How Podcasters Can Start Monetizing from Day # 1 (Part I)
Affiliate Networks
About a week ago, I was speaker on a TwitterSpace where we discussed a great question that Arielle Nissenblatt had asked on her Twitter feed. She posed the following question:
“Would you prefer to get $500 a month to put towards your podcast or get 10,000 downloads an episode?”
During the course of the conversation one of the audience members brought up the following important point “We don’t know what we don’t know.” There’s a reason why I created “Podcasters Getting Paid-The Resource” I kept speaking at conferences about monetizing content but I needed a better place to host that conversation.
Podcast Movement Denver 2023
Are you heading to Denver for Podcast Movement this summer? It’s my hometown and I’m so excited to hang out with everyone. Listen to the following Brand Building Lab episode where I share the following:
How to Begin Networking for Podcast Movement NOW and stand out from the crowd (it’s not what you think)
What to expect from the Gaylord Rockies facility
Some things you need to know about Denver before you arrive
10 Affiliate Networks You Should Know About
In this week’s newsletter I’m sharing 10 Affiliate Networks that podcasters can sign up for and start using as soon as they are approved for the network. I’m breaking down:
What is Affiliate Networking?
Dos and Don’ts affiliate marketing
Challenges that hosts of smaller shows may have when affiliate marketing (paid subscribers)
How to deal with those challenges creatively (paid subscribers)
How to set achievable goals with affiliate marketing (paid subscribers)
Disclosure: Affiliate links may be shared in this newsletter and I may be compensated as a result of actions taken with those affiliates.
What is Affiliate Networking?
Put simply, affiliate networking is the intentional sharing of a tool, resource or product that you’re a super fan of with other people. Affiliate networking allows you to get paid by promoting what you love.
What Affiliate Networking is NOT
It is NOT Multi-Level-Marketing (MLM)-Affiliate marketers are sharing insight, thoughts or even bonus content related to a tool that they are sharing. The key to affiliate marketing is that affiliates are sharing something that someone else is actively looking for that helps solve a problem that they are dealing with. I will share examples below WITH affiliate links for context.
Should podcasters have websites? YES, what is the tool or platform that I recommend to build those websites? Ionos (dot) com.
Do you need a car for your next trip in the United States? I’m a huge fan of Discover Cars that helps travelers find and compare different car rental prices. Once you’ve compared the prices you can rent your car on the Discover Cars platform.
Affiliate marketing should NOT be pushy-I typically will create a piece of content that complements, shares or explains a resource, tool or product that I’m an affiliate of. When appropriate I share that resource.
Affiliate programs are almost always free for the affiliate to participate in OR the affiliate may gain access to the program after using the resource. I’ve seen this often with courses because course creators will often feel that students are the best affiliate marketers for their course.
MLMs will defer in the following important ways:
Customers aren’t actively looking for the products. I was never looking for LuluRoe leggings. I could pick leggings up at Target.
MLMs almost always require a the person sharing their products to make a financial investment or buy into the program.
It can often feel like MLM sales strategies don’t respect potential customers’ boundaries.
Affiliate Marketing Dos and Don’ts
These are specific to hosts of smaller shows receiving 10,000 or fewer episode downloads a month.
Do share the good/bad and ugly of an affiliate-I am a fan of Ionos as an inexpensive way to build out a website for podcasters-BUT I also share that once or twice a year I have to hop on a call with customer service because there is an issue with my website. You save money with Ionos, but it has a few downsides. Share the downsides of a product.
Don’t just drop a link and that’s it-Hit it and quit it never works. You’ll just never get affiliate sales this way.
Do create an affiliate strategy! Be intentional when affiliate marketing.
Do create supporting content around the affiliates that you would like to share with your audience.
Don’t share an affiliate when you really feel like a different product would better serve your community that you’re not an affiliate of or doesn’t have an affiliate program. Basically, don’t share affiliates because they will make you money. If there is a different product, good or service that better serves your audience that you ARE NOT an affiliate of-share it.
How Do Affiliate Networks Work?
Affiliate networks act as the middleman between content creators and a company. Affiliate networks host and manage affiliate programs for the companies on their network. Affiliate networks may have thousands of companies that they work with and assign dedicated staff (affiliate managers) who are the go to persons for a company’s affiliate program.
Why is this important to know?
You may want to work with a specific type of company for your show but you will likely have to sign up for the network then search for the company you would like to be an affiliate of THEN put in a request to work with a specific company’s affiliate program.
10 Affiliate Networks
Sign up as a publishing partner with one of these affiliate networks today. See if your favorite companies have affiliate programs hosted by one of these networks.
For Paying Subscribers I share additional affiliate marketing best practices and things to consider as well as 7 other affiliate networks to sign up for.
Additional Affiliate Marketing Advice (paying subscribers)
I’ve recorded a 23 minute video with some additional tips and comments about the best ways to approach affiliate marketing, what to consider and best practices.
Tonight’s Office Hours (paying subscribers)
Zoom details are included behind the paywall of this newsletter.
Date: Tonight, Tuesday, February 21, 2023
Time: 7:00 pm MTN/9:00 pm EST
Via Zoom video