7/15/2011
by Brian Baltosiewich
It's the million dollar question. It?s the question I get asked most often. Can you make money podcasting? Full disclosure: I don?t know.I believe you can. But it ain?t easy. If you look at the podcasters who are ?successful? it starts and ends with Adam Carolla. Carolla is building out his own studio now where his podcast empire will continue to grow and set the standard for all of us.
He started podcasting a month before Radio Exiles went live in 2009. I believed he and Exiles were on the cutting edge, out on that limb together. What I didn?t know until recently was that he has a major corporate radio entity behind him. The limb just got a little more fragile, didn?t it? So here we are. We have the venue, the audience, the talent and passion. How do you turn it into money?
I?ve been advised that Google Adworks is the way to go, but at a fraction of a penny per click that seems like it?s just not enough. There are affiliate programs- for example Dell will offer you a percentage of ad sales from computers purchased after a consumer clicks through from your site to theirs. That has potential, but I wonder how many listeners will land on our site and think ?oh that?s right, I need a new laptop!? Not exactly an impulse purchase and I?m just not sure if a podcast site is the right venue for most affiliate programs.
At the other end of the spectrum, I have also been told we need 100,000 page views A DAY to make any money. We?re a long way from there. It is my belief there has to be a middle ground between a fraction of a penny per click and 100,000 page views a day, and I?m turning over every rock until I find it.
So if monetizing a growing ?network? of podcasters is challenging, where does that leave you, the independent podcaster? If I were you (take that for what it?s worth) I would model my podcast site after a successful blog (your choice here.) There is some money to be made in blogging, although it can be hard to come by and small in quantity. Be interactive with your listeners (that can be tricky too and I?ll address that in another blog) and be a relentless self-promoter. It?s helpful, as a blog, to have a specific topic. This will attract products to your blog, and sometimes that can generate more traffic if not actual income.
I just went back and read what I have written here. It?s not as bleak as it sounds, but if you are just climbing on board be prepared to do it on a shoestring unless you have a corporate radio entity behind you. Focus on building consistency out of the gate. It is my belief- and I?m clinging to it with everything I have- that by offering a quality product consistently (be there when you tell your consumers you are going to be there) and by promoting relentlessly - you will build traffic. When you build traffic consistently, you will eventually reach a point where income becomes a reality. But it starts with you, in a little room, all by yourself.
Brian Baltosiewich has been a broadcast professional for more than 20 years. His podcast website, www.radioexiles.com features professionally-produced podcasts from radio pro?s who have lost their gigs. Reach out to him at brian@radioexiles.com or through their twitter account @radioexiles and on Facebook at radioexiles.com
(7/16/2011 10:15:52 AM)
Yeah, you kinda missed the mark in this article by not researching Leo Laporte's Twit network. Start watching at twitlive.tv and learn how Leo has built a 5 million dollar a year revenue with podcasting.
(7/16/2011 8:41:44 AM)
Respectfully, I'd say that your view on podcasting is very limited if you think Adam Corolla is the only successful podcsater, and you're thinking in the box too much if you think that ads and page views are the way to make money at it. (nobody likes banner ads!) I"ve heard several other successful podcasters using creative sponsorships and selling related merch online. Is it a six-figure day job? Maybe not, but a lucrative side hustle? Absolutely.
(7/16/2011 1:28:10 AM)
Check out TWIT.TV where Adam went to get advice on how to be a successful pod caster
(7/15/2011 11:29:21 AM)
Yes you can make money with podcasting. There are more ways to benefit than money as well. In my book More Podcast Money I point out the ways that numerous podcasters are making money. Not everyone is making a living, but would you turn down a couple thousand a year in addition to boosting merch sales?
The problem is people are waiting for a sponsor to write a check. That's not happening, but there are many other ways to benefit from a podcast than money. You have to know your audience, and you have to have integrity.
It is possible.
Dave Jackson
www.morepodcastmoney.com
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