A new episode of #MakeMoneyPodcasting is out and I break down my SMASH Framework -- a way to figure out how to make money with your podcast 🧵
S is for Sponsorship. The most common way people think of to monetize their podcast because it’s the most visible. You get a company to give you money to advertise on your show.
M is for Membership. Another commonly known way to monetize. Instead of asking potential sponsors, you ask your listeners to directly support the show, usually in exchange for some members-only benefits.
A if for Affiliate Links. This is the lowest barrier to entry but may take time to get a decent income. You sign up for affiliate programs of products you commonly recommend, and you get a cut of each sale from people who click your link.
S if for Selling (Products/Services). I feel is the least-used way to monetize a podcast. You, using the podcast to prove your expertise, sell directly to your audience.
H is for Helping (Courses/Coaching). Similar to Selling, you use you podcast to land consulting clients, coaching clients, or sell your online courses. This could be a little easier than selling since you can have a podcast that does exactly what your “helping” service does.
One of these 5 methods is a sure way to help you make your first $100, $1,000, or even $10,000 with your podcast.
1. Don’t sweat the audio quality too much — it should be listenable, but you don’t need to sound like NPR.
2. Your show can be something other than a long-form interview. I recommend shorter solo shows to begin with because you can control the schedule more.
If you're a podcaster, you don't want to miss this week's @howibuilt with @hellosammunoz. She successfully monetizes her podcast through her mentorship program. Here are the top takeaways:
@howibuilt@hellosammunoz Sam's product is so perfectly aligned with her audience that she's able to sell directly to them. She provides fantastic free content that creates trust and attracts the right people.
@howibuilt@hellosammunoz Whenever Sam thinks about free content, she tries to connect it back to her paid offerings. If you’re doing something for your business it should be in the service of making your business succeed. In other words, it's OK to make money!
Need an easy podcast episode idea? Do a Behind the Scenes episode. Here's why it works 👇
People love peeking behind the curtain. It helps them get a concrete look at how you do things, and by extension, how they can do things.
Show your listeners how you built a product, service, or process. Be detailed about it! It will prove that you think through your problems to find good solutions. This is another trust-builder.
I've been getting a few questions about how I do my YouTube thumbnails, which I've been spending more of my own time on.
Here's why. 🧵
Thumbnails are SUPER important. According to YouTube, 90% of top performing videos use a custom thumbnail. There's a great video from Veritasium about the importance of "clickbait":
It's not just YouTube either. Netflix knows they have less than 2 seconds to convince users to watch anything, so they spend a TON of time on thumbnails. Here's an incredible thread on that: