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In this episode weโll talk about what options a podcast with less than 1,000 listeners has for monetizing, the strength of a loyal and targeted audience and what Iโd do to share the value of my podcast with advertisers, even though I have a relatively small listener base.
Links in this Episode:
1. Listen to Ep. 40: The Podcaster's Guide to Making and Selling Your First Digital Product
https://morganfranklin.media/podcasters-guide-to-making-and-selling-your-first-digital-product/
2. Buy Your Customizable Podcast Media Kit:
https://podcastsforprofit.com/products/podcast-media-kit-and-rate-card
3. Want to sell a digital product? Use my free tool that sends you 10 ideas made for YOUR podcast:
https://form.jotform.com/Morgan_Franklin/podcast-digital-product
4. Find out more about Creators Jay Clouse and Lloyd George:
Jay Clouse:https://creatorscience.com/
Lloyd George: https://www.youtube.com/@LloydNotGeorge
Other Helpful Links:
๐ Work with Me 1:1 for Podcast Coaching:
https://morganfranklin.media/contact-morgan-franklin
๐ฉ๐ปโ๐ป Shop My Podcast Template Store:
https://podcastsforprofit.com
๐๐ฝ Let's connect! You can find me on LinkedIn, Pinterest, Instagram, Threads, and TikTok.
๐๐ปโโ๏ธ Questions? Comments? Ideas? Message Me:
morgan@morganfranklin.media
Creators and Guests
Host
Morgan Franklin
Morgan Franklin is a podcast producer, strategist and educator. Since 2020 Morgan has founded and produced multiple top ranking podcasts from the health industry to beauty. Featured everywhere from Good Morning America to Martha Stewart Living Morgan's passion and knowledge for branding and podcasting have helped countless business owners and brands grow their impact and bottom line podcasting. Morgan is the Founder of Podcasts for Profit and Morgan Franklin Media, in addition to host of Podcasts for Profit with Morgan Franklin.
What is Podcasts for Profit with Morgan Franklin | Podcasting Strategy for Podcasters?
If youโre ready to create a podcast that will align you with experts in your industry, position yourself as a trusted leader and create another source of revenue for your business youโre in the right place. Podcasts for Profit will help you create and grow a podcast that cuts through the noise of social media and speak directly to your target audience. Stop letting the algorithm determine your social marketing strategy. Stop letting trends dictate the kind of content youโre able to create. Hosted by expert podcast strategist, producer and educator: Morgan Franklin, Podcasts for Profit is your step-by-step guide to creating a podcast that will transform your business, opportunities and life.
Morgan Franklin: I remember my
first podcast got 100 followers
on Apple podcasts, and I
thought, I have cracked the code
on podcasting. I remember I was
on a vacation with my family,
and the podcast had about 15
episodes. I was on top of the
world. Now, what I didn't know
is that, in the eyes of most
advertisers and other podcasters
that actually knew what they
were doing, having 100 followers
on a podcast is about as useful
as having 100 followers on any
other platform. In this episode,
we'll talk about what options a
podcast with less than 1000
listeners has for monetizing the
strength of a loyal and targeted
audience, and what I do to share
the value of my podcast with
advertisers, even though I have
a relatively small listener
base. Hello and welcome to
podcast for profit. My name is
Morgan Franklin. I'm a Podcast
Producer, strategist and
educator. This podcast will help
you create and grow a podcast
that cuts through the noise of
social media and speaks directly
to your target audience. If
you're ready to create a podcast
that will align you with the
experts in your industry,
position yourself as a trusted
leader and create another source
of revenue for your business.
You're in the right place. You
know, making money on the
internet or anywhere for that
matter, is all about
intentionality. You're not gonna
make a six figure business by
accident, and you're not gonna
wake up one morning and your
podcast is worth $100,000 I
think the concept of virality
has tricked some people into
thinking that making content
isn't about intentionality and
hard work and serving your
audience. It's the luck of the
algorithm. And you know, while
some aspects of that might be
true for social media, it
couldn't be further from the
truth. For podcasts, there are
rare situations where someone
might stumble across your
podcast just organically,
without any effort or promotion
from you. But I'm telling you,
those instances are very, very
far and few between. But what
does this have to do with you
making money with a small
podcast audience, right from the
beginning, from day one, of you
either creating your podcast or
deciding that you do want to
make money from this podcast,
you have to think about the
value you can provide. This is
where intentionality comes into
the fold, and you have to be
laser focused on what you want.
So let's go back to Morgan that
summer in 2021 realizing on
vacation that her podcast has
100 followers. So let me explain
something about this podcast.
It's a community Lifestyle
podcast, and while we did have a
targeted audience, we didn't
have a targeted audience to make
money from, which is a very
important distinction you'll see
in just a minute. We were
providing value, but we weren't
providing a value that could
easily be turned into money. We
were focused on improving the
listener experience and not
really focusing on monetizing
this podcast. And again, this is
why having intentionality is so
important. Because for us, in
that moment that was okay. We
were growing a community of
listeners, and we weren't really
too concerned with making money
from them. Let's fast forward to
earlier this year, when I
started this podcast that you're
listening to right now. From day
one, I was focused on making
this podcast part of my client
outreach and my business
marketing. So looking at the
first 100 followers of this
podcast was essentially like
looking at 100 potential
customers for my business. Now
is that to say that all 100 of
my first podcast followers
became my clients? No, no way
I'd say somewhere between one
and five of them did. But that's
okay. Honestly, that's great.
The point I'm trying to get at
here is that your intentionality
and direction from day one is
critical to the long term
financial success of this
podcast, because if people are
coming for fun and entertainment
and to hang out, turning that
listener into a buyer is gonna
be a long road. Is it
impossible? No, of course not.
You buy from people that you're
just hanging out with on their
podcast all the time, but will
it take longer to convert them
into a buyer? Most likely, no
matter how you're trying to make
money with your podcast, there's
one thing all of us need to
remember. There is nothing more
important than having an
audience that knows likes and
trusts you for all my marketers
listening, I know this concept
has been burned into our brains,
but I think that that's one of
the most universal truths across
podcasting. People want to buy
from who they know like and
trust. But how do you do that?
How do you create an audience
that knows, likes and trusts you
from your podcast? First of all,
if you can get them to listen to
the podcast, I'd say that you're
at least halfway there. I mean,
I'd be hard pressed to think of
too many situations where I
listened to a podcast of someone
that I had no idea who they were
and I didn't like them. So let's
just kind of take that out of
the equation for a minute, we'll
say that this person is already
listening to your podcast so
they know who you are and they
like you well enough to listen
to your podcast. Now, how are
you going to complete the Holy
Trinity and make them trust you,
trust you enough to keep
listening to you, trust you
enough to buy from you. How are
we going to build that trust? So
here are a few things that I'd
focus on in the beginning,
especially when I have under
1000 followers, because that is
such a critical time for making
sure that your audience trusts
you, that they want to come back
every week and listen to you,
make sure that you're airing
episodes consistently. So many
podcasters lose listeners and
lose their own confidence in
podcasting because they're not
airing episodes consistently.
And think about this, why would
you invest in a podcast or a
podcaster that you didn't know
if they were going to be posting
new episodes? You wouldn't and
so this is the first line of
building trust, even in real
life, we need to know that
people are gonna be where they
say that they'll be and do what
they say they're gonna do next
is having thoughtful and
interesting information on your
podcast episodes. This can mean
so many different things, so I'm
not necessarily meaning it to
mean any specific thing, but
don't just talk about what you
want to talk about, figure out
who your ideal listener is, and
start making content for them
and them only the most powerful
thing that you can do as a
podcaster is have episodes
people actually want to listen
to, and I know this is
groundbreaking, but make sure
that your listener wants to
subscribe and hear more. Here's
my challenge for you. I want you
to at the end of every month,
when you're looking at your
downloads and you're trying to
figure out how you did in the
past month, sort your episodes
from most downloaded of all time
and most downloaded that month,
and look at what people are
downloading. Try to figure out
what your audience wants to hear
from you, and this might change
over time, and that's why I say
look at your entire podcast and
then look at what's being
downloaded this month. Lastly,
have a measured approach to
selling your own products or
anyone else's. Don't recommend
products if you don't use them
yourself, especially in the
beginning, we are being sold to
as consumers and listeners and
buyers. 24/7 Don't be the
influencer that you can't stand.
And when you're selling do it
from an earnest place. That's
okay. I love to hear people's
genuine recommendations. And if
you're partnering with a brand
that you don't know very well,
get to know them. Know the
product. Know why you love the
product, if you are selling,
sell from the heart. So after
you've taken a hard look at your
podcast and your audience and
how to build trust with said
audience, how are you actually
going to make money with less
than 1000 listeners? Like I said
earlier, there's a big
difference between 1000
listeners that are following you
for a variety of reasons. Let's
say that you have a podcast that
speaks to a lot of different
demographics and listeners, and
you'll just randomly pick up
people here and there. There is
a big difference between selling
to a wide net audience and a
highly specific targeted
audience, the more that you can
move towards that highly
specific targeted audience, the
easier that it will be for you
to find advertisers, to find
partnerships and affiliate codes
and To sell your own products
and services and even to create
value with your podcast. No
niche is too niche. I'll tell
you about a podcast I produce
for hairstylist entering the
beauty industry. Now, most
people would think if you're
creating a podcast for
hairstylists, it should be
speaking to every hairstylist,
right at every different phase
that would have so many more
opportunities to grow listeners
and make money and everything
else. But that is not true. And
you know why? Because New
hairstylists going into the
industry have a totally
different set of problems and
opportunities and questions than
stylists that have been in the
industry for five or 10 or 20
years, these are all people at
totally different parts of their
journey. And why would we try to
put it all together, to not
speak to any of them? Because
what about the week we do an
episode for the stylist that's
been in the industry for 20
years, and then the next week we
do one for the stylist that has
been in for 10. Years, and then
the week after that is for the
stylist that's been in for five
years. And guess what? We've
totally lost that new stylist,
and they're gonna go look for a
podcast that is actually giving
them what they want and is the
information that they need,
because they don't care what the
stylist that's been in the
industry 20 years. They don't
care about their problem. So
you've just lost your listener
because you are not speaking to
them. Don't be afraid to go into
your niche and dig into your
message and speak to that one
person at that one time. You're
not losing out on having more
listeners by doing this, you are
telling that one person that you
created the podcast for. Hey, I
made this for you. And then when
you're selling to them, it's
that much easier to have 100
listeners that you've cultivated
and say, Hey, I made this
podcast for you. And then you
proved over time by building
their trust. Remember the know,
like and trust, that is how you
are going to make money with 100
listeners, when someone with
10,000 listeners can't sell
anything a friend to all is a
friend to none. So make sure
that you know exactly who you
want to be friends with through
this podcast and speak to them
directly. Speak to them every
week. Speak to them from your
heart, and speak to them when
you're selling if you have less
than 1000 followers, of course
you should be working every day
to build your audience and to
grow the right listeners. 1000
listeners will open the door.
100,000 listeners will build the
house. But there's still some
things that we can do at every
point of our podcasting journey
to make money with our podcast.
So first and foremost, I think
you know what I'm gonna say,
it's selling your own products
and services. Now, what if you
think of Morgan, I don't have
any products and services. And
you know what I'd say to that
you don't have any products and
services yet. Not yet. Okay, so
if you have a podcast, there is
not one reason that you are not
offering some kind of consulting
on the thing that your podcast
is about. If you know so much
about this thing that you have
made a podcast about it, why are
you not consulting for people in
that field? So step one is you
are not letting people pick your
brain for free. You are a
consultant in this industry, you
are going to have an hourly rate
that you tell people when they
ask you, Hey, can I ask you
about this? You're gonna say,
Hey, I have an hourly fee. I
mean, this is a huge, multi
billion dollar industry. Just
take a little bit of time if you
are not doing consulting
already, and look up, hey. How
can I become a consultant in my
field? Again, if you have a
podcast about something, I don't
really see a reason that you
also do not have a consulting
fee to go along with it. Next.
And again, I know that. You
know. I'm gonna say this is
digital products. I have a whole
episode on digital products. I
will link it in the episode
description. I also have a tool
that you can use that will email
you 10 ideas for digital
products, but do some research
on digital products. What could
you create that would make your
listeners life easier, or that
they actually need take some
time to think about that and
think about how you could
actually help your listener and
what you could create for them
when we look outside of what we
personally can offer so with our
own products and services, this
is where, again, you have to be
so intentional and so Bristol
clear on what your podcast is
offering. Do you want a partner
for your podcast? Do you want
ads? Why should someone buy ads
from you, if you have less than
1000 listeners, what else can
you provide to me to let me know
that I am someone that you
should advertise with? There is
such a power in micro
influencers. But what is your
power? What do you know about
your audience? What proof do you
have of the influence over your
audience? That's what you need
to be able to communicate,
especially if you're doing cold
outreach to brands. You need to
know what influence do you have
over your audience, even if it's
a small audience. Think about
this. Think about Rode
Microphones for just a minute.
Would they rather advertise with
a smaller creator like me that
creates only content for
podcasters? Or, for example,
would they like to advertise
with Joe Rogan, the biggest
podcaster in the world. Lots of
people that might want to become
podcasters that listen to him,
right? I mean, I believe it
would make more sense for them
to advertise with me or someone
like me, because while I have
less listeners, I have a greater
impact. But then it becomes my
burden, especially if I have
under 1000 listeners, to prove
to them why I would be the best
use of their money. Because even
though I have a more specific
audience, how much do I actually
speak to my audience? So taking
that all into account and
figuring out, okay, hey, how can
I explain this to someone who I
want to part. With me to have an
ad on my podcast, and I think
one of the easiest ways to do
this is to have a media kit. I
have a media kit template that
you can customize, or you can
make your own, but show up
looking like the person who is
someday going to have a million
listeners show up like the
podcast that you want to be. The
next thing is affiliate
marketing, and whether you're
doing it with a brand that has a
bigger program, or you are
asking a smaller business to
give you a promo code, start
with affiliate marketing,
especially if you are not
getting any bytes from
traditional ads, they only have
to pay you money when they make
money. So usually, businesses
are way more open to giving
smaller creators a chance, and
that's why I always bring this
up when I'm trying to help
people who are new podcasters
get some kind of revenue coming
through their podcast. Think
about affiliate marketing. Think
what you can speak on
passionately and that you could
actually get people to buy
because, you know, it works so
well. Ask these people if they
have affiliate marketing, and
how can you get involved with
their business? You have to ask
for what you want, and you have
to ask for it directly,
especially as a smaller creator,
especially when you don't have
the clout that other podcasters
might have. But the beauty of
podcasting is it's still a very
new industry, and most of the
time, people don't fully
understand how it could be of
value to their business or
brand. So you could be the
person that explains, hey, this
is why you should partner with
me. This is why you should have
an ad on a podcast. So take it
from that side. Take it from the
fact that many people don't
really know what it would look
like to advertise with a
podcast. So if you have a
beautiful media kit and you come
and you say, Hey, this is what
my audience looks like. This is
what I am able to do with my
audience that can be their
introduction to podcast
advertising. You don't have to
worry about all those bigger
podcasts because they've never
even talked to a podcast before.
Before we go, there are two
creators that I want you to look
up sometime this week, or when
you're done with this episode,
if you don't know them already.
The first one is Jay Klaus. I
hope I'm saying his last name
right with creator science is
his podcast name. The other one
is Lloyd George. He is a UGC
expert, and I think that they
just both have so much
information to share with small
creators on how to make money,
and, more importantly, how and
what it will take. I'll link the
information for both of them in
the episode description. If you
have less than 1000 listeners
and you want help making a
monetization plan, please book a
free 30 minute exploratory call
with me. I'd love to help you
out. I've been where you are. I
know what you're going through
if you want to use my digital
product idea tool that will also
be linked in the episode
description with my customizable
podcast media kit. And as
always, I can't wait to listen
to your podcast. Hey. Thank you
so much for joining me on this
episode. If you enjoyed the
podcast and you'd like to hear
more episodes like this one, go
ahead and subscribe to the show.
New episodes air every Monday
morning. And if you've found
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entrepreneurs the information
they need to start making money
on their podcast.