PodMov Daily: Monday, May 2

Episode 635: Your Monday Mix

Paying for Podcasts Isn't Just ‘Supporting Creators'

The internet raised us all to be freeloaders, writes podcaster and author Shani Silver (A Single Serving). “Here's something true that you may have not realized yet: Paying for what you regularly consume isn’t ‘supporting creators,’” she says. “It’s buying something you want, just like you do at Sephora.”

Silver decided to shift to Patreon at the beginning of 2021, two years into podcasting with 400k organically earned downloads. Today, she gives five reasons listeners should pay for their podcasts. It’s a must-read for creators struggling with the ideological question of charging money or starting a subscription.

If there’s a podcast you consume every single week, it provides value. Think of it like any other recurring purchase, Silver insists. Her points are realistic, clear, and convincing: “My Patreon isn’t collecting charitable contributions. It’s an even exchange of valuable work for a very accessible amount of money.”

Podcasts Are Meeting Reality TV

Back in July, Lemonada Media announced plans for a podcast studio “where audio meets reality TV.” The first series from BEING Studios launched yesterday. Executive produced by Kasey Barrett (The Real World, Kardashians), BEING Trans follows four transgender cast members living in Los Angeles.

Alexis Soloski of The New York Times took a deep dive into production: “Each episode would cost about $100,000, double the amount of a typical Lemonada show, but somewhere between a quarter and an eighth of a typical reality hour.” (Woah. Pretty sure that was VH1’s entire budget for “Rock of Love” in 2007.)

It’s no secret that reality TV deals in anything but reality. With this new initiative, Lemonada aims to control the narrative by leaving it out. “You’re just hearing people existing,” says co-founder Stephanie Wittels Wachs. A second season, tentatively titled ‘Being Golden,’ will be shaped around a group of retirees.

Keep Episodes Fresh with Dynamic Content

With Buzzsprout, it’s faster than ever to keep your podcast fresh — and your listeners up-to-date. The Dynamic Content tool lets you easily add and remove short pre-roll (intro) and post-roll (outro) content to your episodes. It's the perfect solution for timely messaging.

Whether you’re promoting a virtual event or giving a special shout-out, Dynamic Content makes it simple to swap, automatically add content to new episodes, or apply it to your existing catalog with a click. Old files are removed and replaced, so there’s no clean-up.

This innovative feature offers more than flexibility. It benefits your audience in more ways than one: Buzzsprout respects your listeners’ privacy. Unlike most Dynamic Ad Insertion, the Dynamic Content tool includes no tracking or targeting. Ready to make the switch?

Here's what else is going on:

• Leap year: Apple Podcasts is making it easier to push annual subscription plans. In a future software update, a new prompt will appear when listeners tap Subscribe or Try Free. “When an annual plan is lower than the cost of a monthly plan, the picker will display how much listeners can save.”

• Wide angle: Tomorrow at 12:00 pm ET is “Podcast Economics” from Radio Boot Camp. Veteran showrunner Dan Bobkoff (Axios, Business Insider, NPR) will lead an interactive lecture on creation essentials, the podcast landscape, monetization models, financial pitfalls, and IP ownership. $100 registration.

• First steps: Tomorrow at 6:00 pm ET is “How to Get Started with Ads on Your Podcast” from Podbean. During the live episode of Podcasting Smarter, Roni Gosch and John Kiernan will cover dynamic ad insertion, setting rates, packaging, and more. Includes a live Q&A on YouTube. Free registration.

• Branching out: This Wednesday at 4:00 pm ET is “How to Diversify Your Podcast Revenue Streams” from Podcasting, Seriously. Ossa Collective Community Manager Shannon Donohue will join the weekly Twitter Spaces to discuss monetization from multiple sources. No account needed.