Seeking out podcast business growth is the eventual goal of every podcaster. Whether you started your podcast as a sole venture or you always had plans for more than podcasts in the digital ecosystem, growth comes your way with time, experience, and expertise in the industry.
If you’ve been looking for the advantages of startups with podcasts or you’re digging into podcasts and ad spending, the first step is striving for podcast business growth. The opportunities will show up the more you look for them and the more steps forward you take.
In this Mr. Thrive blog, we’ll take a peek at some of the best ways to instigate podcast business growth and find your future. From creating a podcast blog to offering marketing consulting services, you have lots of options. Read on to find the best podcast business growth options for you and your podcast.
Areas of Podcast Business Growth
The potential areas of podcast business growth are multifaceted, covering podcast ventures and adjacent business ideas. The sectors of potential podcast business growth are as diverse as the funnels of ROI for podcasts. This stems from the fact that business growth can come from a podcast, but it can also go in the direction of business ventures feeding into podcasts.
Because of this two-way street of podcast business growth, you can find growth opportunities anywhere throughout your business. We’ll get into some of the best options for podcast business growth shortly. Even with our list in mind let creativity take the wheel when it comes to seeking out new ways to grow your podcast business.
10 Ways to Use Your Podcast As a Jumping-Off Point
Whatever direction you’re taking with your podcast business growth, the key is everything you do should have a why, a reason that makes it worthwhile. Are you trying to gain new followers? Do you have financial goals, such as making $1,000,000 a year? Do you want to partner with other brands to become a household name?
Having that goal in mind helps you find the right business growth methods. These 10 options can help you achieve your goals in different ways. If you’re still figuring out the direction you want to go, pick a few of these and see what moves your podcast business in a positive and productive direction.
10. Sell Merchandise
Selling merchandise is an excellent stepping stone into the world of monetizing your podcast business. Choose a few items, like hats, t-shirts, and mugs. From there, find a place–there are many options online–that will print your logo on these items. It’s a quick way to get branded merchandise. Find a spot that prints as orders come in, so you don’t have to store merchandise.
9. Launch a Patreon
Privatized content is a useful technique for making money and encouraging clients and customers to search for more of your business. A seamless option for privatized content is launching a Patreon account. With Patreon, you can release content and interact with your audience, with the benefit of making a profit through each Patreon subscriber you have.
8. Provide Consulting Services
Consulting services are one of the most versatile services you can sell as a business owner and niche expert. Whatever your niche is, remind yourself every day that you have expert experience people will pay to learn from in a consultation setting. Your consulting clients have the potential to become more substantial clients for your business.
7. Create Gated Online Resources
Gated online resources, like eBooks and guides, are another clever form of profits and brand building. The main work of creating gated online resources comes from the collecting of your blog posts or other substantial content. Edit your verbiage to avoid duplicating content directly. The gated aspect can come from sharing content by email, to build up your email database.
6. Sell Courses On Your Expertise
Selling courses on your expertise is the next step up from gated online resources and consulting services. Selling courses is primarily a more intensive version of offering gated resources. You can record seminars or put together coursework to give people extensive access to your expertise.
5. Create a Blog
Creating a blog is another way of providing consistent, useful content for your audience, current clients, and prospects. Be sure to use SEO best practices to create a blog that will rank well and increase your web traffic. If you’re looking to hire a blog writer to take the reigns on this project, Mr. Thrive’s network of content creators is an email away.
4. Launch a Networking Group
If one of your key goals for your podcast business growth is to build your community, launching a networking group is made for you. To monetize this choice you can charge a fee, along the lines of a subscription, for people to attend events. However, keeping this a free service will draw in more people and help you steadily grow your community.
3. Sell Digital Products
Selling digital products pairs perfectly with many other options on this list, including offering courses and gated content online. When it comes to selling digital products some good options are digital workbooks and business structure guides that people can use for their purposes after they’ve purchased them. Remember to watermark these items to avoid digital theft.
2. Offer Ad Space
Offering ad space is an old-reliable revenue source in the podcast industry. If you’re not already working with advertisers, you should be. If you are, upping your availability helps businesses know you’re seeking out partnerships.
1. Start a Marketing and Podcast Production Business
Starting a marketing and podcast production business is one of the heftiest options on this list. It will take time, planning, and a great deal of work on the other ideas listed here. Speaking from experience–the Mr. Thrive experience, that is–we can tell you this will help you grow your business, your network, and your overall appreciation for and expertise with podcasts.
Frequently Asked Questions About Business Growth From Podcasts
Finding avenues for podcast business growth is an ongoing process. You can find more insight into business growth solutions in our answers to these frequently asked questions. You can also find solutions by diving into the state of your digital ecosystem with Mr. Thrive’s free digital ecosystem audit. Our custom SWOT analysis helps you find your areas of business potential.
How Do Podcasters Make Money?
Podcasters make money through a variety of direct and indirect revenue sources, including:
- Profits from sponsorships and used ad space
- Profits from merchandise sales
- Revenue from consulting services
These are three of the primary podcast revenue sources. The ideas expanded on throughout this blog post all add up to secondary forms of revenue. You can seek out alternative revenue sources through your podcast when you look at the options for profits with an open mind.
What Is the Value of Podcasts In Business?
The business value of podcasts is the voice they bring to the structure of your brand. Brand building and maintenance are at the crux of all business ventures. You need a strong brand identity to carry your business and give you a tone of behavior to rely on. Adding the podcast medium to your business gives you that much more room to build out your brand.
Can You Make a Business Out Of a Podcast?
Yes, you can make a business out of a podcast! You can fully lean into the podcast show and monetize it through advertisements, sponsorships, and subscriptions. You can sell merchandise and offer consulting services in your area of expertise. You could create a marketing and podcast production company. All that goes to say, there are many podcast business options!
Is a Podcast Considered a Business?
A podcast is considered a business if it’s making money or has the potential to be making money. A business is, on a basic level, a way of making a profit. Once your podcast shows monetization potential, in any way, it starts to become a business. Legally, you don’t have to sort out a business license at that point, but it’s the time to start thinking about business growth.
Do You Need a License to Have a Podcast?
No, you don’t need a license to have a podcast, but as you plan business advancements licensing will become necessary. If you’re starting a podcast, just as a show, you don’t need to worry about licensing. As soon as you make the decision to create a full-blown business, however, you need to get set up with a business license.
Business Growth From Podcasts: Where Will Your Podcast Take You?
Podcast business growth can come from any area of your podcast industry and area of interest. Are you looking to become a marketing consultant? Do you want to sell podcast creation courses online? Perhaps you’re interested in creating a wider digital ecosystem to build up your brand online.
Whatever the case may be, Mr. Thrive Media can help. Our team of marketing experts, podcast production pros, and ready-to-hire virtual assistants can help transform your podcast into the business of your dreams. Now until October 14, 2023, we’re offering a free digital ecosystem audit, to help work out any kinks in your podcast and business. Sign up today!