How To Make $1.5 Million A Year Podcasting
Oct 3rd, 2009 | By James Lewin | Category: Audio Podcasting, Corporate Podcasts, Making Money with Podcasts, Podcasting, Video, Video Podcasts
Want to know how to make money podcasting?
You could do worse than to look at the example of Leo Laporte, the creator of This Week in Tech and the TWiT podcast network.
He spoke before the Online News Association this week and discussed his experiences with making money with podcasting and new media. According to Laporte, he has revenue of $1.5 million/year, on expenses of $350,000/year, and expects the revenue to double annually. And, though, podcasting is what’s paying the bills, he’s thinking beyond it – looking at establishing TWiT as an an online tech destination site and getting on Roku and other Internet TV devices.
Along the way, Laporte shares some great anecdotes about his experiences trying to put technology coverage onto the Internet.
via Jeff Jarvis
if you believe Leo goes home every year with $1.5million minus $350k, you're not paying attention.
I can tell you from what I know that it's a lot closer to "break even".
Randall
Why would you say that? My company writes checks to a number of podcasters that are clearing significant 6 figure each year. I have no doubt that Leo is doing very well.
I think where Leo is again wrong is in his proclamation that Podcasting is Dead. He said the same thing two years ago on the podcasting panel at Mac World – saying that growth had stopped in podcasting some time earlier. Not one year ago as he is saying now. Problem is Leo is looking only at one segment of podcasting – Tech – and while Tech podcasting growth may have flattened out a couple of years ago – Podcasting growth continues in other areas. Look at Adam Carolla that is getting many more downloads than TWiT and he just launched this year. Or Happy Tree Friends that gets even more downloads than Carolla per episode. It is wrong for Leo to make blanket statements on Podcasting – when he really only has access to one segment of podcasting. And plus even by his own admission Podcasting represents the vast majority of his views / listens – not the live streaming – which is a pain to watch because it is well – live. And does anyone really think the Roku box of which there are well below 1 Million available (@$99) – will make a big difference compared to the 100 Million+ users of iTunes (For Free). Podcasting is not dead – but for some shows they have come close to their ceiling for their Audience regardless of the medium.
Rob – there's some truth to both views.
The stats don't appear to back up what Laporte says – but complexity has clearly limited adoption of podcast subscriptions, compared to adoption of purely Web based media.
The "podcasting is dead" statement is inflammatory – but I think what he's saying is that the idea that "if you build it, they will come" is dead. The most successful podcasters are thinking bigger and treating podcasting as a tool.
The headline is misleading. He makes most of his money as a TV host. He started on radio and moved onto TV. He's not just a podcaster, he's a TV host who podcasts.
This is also something that would be nearly impossible for someone starting out as a podcaster today to replicate. Or putting it another way, it's easier to make money getting a job as a TV host than it is to make money as a podcaster.
He's probably right in that podcasting may be over as far as being able to start a podcast that one could make a living off of. Those making the money right now have been established for years. And because podcasting is so crowded nowadays it's hard to even get noticed. Leo probably makes a good amount from his podcast but that's because he's already established himself as a TV personality and can promote himself to millions for free. And he's been at it for around two decades; most podcasters have been podcasting for less than five.
[…] have pulled from that speech is Leo’s disclosure of the yearly revenues and expenses of the show. From Podcasting News’ coverage: He spoke before the Online News Association this week and discussed his experiences with making […]
Feedburner shows podcasting subscriptons growing by 20%
Most of you don't realize. It takes talent. It takes a communicator. It take someone to make you feel comfortable when you tune in. Leo learned all of this from his background in radio, Top 40 radio. Many
Top 40 DJ's went on to become very sucessfull. Rush, Glenn, and many more. They learned the basics
and still use them today.
This is not being taught or learned by anyone today. When was the last great DJ you heard on the radio ? They are all just voice tracking cackle boxes, laughing at their own jokes. That is why radio is failing. The bean counters just don't get it. 5 years from now as a friend of mine predicts, there will be no music on the radio. It will be all talk all the time, news, sports & politics.
It took Leo 30 years to become an overnight sensation.
90% of the podcasts that started 5 years ago are gone. It was a fad to do a podcast, then they found out it was hard work and quit. Leo is like your favorite uncle sitting in a room talking to you about tech.
Leo has tons of credibility, which is key, but there is a fine line Leo has to walk, if he ever loses his credibility he could fall off the high wire that he walks between sponsors and listeners.
Adam Curry and John Dvorak can beg people for money til the cows come home, but they don't have what Leo has, an amazing personality. It take personality to be successful in any form of communication. That's the secret that no one really understands.
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