Make money with your podcast: 5 ideas

You get a lot of enjoyment from your podcast, but not much money. Sound familiar? How do you change that? How do you earn money from your podcast without letting your audience down? This guide walks you through it.

A good sponsor can really make your podcast feel more professional. Have you ever heard a podcast say, "This podcast is sponsored by Company A"? You think, "Well, they're doing pretty well."

1. Find a sponsor for your podcast

The best way to generate income from your podcast is by finding a sponsor.

Benefits of having a sponsor:

• Quick results:
  You can draw up a contract and start receiving money right away.
• You can work together for longer:
  Choose whether to agree on short-term or long-term sponsorship.
• You can support each other:
  When everything fits, the partnership is a win-win. You're a good match, your audience appreciates the sponsor, you feel more motivated to keep podcasting, and the sponsor's products serve your audience. That's ideal.
• It can give your podcast a professional image

Do think carefully about whether a company is right for you. Does its service fit your topic? Does its product suit your audience? That matters a lot. But I'm sure you're already keeping that in mind.

Of course, the ideal sponsor offers something useful to your listeners. Do you have a podcast about cosmetics and beauty? A makeup brand could be the perfect match. Do you have an iron addict fitness podcast? Then a partnership with a makeup brand obviously isn't a match.

Can't connect your audience directly to a particular product? Maybe you're being too specific. It's fine to look a little more broadly.

Think a little more broadly, as in the example above. Everyone listens to podcasts with earbuds. So partner with a reputable earbud retailer.

Should you jump in blindly? Absolutely not. Your podcast is closely associated with you as a person and creator.

How to check whether a sponsor is right for you:

• Check your potential sponsor's service
  Buy something from your prospective sponsor. Then ask customer service a question 1 week after your purchase. How does the shop or service provider handle your question? The service needs to be genuinely good. If it isn't, you're better off passing on the partnership. Your sponsor's actions affect your reputation.
• Check whether your audiences overlap.
  You and your sponsor can often help each other. If the sponsor's product is ideal for your audience, you've found a good match.

Everything needs to fit so well that it doesn't even feel like sponsorship to your audience. If it benefits your audience and your sponsor, it benefits you too.

2. Indirect income from your podcast

Don't forget that your podcast often brings in indirect income too. Someone who started listening 4 months ago might only buy your product or service today.

Your podcast is often about something you're passionate about, so your professional field is often connected to the topic you discuss with your listeners.

It's fine to gently mention your service or product here and there. What's wrong with that? I'm assuming your product offers your audience something worthwhile. In that case, there's nothing wrong with recommending it.

You can also talk about previous clients. Say you run a coaching business. Your past clients' life experiences can be very valuable, as long as you don't break GDPR rules, of course. You can include those experiences in your episodes. Don't name names, but do share the story.

Your podcast could turn some listeners into clients. If you sell an expensive product, even a very small audience can be worthwhile. With a cheaper product, you may need more listeners to earn a reasonable amount indirectly from your podcast.

3. Sell something on your podcast

You can make it even more direct: sell something yourself on your podcast.

All you need is a product and a sales channel.

This way of monetizing your podcast has drawbacks too. For example:

• It can come across as very pushy
• Listeners may see your recommendation as self-serving rather than credible
• Listeners may feel that you're sharing your message to make money rather than to help them

Of course, you can address all these drawbacks. It comes down to how you present your message. Always be honest. For example, if it's true, you could say: "Yes, this is my own product, but I'd never recommend it if I wouldn't use it myself." Here, as always, honesty is the best policy.

4. Affiliate marketing on your podcast

You can also add affiliate links to your show notes for highly relevant products.

Pay close attention to the rules of each platform you publish on. Spotify has specific rules.

Spotify allows affiliate links as long as you follow its rules. Those rules are all pretty straightforward. So yes, you can include links in your show notes.

Apple podcasters can include links too. That's another option you can use.

Again, make sure you recommend products that suit your listeners.

Have you ever thought about recommending earbuds to your listeners? You can join the Eardopes affiliate program and use your unique links to direct people to our earbuds.

The good thing is that you can try our earbuds and return them afterward. That makes it a risk-free purchase for your listeners. Your commission is also much higher than with other programs. Just keep in mind that we approve only 25% of applications.

5. Donations

Podcasts and YouTube channels driven by a real passion often rely on donations.

Benefits:

• You don't pay tax on a donation
• You don't need to offer anything in return, apart from your podcast, of course

This often works very well with a passionate audience. Whatever you think of it, there are plenty of podcasters today who worry about the future. Interestingly, it doesn't matter which side of the political spectrum you look at: there's plenty of dissatisfaction. Those podcasts depend on donations, partly because they're excluded from official monetization programs.

These audiences often care deeply about the topic. The more your audience also forms an online or offline community, the better this income model works.

In our view, donations also come with some responsibility. You can explain what you'll use the money for, for example.

There are also websites and providers that let you earn recurring income from donations. Examples include backme.org and petjeaf.com.

Guests who pay to appear

Appearing on a podcast appeals to a lot of people. It depends on how much business potential your topic has. Some topics have more economic value than others.

A podcast about grilling could interest someone who sells grills through Bol. A knitting podcast could be very appealing to someone with an online knitting course.

Again, always make sure the guest suits your audience. They need to be a genuine extension of your topic. Don't compromise on that.

It's also fairly common to sign a confidentiality agreement confirming that you won't actively disclose that the guest paid to appear. That could be embarrassing for a guest, and some guests want a signed agreement.

One of the best-known people to have used this income model on TV for years is Harry Mens. He has a fairly strong target audience: wealthy people. Wine producers and investment funds are eager to appear on his show, paying large sums to promote their products.

You can do this too. If your topic is interesting enough, you can charge guests to appear.

Useful tips for podcast income

All in all, there are quite a few ways to make money from your podcast. You do need to be careful. But once you've found a good approach, a whole world of possibilities opens up.

Choose a partnership that suits you

It's important to choose a sponsor that suits both you and your audience. Make sure they offer good products and services, and that they handle orders and service properly too.

If your sponsor isn't trustworthy, neither are you

Remember, you shouldn't partner with just anyone. You need to trust your sponsor 110%. That's how you protect your own reputation.

Can potential partners find you?

Another useful tip: make sure your ideal partner knows you're looking for a sponsor. Put another way, how does your ideal sponsor know you're looking for them?

Think about it: you've landed on this page because I'm creating this place for you to find me. I'm helping you learn how to make money from your podcast, in this case through a blog post.

But what are you doing to let potential sponsors know you're looking for them?

For example, simply mention on your podcast that you're open to sponsorship. As a creator, you might think that feels awkward, but it doesn't have to be. In that episode, you can also explain who your audience is, how the podcast is developing, and so on. Spotify is a search engine too. An episode called "Looking for a podcast sponsor" could attract relevant audiences.

Find money or happiness in your podcast and guests

Consider that you probably already earn money from your podcast. I'm assuming it brings you into contact with people in your audience or field, such as guests and listeners. You learn from those conversations. You can use those lessons in the future, and that often leads to income. Don't underestimate it. Someone might recommend a book that you then read, and the knowledge you gain could help you earn a lot of money. It's all possible.