As a business owner who is trying to impact the world with your message are you struggling with how to profit from your podcast?
I know I certainly did when I started my podcast in 2008 with my co-hosted show – Career Success Radio.
We started the podcast to inspire hope and possibility for job seekers across the globe, following the global financial crisis.
There were tens of thousands of people who found themselves standing in unemployment queues, along with dozens of other discouraged and very anxious people. And, sadly that number was being added to on a daily basis.
My co-host and I did everything right when it came to producing our podcast.
- We shared awesome content our ideal customers (listeners) loved and therefore came back to listen, week after week;
- We built incredible relationships with our guests – other Career Experts and stakeholders in our industry from across the globe;
- We continued to build engagement with our listeners and build our audience across various social media platforms.
- We promoted our podcast any chance we got and continued to see a steady increase in listener numbers across the globe.
Yet, despite our efforts we still struggled to profit from our podcast.
No new clients, no sponsors, no steady income what-so-ever, despite the hours (and hours) of work we put into creating each episode.
We even spent time with a mentor, who we hoped could guide us.
However, because podcasting was relatively new at that time, (and more often than not we would have to explain to people what a podcast actually was) no-one had any sound advice or strategies on how we could successfully monetize our podcast.
So, we struggled to generate any profit from any of the podcast episodes over the two years we produced the show.
Fast-forward to today, and thankfully that has changed.
After 10 years of experience in hosting and producing many more podcasts and podcast series, along with my two decades in branding and communications, I’ve been able to see the gaps in what my co-host and I were doing. Or, should I say NOT doing.
I’ve since created (what I now call) the Podcast Profit Framework, which includes six crucial steps to not only create a podcast that will build brand awareness and position you as an authority in your industry, however will also enable you to monetize and profit from your podcast.
Note: I follow each of these steps with my own podcasts which are part of the The Ambitious Entrepreneur Podcast Network’s program lineup; my clients podcasts and Alliance Partners podcasts, which we host and produce; and what we teach all of our clients going through our Podcasting With Purpose Program.
Let’s have a closer look at TWO of the steps from the Podcast Profit Framework, which are crucial if you want to profit from your podcast.
PODCAST PROFIT FRAMEWORK – STAGE 1: PURPOSE
While valuable content is important for your podcast, even more so from a ‘creating profit from your podcast’ viewpoint is having a clear direction on the steps required that will enable you to eventually profit from your podcast.
This is something my co-host and I never really did. We just assumed (i.e. hoped) people would listen and be so impressed, they’d want to learn more about each of us. Sadly, that never happened.
I don’t want that to happen to you, so here are a few things you need to consider:
- What industry and specific area of expertise do you want to become known as an Authority in?
- Which topics will you feature on your podcast to ensure you continue to build brand awareness and an influential voice in that specific area in which YOU want to become known as THE go to person?
- Will you share that information yourself (so more of a lecture style format) or will you invite guests onto your show? Or will your format involve a combination of both?
- Have you got a clear plan and strategy as to WHAT you want your listeners to do after they have listened to your podcast episode?
Speaking of listeners (i.e. your ideal client):
- Who are they and what challenges/issues are they faced with? Can you sum this up in one succinct sentence?
- What solution are they looking for? Does this align with the solution YOU offer?
- Do they typically invest in these solutions, or will your Profit Pipeline require a longer time-frame in order to nurture them into a lead and ultimately paying client?
These are just some of the things you’ll need to get clear on if you want to profit from your podcast.
PODCAST PROFIT FRAMEWORK – STAGE 6: PROFIT
As business owners (and marketers) we know that it can take 7 to 12 touch points, or more, in some cases, before your ideal client reaches out to make contact with you.
This means any additional strategy you have in place to build brand awareness and authority in your industry, needs to align with the message you’re sharing on your podcast.
When you add to that an integrated brand awareness strategy – you can build ‘know, like and trust’ relatively quickly.
In 2015, I launched Women in Leadership Podcast with only three shows published. After finding links to my website on Google, two people contacted me to find out how they could work with me. After listening to the three podcasts and reading a few of my articles – they knew they wanted to work with me. A brief phone call and finding out exactly what their issues were and the outcome they were looking for, they both signed up for one of my 4-figure Signature Brand coaching packages.
Keep in mind that the three podcasts were not me sharing my expertise, but rather me interviewing guests, however because of my interviewing skills, the value I added to the conversation on the podcast, I was able to build a level of credibility in their eyes (or should I say ears) that confirmed I was the person they wanted to work with.
This happens regularly, because of the integrated profit-building strategies I have in place with each of my podcast.
For starters you need to consider:
- What’s the ONE step (i.e. Call to Action) you want listeners to take? If you’re not clear on what that is, how can you expect your listeners to know what that is? (Don’t be tempted to put too many Calls to Action into your podcast episode. An overwhelmed mind does nothing).
- Are you going to mention the same Call to Action on every episode? Or will you only mention it alternately?
- While it can take 7-12 touch points, ensure your strategy encourages people to get off your podcast and onto your list, where you can continue to build ‘know, like and trust.’
- And, once they are on your list, what relationship-building and nurturing strategy do you have in place to continue providing real value, while also strengthening your relationship with your new connection?
These too are crucial if you want to profit from your podcast.
During one of my mentoring sessions with a newbie podcast host, we mapped out a few strategies on how she could monetize her podcast. Within two days of getting clear and intentional with her profit process, she enrolled a podcast listener into one of her $1,000 packages.
BOOM!
That’s #PodcastingWithPurpose. That’s how to profit with your podcast.
Want to learn how to Stand Out, Be Heard and become an Influential Voice in your Industry
with a podcast and/or podcast series? Access our free Podcasting With Purpose Minitraining
Want to learn how to Stand Out, Be Heard and become an Influential Voice in your Industry
with a podcast and/or podcast series? Access our free Podcasting With Purpose Minitraining
Related Tag: How to Make Your Own Podcast