How Do Podcasts Make Money?

If you want to know how podcasts make money, this is the right article to read. It comprehensively explains exactly how podcasts earn money and how you too can make money podcasting.

Through the years, certain names or words are often immediately associated with other words. Those words could be the names of people, places, cultural expressions, popular phrases, etc.

For example, if one would mention the name Romeo, most likely in the same breath, they would add the name, Juliet.

Of course, this is a famous young couple who were in love as portrayed in the tragic play penned by Shakespeare representing their love story.

 

Importance

Unlike Romeo and Juliet who were kept from marriage, the change in our vocabulary is ever-evolving to describe new processes and manage new advances in our society.

In essence, there becomes a marriage or blending of words together to describe the experience, situation, or advances that take place.

These blendings of words are called a portmanteau.

For example, on our smartphones, we now have the option to capture our feelings through cartoon-like figures called emoticons. This word capturing these little expressions of feelings is the combination of the word emotion and icon.

Another such example would be when trying to express in a word something that is beyond gigantic. That word today is ginormous which is a combination of giant and enormous.

Or, if trying to describe one’s passion for eating chocolate they may refer to themselves as a chocoholic.

The same combination is also true in the technology world.

One prime example is the word podcast which was a coined expression credited to BBC journalist Ben Hammersley.

The back story on this is that in February 2004 he was penning an article for the Guardian newspaper. Of course, a podcast is a combination of the words iPod and broadcasting.

Consequently, podcasts have become a significant part of our streaming services.

Podcasts are convenient and can be downloaded onto the person’s listening device. This provides great convenience and can be listened to in part or its entirety at the listener’s convenience.

Podcasts can be entertaining, informative, educational and can be created covering a variety of topics.

Many broadcasters using this type of format can deliver monologues or dialogue with another individual to have a serious or light-hearted conversation.

 

How to Make Money from Podcasts 

 

1: Concentrate on Content

If wondering about the return investment on podcasts or one’s desire to make money off a podcast, it is first important to keep first things first.

In other words, concentrate on the content of the actual podcast. This content should be valuable, have meaning, will resonate with individuals, provide insight, offer a different perspective, etc.

In addition, to enhance the content of the podcast, the podcast should give the appearance of being professionally done.

Therefore, the use of good recording equipment, camera, pleasant setting, etc. is all-important.

Nobody wishes to listen to a broadcast that is poorly done, has background noise, or other distractions that will take away from the important message that the podcast is communicating.

Therefore, the first order of business on how podcasts make money is to provide a quality product.

In other words, listeners will listen if they can hear the content and not be distracted by other technical issues.

Often, podcasts provide an opportunity for listeners to provide feedback. This is a good opportunity to judge whether the podcast resonated with people and to further discuss or clarify comments made or provide additional information.

Also See: Apps That Pay You To Listen to Music and Write Reviews.

 

2: Sign Me Up

The most lucrative way of making money with a podcast is through subscriptions.

From the very beginning of your inaugural podcast beginnings, this should be an option to not alienate listeners who have become dedicated followers.

A possible suggestion is to start out offering the podcasts at no charge and then begin to accumulate various followers.

Of course, being open and honest with those beginning followers that eventually this will be a paid subscription program.

Hopefully, by the time the subscription rollout begins the avid fans will continue to follow you. As another possible suggestion, those already listening could be given a reduction in subscription fees.

To set up this subscription platform, there are several professional resources available.

One such resource is the app known as Anchor. Options that are available through such service include creating and facilitating a platform that is user-friendly, the actual hosting of the platform, and facilitating distribution.

Of course, the subscription process is to create revenue from your podcast by charging a specific rate for subscribers to enjoy your well-created podcast.

The advantage of utilizing such a system is to give you one less thing to worry about and concentrate on the content and guests involved with your podcasts.

As another suggestion, it is important to use a resource that integrates with various podcast platforms such as Spotify.com.

Also, subscriptions are a more stable stream of revenue to the podcaster rather than relying on advertisers.

Questions to ask the platform that helps in managing subscriptions is whether there are any associated fees other than the monthly use of their service.

One such question would be any costs associated with the volume of subscriptions managed or any commissions.

An additional question could be the ease of communicating with the subscribers as it relates to engagement and customer service.

 

 

3: Now a Word From Our Sponsor

If you have a large listening audience, upwards of 5,000 individuals, one of the primary ways of podcast money making money is through support from sponsors and advertisers.

If you are not at that level of a listening audience, simply make that your goal and keep working toward that level of subscribers by offering an informative and quality program.

To help facilitate the support of sponsors, a sophisticated network by various podcast ad networks can utilize their well-established network in working with advertisers.

These particular advertisement entities will do what they do best by working with advertisers, hammering out the rates, and obtaining the needed written words that they require.

One of these ad networks is Midroll.com. Also, many of those companies that host or support a podcast will work in-house with their established advertising firms.

 

4: Teacher’s Teach

Another way that an engaging podcast can earn money beyond the original broadcasting of the podcast is by offering peripheral materials in regards to what has been shared or discussed.

For example, if a business leader is podcasting about organizational development, they can offer an open forum in which individuals can sign up for a discussion class on various aspects of further developing one’s company.

Individual topics could include board development, staff development, leadership training, etc.

Added to the commerce mix could be the selling of any printed materials developed by the podcast or the offering of certain personality evaluations that they are trained to use and help with those professional and personal assessments.

Also See: How Teachers Can Get Educational Materials for Free.

 

5: Taking the Show on the Road

Optimally as your podcast increases in popularity and your listening base grows and grows, another money-producing option for your podcast is to take the show on the road.

This means that if you have a large viewing audience with something significant, entertaining, or provocative to say then it stands to reason that people will not only listen to you with the podcast but also would be willing to hear you in person.

Subsequently, if your podcast reaches this point in popularity, then you can demand a good speaking fee or honorarium in front of a large gathering.

This large gathering could be service clubs, associations, or other public speaking venues.

 

6: Investors

One other meaningful resource of support is through investment opportunities, of the sort, that captivated listeners can utilize to show their support.

Often, podcasters are one individual shows meaning that they do it all. Their involvement may be the writing of scripts, being the technical producer, and funding the whole operation out of their coffers.

Consequently, if a passionate and insightful podcaster has a message that is powerful and resonates with the listener, the listener can donate to the cause.

These donations can be outright gifts or can be through such processes known as Crowdfunding.

One such site is Patreon.com.

As an aside, the individual needs to invite their listeners to send monetary support that they are not taking charity. The podcaster is indeed offering a valuable service and one that is strengthened by listener appreciation and financial support.

Other Related Articles on Companies Making Money:

• How Does Venmo Earn Money?
• How Does WhatsApp Earn Money?
• How Does TikTok Earn Money?
• How Does Honey Earn Money?

 

Personal Story

I have found that the podcast is just like doing a radio or TV interview depending upon whether you use a visual or just audio format.

In having the opportunity to do a podcast for a business owner, I found the tone of the interview to be conversational and similar to just two people talking utilizing a dialogue format. It was not intense but informative.

Although, to some, the conversation may have been fairly routine or boring, just possibly other listeners found the conversation insightful regarding business experience and discussing potential pitfalls and other variables when starting a business.

The old axiom of one man’s garbage is another man’s treasure is true in the world of podcasting.

Just perhaps, the podcast was a valuable use of someone’s time in listening to two individuals talk about business startups.

 

You Can Do It

So if considering diving headphones and microphones first into the podcasting pool, be encouraged.

If you have a passion or a topic that you wish to share with others or even if you wish to promote your business or other lifestyle interest, podcasting may be your platform.

You can pursue this telecommunication venue with minimal hardware resources and this can be accomplished with the help of various videos on the Internet as well as step-by-step instructions.

Remember, if you are thinking it then perhaps and most likely someone else’s is thinking along the same lines or maybe will have an opposing view.

Subsequently, there is an audience that will resonate with your thinking, listen to what you have to say, or may take issue with your viewpoint. Interesting conversations make for good entertainment.

All one needs to do is to set up their podcasting platform and use their voice as a megaphone to speak to others. The format can be either live, people could call in or it could be scripted with the message that you wish to deliver.

Additionally, podcasting can be done to fulfill a vision of yours but can also be an opportunity to generate revenue to not only support the podcast forum but provide some money in your pocket.

Other Interesting Money Making Articles To Check out:

• Making Money Selling Wrist Watches
• Making Money Selling Baseball Cards
• Money Making Business Ideas for Teens
• Money Making Pizza Franchises
• Money Making Burger Franchises
• Making Money Gift Wrapping Business

 

Conclusion

Of the many common denominators that we as human beings share, perhaps the most dominant attribute of our being is our desire to communicate. This communication involves not only talking but listening.

This basic human interaction coupled with the advances in technology and the reality that a significant number of Americans are interconnected through various technological devices provides the perfect formula for a successful podcast.

Our need as thinking humans is to be engaged and be stimulated mentally. Thinking differently and expressing different viewpoints is the key to growth and learning.

The world of communicating and listening through podcasts is becoming ever increasingly popular.

You would probably be surprised in knowing that just maybe there’s an audience waiting to hear what you have to say and your experience and frame of reference in communicating your message.

The broadcasting world of podcasts awaits!