Podcasting is great.

It gives you a chance to spread your message, connect with your audience, and interview amazing people.

But how do you make money with a podcast?

Well, that’s what this post is all about.

And I’ll share with you the exact strategy I use with my Modern Marketing podcast, that added an extra six figures to my revenue.

It’s no secret that if you don’t already have a podcast, you may want to consider starting one.

And, if you have one, well, these strategies are going to be that much easier to implement.

Because as great as a podcast is for your brand or your business, it’s the ability it has to generate revenue that really makes it a powerful marketing tool.

Here are four strategies that you can use to make money with your podcast…

(Including the main one that I’ve used in my business to add an extra six figures to the revenue):

 

Podcast Money Maker #1: Sponsorship

This one is kinda obvious, but it’s still worth mentioning, especially as it’s become more and more popular in our industry and podcasting in general.

The concept of getting a sponsor is actually really simple.

Basically, someone sponsors your show, and in exchange you give them a shoutout or tribute, or they’ll get a spot on the show.

You, as a podcast host (or an owner or creator of the podcast) are essentially being rewarded for the fact that you have a podcast.

But, the amount of revenue you’re gonna be able to generate, or the amount the sponsor is willing to pay is going to vary.

This is based on many different factors:

• The amount of listeners you have
• The type of business you have
• What market you’re in
• How long the podcast has been running

And all of those kind of factors.

Sponsorship is an absolutely great and viable way to make money with your podcast.

It doesn’t happen to be the way that I chose, ’cause I’m a bit of a control freak.

And I like to have a little more control over the podcast itself.

But, regardless, I’m certainly not against it and I’m certainly not discouraging it.

Podcast Money Maker #2: Paid Advertising

When it comes to running paid advertising, there’s a number of similarities and differences compared to sponsorship.

First of all, sponsorship tends to be a longer-term arrangement or agreement.

There also tends to be a bit more commitment involved.

With paid ads, what people are looking for is a transactional relationship (though they can buy space in bulk).

When it comes to running the paid ad, this can be recorded by the business that’s buying space on your show…

Or the podcast host can offer to record the ad for them, or just make a plug anytime throughout the show.

Common spots for plugs are at the beginning, somewhere near the middle, and at the end (not surprisingly).

Now just like with sponsorships, the amount you’re going to get for air time is going to vary.

Depending on your market, the niche, the listenership and all those other factors we already discussed.

Now when it comes to my podcast, I also don’t run paid ads.

But again, I’m certainly not against them, and they’re a viable tool if you’re looking to make an extra few bucks for your show.

Podcast Money Maker #3: Traffic

Now this one has a little bit of a catch associated with it.

Essentially what you’re doing here is you’re using your podcast to send traffic to what ever source that you want.

Which means that you’re probably gonna need somewhere to send it to.

Now, if you have a good product or a good service, and a good offer that’s already converting well…

Then this is like adding gasoline to the fire, by essentially giving more attention and more traffic wherever you want to send it.

In fact, even if you don’t have your own product or service, you can still use this method to drive traffic to affiliate sales, or join venture offers.

Or anything else where you’ll get a kickback from the sales or some of the traffic you send.

While I don’t make money directly from the traffic from my podcast, I can attribute a sizable amount of my revenue from traffic that has originated from listening to the podcast.

So, great strategy, and a very viable one if you already have a functional business.

Podcast Money Maker #4: Networking

This is what has really allowed me to build a profitable podcast.

Yes, the other three strategies are great.

Whether we’re running sponsorships, or paid ads, or using it for traffic.

But it is this strategy that’s really enabled the Modern Marketing Podcast to become a viable and crucial part of my business overall.

The beauty of this final strategy is in it’s simplicity.

Essentially it just involves being a good person who’s good at your business and offering value to other people.

Basically, the networking strategy involves making new connections with people that end up turning into fun, professional, and profitable relationships for you and your business.

Now, the key with running this networking strategy is that your podcast will have to have some element of an interview-style show.

So, if your podcast is based entirely around interviews, that’s fantastic.

But, if it’s a solo show, where it’s just you giving a monologue…

Well, you’re gonna have to find some way to incorporate other guests, or interviews, or experts, or something that will be able to get outside experts into your show.

The key with finding these guests is to make sure that they’re professional.

And they’re qualified.

And they’re essentially well-represented for the market that you’re serving.

The last thing you want is an irrelevant guest who doesn’t know about your topic, or isn’t an expert in their field, and isn’t providing value to your listeners.

Because that’s a quick way to lose them.

But the strategy overall is really simple:

Be kind.

Be professional.

Know your stuff.

Listen well.

And try to find out where they need help.

If you can be the one to help them, that’s fantastic.

And if not, that’s okay too.

You can recommend or refer them to someone that may be able to.

Try to serve and try to provide as much value as possible.

Both to your listeners, and to your guests.

So, this sounds a lot like networking…

You might be asking, “What makes this an effective strategy when it comes to the podcast?”

Well, let me give you a few reasons:

For starters, when you interview them on your podcast, you’re going to be having a discussion for about 30-60 minutes.

This build a tremendous amount of rapport.

You’re also giving them something of tremendous value, which is access to your audience, and a network to share their message.

(Which builds likability).

Lastly, you’re a subject matter expert, who really knows your stuff, and you’ve got a podcast to prove it, which builds trust.

When you put these all together, at the end of the podcast, and you’ve built a huge amount of know, like, and trust.

There’s no need to be pushy, there’s no need to be salesy, all you need to do is chat.

At the very least, you’ve built a powerful new connection, and maybe even a new friend.

All in all, a podcast is an amazing marketing tool to have in your arsenal.

It’s fun, relatively easy to set up, and if you implement the steps we talked about today, can also add to your business’s bottom line.

I think that’s a mic drop!