Are you just starting out and want to know how podcasts make money? Or do you already have a podcast and want to start monetizing your content? Regardless of where you are on your podcasting journey, there are plenty of methods to turn your content into an additional revenue stream.

While some strategies are more appropriate for well-established podcasts with larger audiences, others are more effective for early-stage podcasts without the same amount of exposure.

But despite your scale, it's a good idea to familiarize yourself with all the different ways to make money podcasting. Not only will these approaches help increase your personal wealth, but they will also bolster the validity of your podcast, and cement you as a legitimate source of valuable content.

✴ How Much do Podcasters Make?

‘How much do podcasters make?’ is the first question on a lot of people’s minds. The truth is, initially the average podcaster is unlikely to make a whole lot. After buying your podcast equipment, paying hosting fees and maybe even spending some cash on marketing among other expenses, you’re going to start in the negative.

Much like other creative occupations, you won't start seeing earnings until your audience decides that you add value. As such, when your listener base grows, your opportunity to make money from your craft grows with it.

By continuing to produce top-quality content, engaging with your listeners, and putting out regular episodes, you’ll be well on your way to earning a steady income. Understandably, it may seem daunting at first, but with dedication and commitment, the sky is truly the limit.

With that being said, here are some of the highest earning podcasts, just in case you were in need of a bit of inspiration:

· The Joe Rogan Experience by Joe Rogan - $30 million

· My Favorite Murder by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark - $15 million

· The Dave Ramsey Show by Dave Ramsey - $10 million

· Armchair Expert by Dax Shepard - $9 million

· The Bill Simmons Podcast by Bill Simmons - $7 million

✴ How to Make Money Podcasting

With various ways to make money podcasting, the most successful podcasts will utilize several monetization methods to maximize their cash flow. As any financial guru will tell you – it’s best to diversify your revenue streams. And that same basic principle applies here.

With this premise in mind, we list the best options for making money from your podcast below.

✴ Affiliate Marketing

In its simplest form, affiliate marketing is when you get a commission for referring someone to an organization. There can be different terms for the affiliate agreement. For instance, the agreement can be to receive a payment for each visitor you send to a brand or for each person who actually makes a purchase because of your referral.

So, for example, your podcast is making a name for itself in the travel niche. You provide a ton of value for your audience and naturally, travel agencies are lining up to partner with you. You get a special code from one specific travel agency that gives your loyal followers a 20% discount on flights and accommodation for their next dreamy holiday. You will then be paid for every visitor that uses your unique code to make a purchase.

When using special codes or affiliate links, it's important to keep them simple and memorable. This means a URL that reads:

www.thetravelcompany.com/9ghwpq77r=rst is a bad example of an affiliate link because it's complicated and no one is likely to remember it

But one that’s something along the lines of:

www.thetravelcompany.com/yourpodcast-20 is a much better example of an affiliate link. It's a lot easier to remember and makes the all-important connection to your podcast by including the name.

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.

✴ Sponsorships & Advertisements

Sponsorships and advertisements are good go-to methods when it comes to making money from your podcasts. Here, you will get paid just for mentioning a company’s products or services at one point or another during your show.

The basis of attractive sponsorship and advertisement deals is your audience. Once you’ve built a good following that’s highly engaged, you’d be surprised at the number of companies that would love to tap into your network and pay you for the trouble.

If you’re a niche podcast with a smaller audience, you can directly reach out to companies that are a good fit for your listener demographic. In such cases, it’s a good idea to start with small to medium sized companies. The chances of establishing a partnership are greater as the working relationship will generally be more mutually beneficial.

With advertisements specifically, the amount you charge can vary depending on where you place them in your podcast. For instance, pre-roll ads will usually be charged at a lower price than mid-rolls. At the end of the day though, the rates will be subject to change and can increase alongside your listener base.

You can also go down the route of podcast ad networks for your advertisements. Not only do they provide a solution to finding deals, but they also do a lot of the heavy lifting for you.

The role of a podcast ad network includes:

· Finding the right advertisers

· Negotiating deals

· Obtaining any relevant documents i.e. scripts

Ad networks typically set a minimum threshold of monthly listeners before you can use their services.

✴ Popular Advertising Networks

There's no doubt that advertising is one of the best ways to make money podcasting. Last year alone, advertisers spent $678 million, with trends suggesting that they will spend more than $1 billion by the end of 2020.

But how do you find the best network? Who can you trust to get you the best deal? Some good places to find advertisement contracts are listed below.

· Podcorn

· Midroll

· Ad Results Media

· True Native Media

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

Despite being an often-overlooked strategy, crowdfunding is an excellent way to make money podcasting. When you employ this method, you are essentially asking your audience to help fund the podcast, either through donations or by purchasing premium content.

Asking your listeners for money may seem rather unusual, but if your podcast and personality are interesting and enjoyable, most people will happily donate a few dollars to keep the great content coming.

Setting up a crowdfunding page is extremely easy, especially when you use platforms like Patreon. It’s an excellent way to provide your audience with premium content both as a reward and form of gratitude for their donations. You could charge your listeners for early access to episodes, bonus clips, and interactive chats. This type of approach will keep them engaged and feeling like an integral part of the experience.

There’s also a host of other crowdfunding platforms you can leverage for podcast donations besides Patreon. These include:

· PayPal

· Stripe

· GoFundMe

· JustGiving

✴ Merchandise & Services

Merchandise is another good way to generate extra income from your podcast. Once you’ve done the hard yards to build up your followers through frequent content of the highest quality, it opens up a world of opportunities to cash in on all that value you’re adding.

Loyal fans are generally eager to support more than just your audio content. They’ll be just as excited to get their hands on t-shirts, hoodies, mugs or any other types of products that feature your cool logo or slogan.

If you don’t want to deal with the hassle of having to find designers and suppliers in addition to handling physical stock, another good option is to provide specialist services to your audience.

When you’re very knowledgeable on a subject and consistently have people tuning in to hear what you have to say, you can start thinking about turning the situation into an income source. Coaching or consulting services for a fee are two great strategies. You’ll just need to figure out the most ideal way to package your services so that you can attract more paying customers.

From there, all there is left to do is shout out about the amount of value your services add through strategic an sustained marketing. Just like that you’ll have created another way to make money podcasting.

✴ There You Have! That’s How to Make Money Podcasting

Nothing quite beats getting paid for doing what you love. The good news is that there are numerous proven strategies you can use to achieve this ultimate goal with your podcast. Whether it’s affiliate marketing, sponsorships and advertisements, crowdfunding or selling your very own custom merch, the opportunities are there to make a living off an enjoyable passion.

But like anything that’s really worth it, the road ahead will not always be easy. Your initial focus should be on producing high quality content that your niche just can’t get enough of. Before you know it, your audience will be bigger and more engaged than you ever imagined, and the money will be rolling in.

Feeling like a money-making machine? Check out these other strategies for growing your podcast.

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