protections The system must avoid spam-like mass emailing and should support controlled, personalised outreach. 5. Lead and Booking Dashboard The dashboard should allow users to track each podcast through stages such as: * Identified * Approved * Contacted * Follow-up due * Replied * Interested * Meeting booked * Podcast confirmed * Recorded * Published * Not interested Users should also be able to: * Add notes * Assign leads to team members * Search and filter results * Export data * View email history * Track campaign performance 6. Reporting The platform should report: * Number of podcasts identified * Emails sent * Open and reply rates, where technically and legally appropriate * Positive replies * Meetings booked * Podcast invitations secured * Conversion rate * Best-performing outreach messages * Best-performing podcast categories MVP Approach We want the project divided into stages. The first stage should be a practical MVP containing: * User profile creation * Podcast search * Podcast database or API integration * AI relevance scoring * Contact information * AI-generated outreach emails * Gmail or Outlook integration * Follow-up sequences * Basic campaign dashboard * Reply and booking tracking More advanced features can be added after the MVP has been tested. Technical Experience Required Applicants should have experience in several of the following areas: * SaaS development * AI and large language model integration * Podcast APIs and RSS feeds * Search and recommendation systems * Data extraction and enrichment * Email automation * Gmail and Microsoft integrations * CRM or campaign management systems * Database design * User authentication * Subscription billing * Data protection and GDPR * Email deliverability * Web scraping compliance Important Legal and Technical Requirements The developer must clearly explain: * Which podcast data sources and APIs will be used * Whether the data sources allow commercial use * How host contact details will be obtained * How duplicate and outdated information will be managed * How GDPR and relevant privacy laws will be addressed * How email consent, opt-outs and suppression lists will work * How the system will comply with Gmail, Microsoft and email-provider rules * Any restrictions connected to Apple Podcasts, Spotify or other platforms We do not want an unreliable system built entirely around prohibited scraping. What to Include in Your Proposal Please provide: 1. Examples of similar SaaS, AI, email automation or database platforms you have built. 2. Your recommended technical architecture. 3. The podcast data sources and APIs you recommend. 4. How you would obtain and verify host contact information. 5. How the AI matching system would work. 6. How personalised emails would be generated. 7. How you would protect email deliverability. 8. Your recommended MVP specification. 9. Estimated development stages and timescale. 10. Estimated development cost. 11. Estimated monthly costs for hosting, APIs, email services and maintenance. 12. Details of post-launch support. 13. Any major risks or limitations you foresee. Please begin your proposal with the words: “Podcast Outreach Platform” This confirms that you have read and understood the full brief. Preferred Project Structure We would prefer the project to be completed in stages: * Stage 1: Technical discovery and data-source research * Stage 2: UX design and system specification * Stage 3: MVP development * Stage 4: Testing and email deliverability review * Stage 5: Launch and ongoing improvements We are looking for a developer who can advise us strategically and challenge the specification where necessary, rather than simply building without considering data quality, compliance or commercial viability.