Podcast sponsorship is one of the best ways to monetize your podcasts. And you can start to collect sponsors for your content as soon as you start producing content. In this article, we will look at how you decide on the rate you should charge podcast sponsors.
Why is Podcast Sponsorship So Valuable?
Podcast sponsorship is one of the few revenue streams where you have good control over the revenue. It is more predictable and for the effort you put in and worth more. Other ways that some podcast hosts will use to secure revenue include ads and merchandise.
While these can earn you revenue, they don’t match the potential of podcast sponsorship. For example, only about 5% of all YouTube content producers earn revenue from podcasts, and the value can be relatively small. Most brands won’t earn the revenue they want from ads.
And, while merchandising has the potential to be a good income, there are costs involved, and added processes and you need a large, loyal audience to make it worthwhile. Therefore, you could spend significant time managing products when you want to do something else.
Sponsorship however is more aligned with your main priority, producing great content while incorporating some ways to earn revenue from the activities you undertake. At the same time, podcast sponsorship has numerous benefits for the advertiser. For example, research has found that ads can improve brand trust from 44% to 63%.
How to Determine Podcast Sponsorship Prices
Several factors are going to determine what price you should be charging for your podcast sponsorships. Here are several factors that you might want to consider.
Niche
The first thing that you want to look at is your niche. Research has found that some niches generally attract a higher value. For example, sports podcasts tend to have higher sponsorship prices than other podcasts.
And it might be the sub-niche that could affect you too. For instance, if you’re a podcast about selling businesses, there might be less demand to appear in your podcast than if you were producing content about marketing.
Type Of Ad
Two types of ads can be included within your podcast. The first is pre-recorded ads which are up to 60 seconds long. These are fairly easy to insert into your podcast and give you a break when hosting. But they’re also worth less to sponsors, and you can expect to get somewhere between $15 to $30 for every 1000 listens.
In contrast, there are host-read sponsorships that can yield more engagement from the audience. These have a higher value for advertisers and can fetch between $25 and $40 per 1,000 listens.
Other Benefits
The other benefits you’re providing your podcast sponsors can be important for raising the price of sponsorship. For example, if you regularly include your sponsors in your email marketing content, add them to social media posts, or include them on YouTube videos, then you offer your sponsors more value for money.
Just being included in your email marketing campaigns can be highly valuable for your sponsors. Email marketing offers one of the best returns on investment, and so you can improve their return easily that way.
Another benefit you might want to offer them is whether they would like a regular spot on your show. You could offer them a monthly or every other month spot where you can talk about a specific topic relevant to your podcast niche and their business.
Audience Size
One that is often assumed to be a major factor for the amount you can charge, is the audience size. However, while it does play a part, there are ways around this that can minimize the impact that the audience size has on the amount you can charge.
For instance, it is possible to get your sponsorships going before you release the first episode. When you’ve got no episodes out, your audience will be much smaller but you might still be able to offer a significant benefit to the podcast sponsors.
Your Proposal
How you write your proposal and engage with the sponsor can ultimately impact the rate you can get from the podcast sponsors. If you get support, like from Sponsorship Circle at Produce Your Podcast, you can learn how to build an effective proposal, from the start.
There are several ways that you can improve your proposal, which includes some of the following.
- Having the right amount of text in the proposal.
- Personalized for the recipient.
- Use an inspiring design.
- Free from spelling or grammar mistakes.
- Sending the proposal during normal business hours.
Results
If you’ve worked with sponsors before and can provide evidence of the impact that your podcast sponsorship has had on the advertisers, then you should include this. It might also help you to build a stronger case for higher prices on your sponsorship.
Try not to use monetary impacts for brands. But instead use percentages. For example, if you have improved revenues for a brand by 10%, then this is the figure you need to use. Monetary values are rather subjective. A $10,000 worth of sales for one brand might represent a significant increase in income for one brand but might be a small increase for another brand.
Exclusivity
Exclusivity can be one of the key factors for sales. There are two ways that you can create exclusivity with podcast sponsorship. You could restrict the number of sponsorship spots you have or you can limit the number of brands from niches that you have.
Either way can make the prospect of appearing on your show more desirable.
FAQs
Is there a maximum number of sponsors you can have?
There is technically no maximum number of sponsors you can have for any show. However, the more you have, the lower the quality of your show might become from the perspective of the audience.
Can you use a sponsor twice in the same show?
If the sponsor is willing to pay for two spots, then it won’t be a problem if you have a longer show. For instance, a brand might want the first and last sponsor spots to be more memorable.
Can you advertise sponsorship options on the show?
Yes, advertising that you have sponsorship spots on the show might be a good way to get inbound leads for sponsorship spots.
Final Word: What Rate Should I Charge Podcast Sponsors?
Many different factors can determine the rate you should charge for podcast sponsorship. However, these can be controlled and you can find ways to improve the rate for your podcast sponsorship. Working with a company like Produce Your Podcast, can help you improve the results of your prospecting too.
Produce Your Podcast is a full-service podcast production, editing, and marketing agency specializing in helping brands launch, grow, and monetize successful podcasts that impact their bottom line. With 30+ years of experience in broadcasting and business development brought to every project we work on, our team of experts is a reliable partner to help you achieve your goals with your show.
Click here to schedule a conversation with our team today and let’s bring your show to life!
