Podcasting is not an easy task. Right from generating content to editing, you need to invest efforts. To get through all these hardships, you can have a sponsor to get the job done. With a podcast sponsor, your show gets monetized, your platform grows, and you get a chance to develop long-term relationships with several brands.
But finding a potential sponsor is not easy. This article will discuss all the methods that you can perform to find good podcast sponsors for your shows.
Place a direct pitch to brands:
The truth is that if you are not getting more than ten thousand downloads every episode, sponsors will not get inside your door for offering advertising opportunities. Most of the independent podcasters will have to perform legwork for striking a great deal with sponsorships.
Do some market research on the podcasts that belong to your category and see which are the brands that are sponsoring podcasts similar to yours. Note down the name of the brands that offer sponsorships. Then get the contact information of the person in every company and make a direct pitch.
Understand that you need to be consistent. In the initial stage, sponsors may turn you down. For getting a good fit, break up the process. Invest separate hours in a week for researching sponsors, and set a separate day to send a pitch.
Before reaching out to podcast sponsors, be sure about the fact that their products fit well with your audience and niche. Do not compromise the two most valuable factors, i.e., quality of your final episode post podcast editing and the attention & trust of your audience.
Explain the value you show to the brand. Your primary goal must be to convince the sponsor that investing in the podcast that you are hosting is a smart decision when it comes to financing. Stay prepared with a solid backup to support your statements while convincing them.
Make use of the data from your previous promotions, or you can also put the stats to use on the latest merch drop or the analytics on the demographics of your audience as solid tools for crafting a convincing pitch.
After you have secured the first sponsorship, focus on host-read ads and integrate them in the next episode of the podcast, and enthrall them with the significance that you provide in return.
Get connected to podcast networks or marketplaces:
There exist markets for the podcasters to get themselves to compete for advertising money. Everything you need to invest in is a podcast and some appealing information regarding your listenership. After you are ready with your podcast profile, you will be put in a marketplace among other podcasters regardless of their sizes. Now, you will have to make a clear pitch in a way that you stand out as a unique individual so that you can attract advertising buyers.
A podcast network is one of the effective platforms that connect podcasters out there with sponsors. Even the advertisers find it easy to get in touch with the appropriate audience. When you join a podcast network, a lot of advertisers go through your content, and it is more likely for them to approach you with sponsorship opportunities that perfectly suit your audience.
In the initial stages of your podcast show, the sponsors that make deals through a network are not going to bring in massive cash. You will need to split the amount of money you make- you will get 70% of the money you make, and the rest 30% will be the profit of the network. For staying inside the network, you have to sacrifice a few of your creative skills as well.
Networks follow the give and take policy. It is a convenient method for monetizing your podcast, but you will not be able to make much money after the podcast network receives its portions of money. To make a significant amount of money, you will need a massive audience or listener base.
Networking:
The very first way to utilize networking is to attend industry events to get podcast sponsors. These events will allow you to network with some people who are currently advertising in the industry you are in. Those people are in the events for gaining exposure for their brand, and you got that exposure for offering them.
If you find it impractical to travel to trade conferences or shows, you can also network online. LinkedIn and Facebook groups are great places to start with. There are also relevant forums and several online communities in which you can take a look.
Podcast ad networks:
Several podcast ad networks are there that have scaled the ad purchasing and selling process through utilizing programmatic ads for automating it. With having programmatic ads, you may lose few editorial controls because of the aspect of automation.
These podcast ad networks provide a valuable service, but they will not do it for free. The podcast ad networks earn a commission for connecting the podcasters with sponsors. But they also open up the doors of opportunities for the podcasters to get connected to the best podcast advertisers, which would have been impossible otherwise.
Look for businesses that advertise:
Look at the brand partners of your competitors, and check who sponsors them. Get connected to anyone that purchases ads on podcasts similar to yours because they will be already familiar and understand what can be expected.
You can also create a keywords list and type them into Google. You will find companies that are advertising with those keywords as a target, and you can reach out to those brands as well.
Take a look at the conferences’ sponsor pages in your niche. It is a good way to find brands that invest money in promoting to an audience just like yours.
Conclusion:
There are several ways to get in touch with sponsors, but there are few options for you to try it for free. You will have to invest a few bucks to get in touch with decent sponsors for your podcasts. Also, you can join any podcast directory, as there remains a chance over there to meet sponsors. Thus, create a unique podcast, undergo top-notch podcast editing, invest a few bucks in networking, and then get connected to the biggest sponsors that can increase your reach.
