Podcast FAQ

how do podcast make money

by Dr. Kaylie Schmidt Published 3 years ago Updated 2 years ago
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  1. Sponsorships. Sponsorships are the most common way podcasters make money. This is when the podcast promotes the sponsor during the show.
  2. Direct support including premium content. Direct support is when you simply ask your fans to send you money to support your show. ...
  3. Affiliate sales. Affiliate sales are similar to sponsorships, but instead of getting paid by the download, you get paid based on what you sell for another company.
  4. Complementary products. The fourth common way to monetize a podcast is to sell complementary products. This might include merchandise, courses, consulting services, books, or access to live events.

Sponsorships are the most common way podcasters make money. This is when the podcast promotes the sponsor during the show. You probably hear your favorite shows plug their advertisers a few times in every episode. How much you earn from a sponsor depends on the number of downloads your episodes earn.

How many listeners does a podcast need to make money?

If your new episode gets, within 7 days of its release:

  • more than 26 downloads, you're in the top 50% of podcasts.
  • more than 72 downloads, you're in the top 25% of podcasts.
  • more than 231 downloads, you're in the top 10% of podcasts.
  • more than 539 downloads, you're in the top 5% of podcasts.
  • more than 3062 downloads, you're in the top 1% of podcasts.

Can you really make money podcasting?

Yet, despite what many claim, it's absolutely possible to make money with a podcast. Plenty of show-runners are making a living doing that, right now. Others are happy to bring in enough to cover their hosting costs, or pay for a takeaway every few weeks.

How to monetize a podcast?

How to Monetize a podcast

  • CPM. Here’s the good news. According to the Internet Advertising Bureau, the podcasting industry experienced a 19% increase in advertising revenue in 2020.
  • Affiliates. You’ve got to start somewhere. The advice that I’ve heard most often is to start with affiliate marketing.
  • Ask. It always pays to ask. ...

How do people make great podcasts?

Part 1 of 3: Creating Interesting Content Download Article

  1. Listen to podcasts for ideas and inspiration. If you’re interested in making a podcast, you probably already like listening to them.
  2. Choose a podcast topic that you're passionate about. There’s no magic formula for making a hit podcast that draws in a huge audience.
  3. Determine which format suits your topic and style. ...

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How much money can you make from a podcast?

As an estimate, if your podcast has about 10,000 downloads per episode, you can expect to make between $500 – $900 per episode in affiliate sales.

Do podcasts actually make money?

Podcasters earn an affiliate commission by promoting companies and products to their audience. Every purchase made through an affiliate link earns you money. Affiliate marketing is more effective when you promote products and services you know and use yourself.

How much do beginner podcasters make?

So how much money can podcasters make? To be frank, most make $0. In fact, many podcasts have negative cash flow because they spend money buying equipment and paying hosting fees before they earn a single dollar. Creative work like podcasting doesn't make any money until people choose to watch you.

Do podcasts get paid on Spotify?

Streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Podcasts pay out for streams, but the payout tends to be very low. Podcast sponsorships are one way, but for new podcasts, the likelihood of finding a high-paying sponsorship is slim unless you're already a well-established figure.

What is the best thing about advertising networks?

The best thing about advertising networks is that you have the opportunity to grow. When you first start out, you'll have little control over rates, but, as you gain popularity, you'll be able to charge more for advertising slots. Crowdfunding.

Is affiliate marketing good for podcasts?

The same goes for unique discount codes that people can use at checkout. All things considered, affiliate marketing is a great way to keep the money trickling in with minimal additional work.

How much does the Bowery Boys podcast make?

Here are a couple of examples: The Bowery Boys is a podcast about the history of New York City and makes over $3,800/month through Patreon. The Last Podcast On The Left makes over $57,000/month just through Patreon. They also sell shirts and do regular live shows in different cities.

What is affiliate marketing?

Affiliate marketing or performance marketing is where you get a commission when you refer people to other companies. You will typically earn money when someone makes a purchase. Affiliate marketing works best when you promote products or services that you use or are familiar with, so you can authentically promote them.

What is the largest ad network?

One of the largest ad networks is Midroll, another popular network is Authentic, and many of the podcast hosting companies have their own networks as well. Another option that can work well if you have a smaller or more niche audience is to reach out directly to companies that would be a great fit for your audience.

Is Amazon an affiliate program?

There are affiliate programs for nearly every popular product or service. Amazon is one of the more popular programs, or you can also join a network like ShareASale where you can search and apply to join specific programs. Using a plugin like Lasso is highly recommended.

Can you ask for donations for a podcast?

You can ask for donations to help support you and your podcast. More entertainment-focused podcasts would be a good fit to monetize in this way. A common platform for accepting donations is Patreon. They make it really easy to offer additional content or bonuses depending on the amount of money people support you with.

Create A Community

Podcasting is a powerful medium because it cultivates feelings of intimacy between a podcast host and their audience. When people listen to a podcast, they feel like they know the host and are in the room with them.

Choose the Right Hosting Platform

There are many hosting platforms available on the market, however, not many of them allow hosts to use programmatic ads from the beginning like Spreaker does. This is a huge benefit to any podcaster looking to make money from their content, so be mindful of this when selecting your podcast hosting platform.

1. Programmatic Advertising

Using the most simple explanation, programmatic advertising refers to the marketplace where the automatic buying and selling of podcast advertisements occur. At Spreaker, for example, we have our own programmatic marketplace, which is full of advertisers that are ready and willing to automatically deliver target ads on your podcast.

2. Sponsorships

Since there are different reasons that one might want to monetize their podcast, one thing that is important to know before we carry on is that you don’t need an enormous audience to land a podcast sponsor. However, you need to know what you’re offering to a potential podcast sponsor and what they can bring to you.

3. Affiliate Marketing

So how do podcasts make money with affiliate marketing? Oh let us tell you the ways. Affiliate marketing is a way to make money selling other products and services. You get a commission on anyone who signs up for a service/product under your unique link.

5. Selling Courses

This option goes hand-in-hand with coaching because you can use prior coaching experiences to create a course if you find you don’t have enough time in your day to provide for all your one-on-one customers.

6. Sell a Service

This option is a level up from coaching because you’ll be doing part of the work for the client. To illustrate, let’s say you’re an expert in the CBD industry and you offer consulting services but one of your clients would love for you to write for their blog. Maybe you start freelance writing on the side as a service.

What is membership podcast?

Membership podcasts are private podcast episodes that hosts create for their paying subscribers. Typically, fans sign up for a monthly subscription to access the content on a unique RSS feed or a password-protected website. One important note to make is about the word “Subscribe.”.

What is supercast podcast?

This platform is built specifically for creating your own podcast SaaS company. It comes with beautiful analytics (MRR, churn, location of your users, etc), a customizable landing page for users to sign up, Apple and Google Pay integrations for your listeners to easily subscribe, and an affordable rate of .$59/user/month (plus Stripe processing fees).

What is a poda?

Podia is an all-in-one digital membership platform for selling your private podcast, digital products, courses, and email newsletters. Because it offers so many features, this platform is perfect for podcasters who plan to branch out in what they offer their audience over time (eg. publishing a course or Ebook).

What is a substack?

Substack is a fast-growing platform for independent writers and thinkers who want to earn money through a subscription content model. And while this platform is predominantly for written content, they have rolled out a feature for paywalled podcast content as well.

How does Buy Me a Coffee work?

Buy Me a Coffee lets you collect one-time gifts and donations from your audience. They take a 5% transaction fee, so you can keep 95% of your earnings. They pay out through both Stripe and Paypal, so you can choose whichever is best for you.

How much does Tim Ferris make?

Tim Ferris Makes $3M Per Year (Programmatic Advertising) Jack, the host of Darknet Diaries listed above, estimates that Tim Ferris makes $3 million per year on his podcast alone. Tim Ferris is sponsored by many brands and constantly recommends products using affiliate links as well.

Can I make money from a podcast?

Yes. There are a lot of different ways to make money as a podcaster, but they all hinge on your audience. Here’s what you should consider before trying to monetize your podcast: Making money from your podcast ultimately hinges on your audience. Making money hinges on how much your audience trusts you, how engaged they are in your show, ...

How do podcasters make money?

1. Sponsorships. Sponsorships are the most common way podcasters make money. This is when the podcast promotes the sponsor during the show. You probably hear your favorite shows plug their advertisers a few times in every episode. How much you earn from a sponsor depends on the number of downloads your episodes earn.

Why do podcasts have negative cash flow?

In fact, many podcasts have negative cash flow because they spend money buying equipment and paying hosting fees before they earn a single dollar. Creative work like podcasting doesn’t make any money until people choose to watch you. It takes time for listeners to decide you have value.

Why are mid roll ads more valuable?

Mid-roll ads are more valuable because the audience is captive at the time. Sometimes the sponsor will give you a script to read. Other times the sponsor will give you more flexibility. When you first start pitching advertising, we recommend asking for $15 for pre- and post-roll ads and $20 for mid-roll ads.

What is affiliate sales?

Affiliate sales are similar to sponsorships, but instead of getting paid by the download, you get paid based on what you sell for another company. The other company pays you a commission for each sale. Audible has a popular affiliate program that a lot of podcasters and YouTubers take advantage of.

Does audible have an affiliate link?

Audible gives you a special affiliate link to promote. When someone uses your link, you get credit for the sale and earn $15. If you monetize with affiliate sales, make sure the company gives you a simple link that’s easy for you to say and your listeners to understand. Good affiliate URL: www.sponsor.com/your-name.

1. Affiliate Marketing

Also known as performance marketing, it entails receiving a commission when you refer people to other companies. Typically, you’ll earn a small percentage each time someone clicks on the link you provide and buys something.

2. Podcast Sponsorship

When searching for ways to earn an income stream from podcasting, there’s no doubt that a Podcast sponsorship comes to mind. That’s because they’re typically seen as the ‘default’ method of monetization.

3. Courses

Popular podcasters create their unique online courses to teach the nuts and bolts of the content they discuss on their podcast. These are excellent ways of teaching a subject straightforwardly, allowing your audience to get a particular outcome upon completing the course.

4. Consulting and Coaching

While these are relatively similar to offering a service, you typically don’t do the work for your customers. Instead, you steer them on the right path towards long-term improvement.

5. Write an eBook

As a popular solution to the question, ‘how do podcasts make money?’ a great eBook can be easy to craft, short, and captivating if you’re well-versed in an area. You can publish an eBook on nearly anything.

6. Donations and Crowdfunding

These come in handy as a means of supporting you and your podcast. More entertainment-based podcasts are a great way to monetize in this way.

7. Premium Content

There’s no denying that selling premium content is an excellent way to monetize your podcast and scale your business. What sets it apart from memberships is that premium content is more comprehensive and longer than what you’d expect with free content or a membership.

What to do if you haven't started a podcast?

If you have not started a podcast yet, choose a topic that has the potential of attracting a large listener base. You can do a quick search in an iTunes library to see if there is a demand for a topic you would choose for your podcast. If there is a demand for that niche, aim to create the best possible content for it.

How much does Joe Rogan make?

Joe Rogan hosts an entertaining podcast that discusses trending topics and interviews public figures of interest. He is estimated to make about $30,000 per episode. With about 5 episodes per week produced, his estimated monthly podcast income is $600,000.

Is podcasting equipment expensive?

If there are few search results, there isn’t much demand – so you have little chance of growing to a point of earning an impressive income. Podcasting equipment can be costly. Not everyone has the ability to invest into podcasting equipment.

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Affiliate Marketing

Sponsors & Advertising

Courses

Services

Coaching & Consulting

Crowdfunding & Donations

Premium Content

  • Premium content can really be anything you want, but some of the common ways podcasters offer premium content are with: 1. Additional interviews 2. Behind-the-scenes content 3. Ad-free RSS feed 4. Early-access RSS feed 5. Q&A with the hosts Have fun coming up unique ways to deliver additional value to your community for a few dollars per month. The...
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