Making money with content through digital platforms is not a big deal anymore. By making videos or writing blog posts, you can easily monetize your content. But what about podcasts? Can they make money as well?
The answer is yes. Podcasts can be a great source of income for many creators out there.
It’s true that nowadays, due to the time crunch, rather than reading, more and more people are adding podcasts to their playlists. You can talk on any topic that interests you and your audience. Podcasts are not only fun for the creator but also popular among people who don’t have time to read through a blog post.
But the question remains. How do you churn out money off your podcast?
How To Make Money Through Podcasting?
A content creator doesn’t just create content to help people gain knowledge or entertain. At the end of the day, your aim will be to make money off your content.
Like for other types of content, this fact stands true for podcasts as well. You won’t just wake up one day and start a podcast for fun.
You might begin with the thought of helping people. But eventually, you want to get some return for your hard work as well. So let’s have a look at the ways to do just that, i,e. make money through podcasting.
Attract Advertisements & Sponsorships
You’re listening to a podcast on how to get your marketing strategies right. Now, suppose in the middle of it, you hear an advertisement from a certain publisher about the marketing books to read.
This advertisement is what gets you money. You can charge the company on the length of the ad and the time slot where it’s gonna be featured. But usually, advertisers pay on a cost-per-mile basis, i.e., you’ll get paid every thousand times the ad is heard.
You can contact potential sponsors and advertise them in your podcast. Advertising companies like Gumball, AdvertiseCast, and Acast can help in finding sponsors for your podcast.
But remember, even to get such advertisements or sponsors, you first need to have a certain number of listeners.
Have a Membership Or Subscription Policy
Save your best content for premium users. Create a membership mode.
Let your listeners pay an amount to get access to your best and exclusive episodes.
You can offer them an ad-free experience and early access to your content as exclusive benefits of your membership or subscription policy.
Don’t force it as sales, but make sure that you leave a feeling of urgency or sense Of FOMO in them. So that listeners will be enticed to subscribe and pay you for your hard work.
Sell Merchandise Related To Your Podcast
As a podcaster, once you’ve claimed the title of best in your niche, you can step into creating merchandise related to your podcast.
Once you’ve established yourself as a brand, you can try to sell your products on your podcast. For example, if you are a travel podcaster, share your traveling stories, tips, and destination ideas.
Then, you can sell products related to travel like travel bags, t-shirts, guidebooks, and many more items that are related to your podcasts.
A podcast is indeed a great way to get some money rolling.
It’s true that you’ll have to invest some upfront cost for the merchandise, but once people start buying it, your investment will be covered in no time.
Charge For Taking Part In Live Podcasts
In the case of live podcasts, such as live interviews, real-time polls, or receiving calls, people try to interact.
All you’ll have to do is put a price on taking part in your live podcasts. Anyone who wants to interact on the live session will have to pay a certain price, kind of like entry fees.
Of course, no one would pay if you didn’t provide them with an interesting and informative podcast. That’s why try to invite industry experts and popular and knowledgeable people to your podcasts.
Collaborate Or Opt For Cross Promotions
Just like it happens on social media platforms like Instagram or Facebook, in the case of podcasting, collaboration or cross-promotions work perfectly well.
When you promote others’ podcasts or products on your podcast, you’re doing cross-promotion.
In exchange for such promotions, at times, you can ask to be paid or get them to promote your podcast and products on their podcast. Usually, charging them money is a better way if you have more listeners than that particular podcast you’re cross-promoting with.
Best Podcast Examples
Stuff You Should Know
This podcast has been around since 2011, when the concept of podcasting was not even clear. Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant, the comedic duo, started the podcast, and till now, this podcast is a hit.
Of course, many more spin-offs came out as well, hosted by the same duo, which did well too.
These podcasts revolved around various topics, from pop culture to science, history, etc. It became such a hit that Clark and Bryant are considered one the richest podcasters as they still earn almost $7.2 million in revenue on a yearly basis.
Darknet Diaries
If you want to know more about hacking or cybercrime, then give a listen to Darknet Diaries. Began and hosted by Jack Rhysider, this podcast probes deeper to investigate digital world crimes and educate people about them.
The best part about this podcast is its authentic and journalistic way of presenting facts and information. They present it in such a way that even people with no background in this field would understand.
It’s doing so well that now Rhysider is making $15,000 per month through just paid memberships.
Take It From Here
Just like the way you earn through your blog posts or video content, you can make huge money through podcasting, too.
It’s just that you need to know how. Some of the ways you’ve already found above, follow them, and you should be earning well by creating a podcast.
But remember, even to make money, you first need to attract the listeners. So be sure to create a listening-worthy podcast, and you’ll be all set to gain listeners and make money.
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Syed Balkhi is an award-winning entrepreneur and online marketing expert. He is the co-founder of OptinMonster, WPBeginner, MonsterInsights, and WPForms.
