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What's the best way a podcaster can make money?

News Type: Other — Wed Apr 12, 2006 8:06 PM EDT
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Creating a podcast is not very difficult, sustaining it is. I'm not talking about one small little audio podcast but a network of them including vidcasts (videocast). Financially it can be draining depending on how much disk space and bandwidth you take up. I've noticed four ways people have attacked this problem to have an ongoing podcast(s).

1) Have a full time job
This is what most podcasters are doing to keep their podcast alive. The great thing about this is that you don't have to put ads all over your podcast and website. Also you have easy access to funds (if your wife lets you). The bad, you won't have too much time to spend on your podcast. Also if your podcast becomes too popular you may have to choose between buying food or releasing a new episode. Bandwidth can become very expensive.

2) Have ads in your podcast
You can make a lot of money like this but the only problem is that you need a popular podcast. If you have a few listeners I doubt companies will be banging at your door. Also how many people find it annoying to hear ads in a podcast?

3) Donations
Asking your users to donate money can generate a good income. But I was listening to TWIT and they mention that they have about 400,000 listeners, which only 1% of them donate money. How many times and how much is one person willing to donate to a podcast?

4) Affiliate programs
I've seen some podcasters using affiliate programs, which may be a good idea because people buy things online all the time. The problem here is that if someone wants to buy something online they usually go directly to that website. I doubt a person will remember to go to their favorite podcast's website, click on an affiliate link and them buy something. Also signing up for a lot of affiliate programs is a pain.

What do you think is a good way to support a podcast? Do you have any other suggestion a podcaster can do?

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{"commentId":94653,"authorDomain":"wagi"}
Wagi

I don't want to toot my own horn but I'm developing a website to make number 4 a little easier. If you want to check it out email me and I'll email you the url. If you think this comment is inappropriate let me know and I'll delete it.

{"commentId":94653,"threadId":"10256","contentId":"164842","authorDomain":"wagi"}
  • 2 votes
Reply#1 - Wed Apr 12, 2006 8:11 PM EDT
{"commentId":95571,"authorDomain":"smaran"}
Smaran

Email away Wagi. My podcast could use some life-jackets.

{"commentId":95571,"threadId":"10256","contentId":"164842","authorDomain":"smaran"}
  • 1 vote
#1.1 - Thu Apr 13, 2006 3:18 PM EDT
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{"commentId":94865,"authorDomain":"DrJuice"}
Dr Juice

I think you hit all of them, and personally I don't think podcasting has hit the point where any of these are particularly viable options. TWiT doesn't seem to need as much money as a brand new podcast: Leo seems to have already had most of the equipment or gotten some hookups (i.e., with the new microphones) and AOL has taken care of the bandwidth costs - though I don't know what he has to pay to keep the TWiT site up and running.

Diggnation has sponsors, but they've also got Digg.com and Revision3 generating revenue to help keep them going. And Kevin and Alex have day jobs.

What's New Now and DL.TV (both from PC Magazine) are put out by a major corporation (Ziff Davis) and they have ads. I actually don't mind these ads, there are only 3-4 blocks of advertisements per episode, and the ads are relatively short. Furthermore most of their ads seem to be for other PC Magazine or Ziff Davis related stuff.

I think podcasting is great, I'm just not sure there is potential for a truly profitable model to arise. At this point it seem that it's either a hobby that people do because they enjoy it, or a potential marketing avenue for corporations.

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  • 1 vote
Reply#2 - Wed Apr 12, 2006 11:41 PM EDT
{"commentId":94892,"authorDomain":"strongbad"}
Sean Balsiger

The best way to make money off of a podcast is to be Ricky Gervais and get iTunes to sell it. :)

{"commentId":94892,"threadId":"10256","contentId":"164842","authorDomain":"strongbad"}
    Reply#3 - Thu Apr 13, 2006 12:17 AM EDT
    {"commentId":94916,"authorDomain":"DrJuice"}
    Dr Juice

    How's that working out for him?

    {"commentId":94916,"threadId":"10256","contentId":"164842","authorDomain":"DrJuice"}
      #3.1 - Thu Apr 13, 2006 12:43 AM EDT
      {"commentId":95051,"authorDomain":"cyron"}
      Cyron

      I honestly think that for the typical podcaster, the answer is something similar to Ricky Gervais, but combining some of the elements outlined by Wagi in the original article.

      Have an ad supported version, and then for those who are willing to either subscribe and/or donate (depending on your financial needs/preferences) give them a version without ads.

      More people will be inclined to donate, because not only do they get warm fuzzies for supporting something they like, but they get something out of it as well. It also doesn't make a big hit on your current listener base, or make it impossible to build up, which subscription models are want to do.

      {"commentId":95051,"threadId":"10256","contentId":"164842","authorDomain":"cyron"}
        #3.2 - Thu Apr 13, 2006 7:35 AM EDT
        {"commentId":95053,"authorDomain":"jimmiejo"}
        Jimmiejo

        His first season, the free one, is still number one on iTunes podcast section. And his second season, the charged one, has all 6 of it's episodes in the top 10 of the audiobooks section. So I'd say he's not doing too bad.

        {"commentId":95053,"threadId":"10256","contentId":"164842","authorDomain":"jimmiejo"}
          #3.3 - Thu Apr 13, 2006 7:38 AM EDT
          Reply
          {"commentId":95157,"authorDomain":"fastfinge"}
          fastfinge

          So are we going to start having drm podcasts, so I can't skip the ads? Because that's when I stop listening.

          {"commentId":95157,"threadId":"10256","contentId":"164842","authorDomain":"fastfinge"}
            Reply#4 - Thu Apr 13, 2006 9:50 AM EDT
            {"commentId":95234,"authorDomain":"wagi"}
            Wagi

            Cyron, that's a good point. I hope podcast don't with the subscription models, that will really suck.

            {"commentId":95234,"threadId":"10256","contentId":"164842","authorDomain":"wagi"}
              Reply#5 - Thu Apr 13, 2006 11:02 AM EDT
              {"commentId":95302,"authorDomain":"nation"}
              Nation

              no, what will suck is your favorite podcast ending because the person runs out of time and or energy.

              Podcasters need to make money, and need to be supported, or the podcasts will be "less stable". They will come out less frequently and not be as consistent. They will cater to whoever gives them money (in the long run all organizations need money to flow into them, it's the lifeblood).

              So the question is (and I have posed this before here on newsvine): Who do you want the podcasts to serve? Advertisers? End listeners?

              Either answer is fine, but whoever gives the money is who they will have to make happy or the money will stop flowing and the podcast will die/be reduced.

              {"commentId":95302,"threadId":"10256","contentId":"164842","authorDomain":"nation"}
              • 1 vote
              #5.1 - Thu Apr 13, 2006 11:53 AM EDT
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