Podcasts are growing in popularity day
by day. Ever wondered how your favorite podcast can afford to keep
getting better OR how you can make money from your podcast? For podcast
junkies, there’s a thrill in discovering the next Serial, Dollop or Unexplained, and we love it when shows break a commercial barrier, with more funds and leeway for content creation.
As the moneymaking potential increases,
so does a podcast’s popularity… and the same may apply to your internet
radio station. Eventually, a podcast could grow far beyond one or two
people talking in a room, and become a mild phenomenon.
So, how do podcasts make money? Follow us as we assess the potential routes to revenue:
The pleasures of using Patreon for podcasts
These
days, the gates of media access have been blown right open. In their
wake, we’ve found numerous routes to a democratic form of broadcast,
whereby people fund the shows they like, skipping around the typical
network monopoly and podcasting has also benefited from this form of
broadcasting.
In terms of content service channels, Patreon
is by far the best known. Audio creatives tend to conceive, produce and
disseminate their podcasts on the internet, promoting it via an
app/social network strategy. They might release half a dozen shows to
find out who’s interested, and how the listener figures are growing.
Then, soon enough, they’ll have a Patreon account, with rewards for any
donors.
It works like this: a podcaster
establishes their Patreon subscription and asks people to pay a small
monthly fee or one-off payment, as a ‘thank you’ for the content. There
are subsequent rewards for doing so, like a special run of episodes that
can only be unlocked with a subscriber code. The donations build up – a
$1 payment from 1,000 people, for instance, may be enough to cut a
‘real world’ job down to part-time so they can focus on production. This
is how momentum starts to climb – the podcast gets fans, who want more
uploads, and realize they have to make the added effort worthwhile.
Selling your wares – another way of making money from your podcasts
It might be said that everything stems
from a growing listenership. If you’re a solo or team-based entrepreneur
publishing relevant, captivating content through your podcasts, growth
in listenership can be harnessed for direct sales tactics, pushing a
service or product that you’ve had a hand in.
The possibilities are limitless – nail
varnish, domestic chores, web development, the homemade pet food empire
you’ve been sitting on for years…
There’s no harm in plugging yourself. Rewards come to those who work for them, and it’s your
efforts that have garnered a following of some magnitude. Listeners
will understand and (potentially) reciprocate, as they already trust
you, to a degree: a fantastic primer for flogging what you’re passionate
about.
There are a number of companies looking
for affiliates to resale their products for a commission. We have to
say, though, that the associated offer has to tie directly into the
podcast’s theme, or else falls flat on its face. A vapid and random
product plug undermines your sense of cohesion, as if you’re desperate
to make cash instead of fans.
A fitness podcast, for instance,
wouldn’t gain much kudos for selling cake mix. Yet a show centering on
pop-culture has a heavenly, ready-made audience for printed t-shirts and
commemorative artwork. Consider what’ll make your following feel more
like they’re ‘part of the club.’
However ensure that the adverts do not
overshadow your content. Some websites make the mistake of over
advertising. Too many ads make customers feel overwhelmed and constantly
interrupt visitors which can prompt visitors to leave a website. Not
only does over advertising have a negative effect on your site visitors
but also affects the SEO of your site due to slow speed, delays in
rendering and also affects crawling of your website by Google.
Direct sponsorship for the big fish
For a select few podcasts – the shows
that are drawing the largest numbers – there’s always the chance of a
corporate sponsor knocking on their door, providing another angle of
making through your podcasts .
Brands like Audible, Blue Apron,
Squarespace and Casper mattresses have a strong presence in the podcast
sphere. They’re skewed to the same demographic: those aged between 25
and their mid-40s i.e. the main consumers of podcast media. A company
will approach the creators of a show, and offer them cash for a fixed
period. In return, they ask that the host gives a personal ad for their
services at least once an episode. It’s usually carried out during the
intro/end to a show, or as a segue from one part to another.
Often, there’s a fair way to go before
any audio series reaches the official sponsor stage. In terms of your
success as a radio DJ (which is taking the D.I.Y podcast feel, and
broadening it with classic programming templates), it’ll initially be
best to push your Patreon link. Success in this area will make a handful
of brands take notice. And, with the added length and consistency of
internet radio, your advertising appeal is larger than a podcast’s could
ever hope to be.
Networking whenever you can
We’ve
strode over three separate financial plans for podcast/online audio
success. Yet the last in our list is harder to define, because it can
take any form you might think of in terms of generating revenue for you.
We’re talking, of course, about the
networking opportunities you will encounter when you do your podcasts,
assuming it’s a show that welcomes a lot of guests to the mic. You might
be wondering how you can make money from your podcasts through
networking?
Well, whatever the focus – be it
science, current affairs, music, storytelling etc. –you’ll be courting
some fascinating people, who are rightly amazing at what they do.
Suppose you hit it off during (and after) broadcasting . In the newly
enriched ground of your professional respect, a collaboration could be
seeded, either in the immediate weeks or a year or two from now. They
might jump on board with a business idea you’ve already come up with,or
offer their own, seeking a partner with your promotional skills.
Discussions have the chance to widen into a spectacular idea. And you’ll
keep meeting others through them, as long as you’re open to shaking
hands and being attentive.
Radio broadcasters are used to doing all
of the above – the independent sort, of course, like you and us, who’re
serious about the internet’s communicative freedom. The barriers
separating a podcaster and a radio DJ are cracking apart; we’re all on
the same playing field now, spinning cash out of the gains we make from
organic interest.
If you’re crafting unmissable shows, the
money will begin to trickle in from your podcasts, and hopefully
thicken into a stream you’ll rely on! Being a full-time online radio DJ
doesn’t have to be a fantasy.Invest in SAM Broadcaster Cloud to make it happen.
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