4 Proven Methods to Earn from Podcasts

Podcasts are quite popular in the current day and age. There are various for which they are developed. 

Some people use it to voice their opinions while some use it to earn money. 

However, in the post, we’ll focus on the latter. We’ll discuss different methods people use to earn from their podcasts on a weekly or monthly basis along with other benefits. 

Without further ado, let’s get started. 

4 Unique Ways to Earn from Your Podcasts

You might already know this but podcasts can be used as an active or passive source of income. It depends on how seriously you want to pursue it. 

With that said, let’s see the different methods to earn from podcasts: 

Sponsors

The most common way to earn from a podcast is through sponsorships. In fact, the biggest podcasts around the world solely survive on their sponsors. 

A sponsor can ask for anything to incorporate their brand in your podcast. It can be a mid-roll ad, clever product placement, or even just a name tag. 

It all depends on how much money you want to earn. 

How much money can I earn from sponsors?

You can earn anywhere between $5/ad to $150/ad in a single podcast episode. This rate also depends on where you place the ad. 

Sponsors are usually willing to pay more for pre-roll or mid-roll ads. Mainly because it ensures that their ad reaches your listeners. 

Whereas, post-roll ads always pay less because they are at the end of a podcast. 

Community Support

Most small to mid-scale podcasts are supported by the community and fans. Since sponsors want a large fan base for a good deal, community support is the next best thing.

This sort of support can come from a variety of channels. You can establish a Patreon account and offer memberships or use Ko-fi to gather donations from your fans. 

You can check our separate reviews of Patreon and Ko-fi by clicking on the respective links. Moreover, we also have a comparison of Patreon vs Ko-fi in detail.

How much can I earn from the direct support of the community?

It depends on the demographic of your fan base and the frequency of uploads. 

If your podcast is targeted toward adults in their 30s, there is a high chance that most of them earn on their own. They can easily donate money or buy memberships offered by you. 

Your upload frequency also plays an important part. If your uploads are weekly, you can keep your community engaged. 

This way, your fans will be committed and willing to pay you via donations. 

Can I use something other than Patreon or Ko-fi?

Of course, you can. Some podcasts also use PayPal for direct donations. 

Affiliate Marketing

You can use your podcast as a platform for another brand to sell its products. Unlike sponsorships, you get paid based on sales made through your affiliate link. 

Most podcast owners prefer this way because it offers a lot of potential. Since there is no upper ceiling, you can earn up to thousands of dollars per month.  

What strategy should I choose to promote affiliate links?

Well, there is no hard and fast rule for it. You can implement any strategy that matches your fan base. 

Some podcasts promote their affiliate links with a personalized ad embedded in each episode. 

For example, many podcasts promote Audible in the form of a 15-30 second pre-roll ad. But they are paid for the number of clicks made through their link. 

What is potential earning through affiliate marketing?

You can anywhere between $100 to $5000 per month. It depends on what sort of deal you land. Some podcasts get $5/click while some go as high as $50/click. 

Merchandise

Lastly, you can earn from a podcast by selling various products related to it. This includes merchandise, various books, or something simple as an autograph. 

You can pretty much sell anything as long as it is related to your podcast. This method is used by almost every mid to high-profile podcast. 

Why is the concept of merchandise so popular?

People often choose to buy merchandise because it brings a sense of association. Besides that, it enables them to support their favorite content creator. 

How to Enhance the Quality of Your Podcast?

There are a number of ways you can implement to level up the content quality of your podcast. Let’s check some of them out:

• Buy better equipment. You can run a podcast with the bare minimum but using better equipment can significantly boost your audio quality for the listeners. 

• Don’t get too technical. No matter how advanced your topic is, always use simple language and terms for your listeners. 

• Always keep the flow of conversation linear. This way, your listeners can easily keep track of what is being discussed. 

• Place ads before the start of your podcast or after it ends. It will enable your listeners to listen without any interruption. 

Although these are some basics to improve the quality, by no means these methods are the only ones. You can always improvise and adapt to further improve your content. 

Important Tips to Keep in Mind

Now, let’s check out some things you should keep in check for your podcast and content creation in general:

• Keep a script at hand. This can help you grab the attention of your listeners and attract new listeners as well. 
• Always start small. Most people try to land big sponsors right when they start a podcast. This can come as a negative thing for any sponsor you approach.
• Keep up with upcoming sponsors. New brands are always looking for platforms to promote their product. Good knowledge of trends can help you land them easily. 

Final Thoughts…

With this, we come to the end of today’s post on proven methods to earn from podcasts. We hope you can use this information to capitalize on monetary gains. 

While podcasts are quite popular among the current generation, it can be hard to earn from them. However, you can still improvise and adapt to create an income stream from them. 

Feel free to contact us in the comments below.