YouTube Shorts, Video Podcasts, and the Truth About Monetization

YouTube Shorts Video Podcasts and the Truth About Monetization

Traci DeForge: [00:00:00] A tip that no one’s talking about. In fact, no one even told Taylor Swift. So are you ready for it?

Voice Over: This is the Growth Accelerator Podcast. Now your host, Tracy Deforge

Traci DeForge: The podcast industry is growing and evolving. What does that mean for you as a host, as a creator? Well, it does not mean that you have to jump on every trend that’s happening, but it does mean that you need to pay attention to some very specific areas so that your show can grow as rapidly as the industry.

In today’s episode, you’re gonna hear some insights from my recent interview on Aquatalks, and we’re gonna talk all about how important the short form is to your podcast strategy to make sure that people are finding your show because that is the new listener/viewer entry point. If you’ve been wondering what YouTube has been doing for your podcast and the real truth about [00:01:00] monetizing your audience at any size.

Let’s get started. One of the questions I get asked most frequently is, “Do I need video?” Well, the answer is yes, you do need video, but more importantly, you need a very strategic plan when integrating video

Voice Over: into your podcast strategy. Here’s how I explained it on Aquatalks

Larry Aldrich: Can we talk a little bit about how the pros and cons of integration of video into podcasts?

Traci DeForge: Right now, having a video component is really important to grow your audience. So you don’t want to just jump right into video only because the use of audio is, in a lot of cases, it is, um, getting anywhere from two times to 10 times more downloads for the podcast. But because of YouTube and because of the algorithms, and quite honestly, we feel like in the industry, we [00:02:00] like to say that they, they did a really…

Uh, Google did a really great job of a well-launched PR ca- campaign to really thrust the concept of video podcasting into the space. And as a result of that, everyone kind of went like, “Oh, we’ve got to have video. We’ve got to have video.” And you don’t necessarily have to have full-length video, but you do need it for the YouTube Shorts, for the content repurposing, for the reels, for the audience growth.

And then if budget allows, of course, it is always great to have video, um, long form and short form. And, um, in addition to that, I think it’s also just important to really understand, like, what the objective is for your business, for your growth strategy, and layer that into it. So like I said, there is no black and white clean-cut answer, but there is certain strategies that you want to take into consideration.

Larry Aldrich: Here’s a tip that no one’s talking about. In fact, no one even told Taylor Swift. So are you ready for it? [00:03:00]

Traci DeForge: When you are a host And you are hosting an audio and a video podcast. One of the most overlooked skillsets that you need to adopt, and remember this because it’s very important, is that when you are recording in video, you want to always remember that your audience who’s listening to the audio version of your podcast can’t see what you’re talking about.

So how does this connect to Taylor Swift? Well, I ask you, did you watch the Kelce Brothers podcast when Taylor was interviewed, or did you listen to it? Because I listened to it before I watched it, and she had a big miss. When she revealed that album cover, it was so exciting. Everybody on the podcast was excited about it.

She was excited about it. You wanna know who wasn’t excited about it? The people who were listening to the podcast weren’t excited about it because they couldn’t see what she was sharing. Here’s an even more specific [00:04:00] example of what I’m talking about in this clip from the Aquatalks podcast.

Larry Aldrich: When you are recording a podcast that is gonna

Traci DeForge: be distributed in audio and in video, you have to r- remember, as the host, to, when you’re framing questions, when you’re, when you’re making comments, when, even when your guest makes a comment, to make sure that you’re framing everything that’s in an, in an inclusive way for the people who may be listening versus watching.

So a really good example of that is for people who are listening right now, Larry, if you said to me, for example, “Hey, Tracy, I really love that back wall behind you. When is the Aquatalks cover art gonna be on that wall?” Then the people who are watching this in video, they would be able to clearly see that behind me is a wall with all of our, a sample of all of our clients’ different cover art.

But if you’re only listening to the podcast, you would feel excluded from the [00:05:00] conversation because you wouldn’t be able to know what it is that you are referencing. And so they would be feeling confused, and your engagement levels would drop. So in, in the case where we’ll just do some on-the-spot coaching, let’s say you were to make that comment.

Then you would say, “Hey, Tracy, I love that wall behind you that has all of that, those different cover arts. Can you tell me more about that?” And then I could answer that, and anyone who was listening versus watching would not feel like their experience was disrupted.

Larry Aldrich: Let me be short about your short form because it matters

Traci DeForge: You don’t wanna skip a step of not producing your short forms or uploading them or tagging them in all the things.

But more importantly, stay focused on the fact that your short form is the introduction to your new audience, how they find you, how they connect with you, how they sample your episodes, how they even check out your vibe and wanna know if

Larry Aldrich: they wanna continue with more episodes.

Traci DeForge: People are so time-starved right now, right?

And so a lot of [00:06:00] times they may sample a shorter clip of content or a shorter -form episode maybe up to 15 minutes, and then th- they’re, they’re, you know, dating you before they get married in terms of content consumption. And so if they enjoy that shorter clip, then they’re willing to invest the time for you for a longer clip.

And then it also gives you the opportunity, let’s say for example, if this was one of your long-form episodes, then you two could separately do a short form where you dig deeper into your personal podcast strategy and how it’s working for you and why you started a podcast, and that would be a supplement in a short form that would give you a, a, a more vertically deep, uh, way to talk about the topic that we might not be able to cover in an interview.

So there’s a lot of, uh, benefits in a mixed content strategy of long form and short form.

Larry Aldrich: YouTube isn’t just a distribution platform, it’s a discovery

Traci DeForge: machine. Come on. Why? Well, YouTube is the second largest search [00:07:00] engine owned by the first largest search engine. Hello, Google. And of course, that means that it’s going to drive significant SEO for people to find your podcast.

And bonus tip, if you’re using the vertical short clips on YouTube, then you have an even larger chance in being able to drive new traffic to your channel.

Larry Aldrich: Why are YouTube clips so important?

Traci DeForge: YouTube clips are really important for brand awareness and discovery. In fact, we have several clients, and one of them is in the travel and destination space.

It’s called The Luxury Traveler Podcast. And he, uh, the host, Rodney George, is just, um, he’s based in Florida, and he’s just a b- a big traveler, and he uses his podcast to drive traffic back to his luxury travel agency. But, um, one of the things that’s really beneficial is that, um, [00:08:00] he gets a lot of traction on his YouTube, um, shorts because of the visual aesthetic of shots from a cruise ship, shots, shots from a Caribbean island.

Like, they’re very quick and engaging. And then, of course, we have a s- a strategy on the back end where when you upload those video shorts, that they connect to the long-form episode of where that content originated from. So it’s both a growth strategy for his business and his podcast, but it’s also a way for people to really get a high energy burst of, of sampling of what the overall long-form content will be.

And that the algorithms on all the social media platforms right now are loving a video, so the t- And you know, we can thank TikTok for that. But, um, TikTok, reels, stories, shorts, um, LinkedIn right now is, um, really favoring thought leadership video clips. So it’s, it’s really just [00:09:00] something that you, you don’t really want to go against.

You wanna go with that tide.

Larry Aldrich: One of the biggest

Traci DeForge: myths in podcasting is that you have to have large audience numbers to monetize. Well, I’m here to tell you that that is not true.

Mady Dudley : Other than traditional media, or traditional advertising I should say, um, what are other ways that podcasts can monetize themselves?

Asking for a friend.

Traci DeForge: Yes, so this, this is probably one of my all-time favorite questions, so I’m really glad you asked. And there’s a lot of myths around the fact that if you don’t have 10,000 downloads or more per episode, that you can’t monetize through brands placing ads in your podcast, and I just wanna use this moment and this time to say that is absolutely not true.

We are seeing a tremendous amount of s- success with audiences with as few as 300 downloads per episode. Very specifically, we have an attorney who [00:10:00] is, not only is it niche to the type of attorney, she’s a divorce attorney. She targets women going through divorce, so that further niches her down, and she’s geographically, um, licensed to the Wisconsin area.

So we’re talking about niche, niche, and niche again. And, um, she is able to monetize her show through having a, what we refer to at Produce Your Podcast, is the arena right sponsorship. So if you think about, um… And I think you guys are using this so effectively with your podcast, saying that the podcast is powered by.

So it doesn’t disrupt the integrity of the content, but it allows a brand to come in and be affiliated with the type of content that you’re producing, and align themselves with your audience. So monetization for sponsorship on audiences that are 9,999 or less, which let’s face it, that is, like, 99% of the podcasts out there.

You just have to get past [00:11:00] the fact that that, what’s called the cost per thousand model, just doesn’t apply in terms of smaller audiences. When you are looking at a smaller audience that’s really highly engaged and very niche specific, like yourselves and like the podcast I mentioned, it’s important to include the visibility for that sponsor across the board.

So you want to include them in your podcast, but you also wanna include them in your social media, in those clips that you’re doing, in the show note summary notes. Giving them a broader exposure to the, the brand having a- access to your audience is really ultimately what they’re looking for, but doing it in a way that’s h- that shows integrity both for your brand, their brand, and your audience.

Larry Aldrich: Before we wrap up, there’s one perspective from my conversation with Larry and Maddy that I really want to emphasize, and I’m just gonna leave that right here

Traci DeForge: A lot of people can get discouraged because they hear these really big numbers like Joe Rogan has millions of [00:12:00] followers, and this show has millions of followers.

But you need to take into consideration that there’s a big difference between a lifestyle podcast, which is an entertainment-driven, you know, the, the David Duchovny podcast, the Joe Rogan podcast, some of the political podcasts. Like, those have a much broader audience appeal in terms of types of possibilities to reach millions of people.

And most often, Joe Rogan included, they show up to the microphone with an already existing audience of millions of people, that they just have to flip a switch literally, and those people are going to consume their podcast. Business to business podcasting has a different strategy. The audiences are typically smaller, and absolutely that’s okay.

Because normally you’re using the podcast for lead generation, visibility, and for sales to, to increase your bottom line. And if you’re [00:13:00] talking to the right people frequently enough and consistently enough with really good quality production and good content, then you don’t need hundreds of millions of people to convert to a client for your business.

And I think that is one of the biggest misnomers is, “I’m only getting 1,000 downloads per episode.” Well, you have to put that in perspective. When was the last time that once a month, once a week, or twice a month that you stood in front of a live audience of 1,000 people every month or every week? It rarely can happen, right?

So being able to just get your mindset around your metrics is probably one of the most important things I hope people take away from this podcast, is that your success is not defined by the number of audience downloads you have. Your success is defined by the amount of people that engage and, and engage with [00:14:00] your podcast and build a brand alongside you and with you and want to continue the conversation with you after the podcast.

Larry Aldrich: Yes, podcasting is changing

Traci DeForge: and growing, and that means more opportunities for you. So let’s do the takeaways. Video is a yes. Use it strategically. YouTube Shorts, short-form content, will be the gateway to drive new audience to your channel and to your long-form content. Leverage YouTube for the discovery platform that it is And don’t get hung up on your audience numbers when you start thinking about monetization.

If you’re ready to take the next step and integrate some of these strategies inside your show, my team and I would love to support you. The easiest way to make that happen is to go to ProduceYourPodcast.com, check out our resources, check out some of the samples of the shows where we’ve integrated [00:15:00] these strategies, but more importantly, connect with us.

Let us know how we can be there for you and help you grow your show.

Voice Over: Congratulations. You’re on your way to turning your business or company’s podcast into a thriving lead generation and marketing force. Connect with us and schedule a meeting with our team at ProduceYourPodcast.com. Launch or grow your podcast and start generating more visibility, leads, and sales for your business today.

Traci DeForge: Let’s get started