(ThePennyWatcher.com) – Podcasting is huge right now, we all know that. From Joe Rogan, to numerous others building and audience, it’s a great way to take your brand to the next level and hopefully along the way make some solid money doing it.
But how exactly are we supposed to monetize it?
It’s certainly not a walk in the park, and it was easy everyone would be doing it. With hard work and dedication, you will find yourselves in a great position to grab those sponsors!
Finding Your Niche
First and foremost, what is your podcast about and what audience does it serve? Is it specifically tailored to a smaller audience, or are your casting a wide net and going for strict general entertainment?
These are the questions you need to ask, but typically you will have a solid idea right away unless you don’t have any influence or business.
Maybe your already a social media influencer, or maybe you have an existing business where you want to branch out and discuss related topics. Whatever your passion, pinpointing that special expertise you have and molding your content to draw in a particular crowd is the initial move towards engaging audiences that will subscribe and come back for more.
Many podcasts have guests, so you can start to visualize and makes notes of other guests like you that you feel would provide value to listeners.
Choosing The Right Platform
There is no doubt that the most popular platform is Spotify. Spotify garners over 325 million monthly listeners! So you want to have your podcast exposed here, so that’s an easy question to answer.
And in addition, you should create a YouTube Channel where people can tune in as well. Some of the most successful podcasts are always both on in studio video as well as available in audio.
So when we talk about platforms, you want to be where the eyeballs are and then all of your other questions need to be around general setup so you have a nice comfortable environment to broadcast.
Look into popular and affordable microphones, etc. You don’t want to miss the mark by looking like a total newbie. All of the tools are available to you to look like a pro right out of the gate.
Monetization Strategies
Sponsorships is your #1 goal here. As you do more podcasts and build an audience, you will start to become more attractive to brands that will pay you to mention their product or service.
In the same breath as sponsorships is advertising. They go hand in hand really. You can read ads for brands and get paid as well.
As you really come into your own, you will see some podcasts are offering exclusive content to listeners. Some podcasts have a membership model, and with that comes some benefits regular listeners don’t have.
Another savvy way to experiment with is affiliate marketing. Sign up as an affiliate to certain products you are familiar with or perhaps have used in creating your podcast and then speak about them on your show.
You can drive listeners to check out more to a website and when they signup as well you can get an affiliate commission.
Building a dedicated audience won’t happen overnight, just take it from the big hitters. But if you stay dedicated, and committed to a set schedule people will notice and decide whether to subscribe or move on from your content.
Keep going, don’t give up, and continue to produce knowing that the dollars will eventually follow.
