What’s a Podcast Worth?

Podcasting is the fastest-growing segment in media and entertainment. Its invention has triggered the decline of the old and stogy gatekeepers who have silenced the common man’s voice for decades. 

Podcasting today is where radio and television were in the 1930s. Despite its exponential rise, this new form of expression has only scratched the surface.

Let’s see what a podcast is worth…

There are over 1M podcasts and over 100M listeners with 40% of them in America. It is a $14B market poised to grow to $60 billion by 2025.

Listening to a Podcast is a great way to grow your skills. Here’s a Podcast with our Founder Bharat Kanodia.

Investment banker and host of the popular Silicon Valley Podcast, Shawn Flynn will walk us thru the latest trends in this new media segment…

Take it away, Shawn…

Thanks, Bharat…

Now a lot is happening in the podcast industry. A lot of trends. One of them is that people are realizing how valuable it is as part of their marketing strategy.

So, a lot of individuals, a lot of companies are allocated time to be guests on podcasts where they say hey. This audience is my target market. With that, companies are allocating part of their marketing budget to partner, sponsor, roll out ads, and even be paid guests on some of these platforms that have a lot of exposure.

Now, what’s really interesting about this is that some of these podcast hosts see that. Wow, there’s a lot of AD money out there. There are a lot of ways to make revenue and actually turn this into a career, but I can’t do it alone, so they’re partnering with other podcasts. So, maybe now you’ll get 10 podcasts that are gathered in the same sector that have the same target audience, the same demographics, partnering up on one platform.

And that one platform, that one agent will go out and negotiate contracts for those advertising contracts, paid guess, sponsor products, all of that to be on these other platforms and they share it.

And with that, these platforms for many podcasts are actually acquiring other platforms for many podcasts and rolling them up.

And guess what? It’s residual income. It’s almost a SAS model. You know the subscribers, you kind of guess marketing. How much is going to come in for each of these podcasts?

You see the growth, you see the metrics. So guess who is starting to get interested in these family offices and private equity groups?

They want consistent cash flow. They want that hockey stick growth. So a lot is happening right now in the podcast industry.

And with that, back to you Bharat…

Thanks, Shawn. It is great to have you…

Rule of thumb. Tell me if you have heard these before. Two hosts are better than one, but no more than three. You want to push at least one episode a week to keep your audience engaged. These are more guidelines than rules which will help you build a loyal audience…

Podcasts are valued two ways – if your podcast is monetized then depending on your niche and audience size you can expect 4-7x on revenue. A podcast with an exclusive niche and audience is more valuable than a mediocre podcast with a vast audience.

If the podcast is not monetized, then the value is based purely on the brand and listener base. You can expect $2-5 per monthly listener.

There are THREE ways to maximize the value of your podcast:-

1. Love your tribe – like it or not you are in show business. It is in your best interest to know your audience. Run your podcast like a big production radio show. Have a schedule and share it. Ask for feedback. Keep listeners engaged. Don’t be afraid to take chances.
2. Collaborate – not just with the big-ticket people and brands, also with the up and comers. No point soliciting people whom everyone solicits. Find guests who offer the most insightful content to your audience. Premier the stars of tomorrow, today.
3. Be shameless – I was working with a big-shot executive out of our Singapore office. She used to give a keynote every week. One day I asked her, what’s your secret? How do you get so many major speaking opportunities consistently? She said…Bharat, you gotta be shameless. If you don’t toot your own horn no one will. If you want to promote your show, you need to wear it on your sleeves. Guest on other shows. Tell media about your work. Post your winnings on social media. No shame in being shameless.

I love the story of how our late beloved anchor, Larry King got started in radio. Larry said ‘if you are honest with your audience, you can’t go wrong.’ Honesty is evident. Instinctively we know when someone is being inauthentic because the camera and mic are merciless. If you are real, your AV equipment will be 10x that quality. If you are inauthentic it will be 10x that too.

Thinking about starting a podcast? Learn more about startup valuation. Click Here.

Podcasting is the latest land grab in media and entertainment. No longer will you be arrested for running a pirate radio. No longer does someone has to greenlight your show. No longer do you have to wait for someone to retire to take their time slot.

But with great power comes great responsibility. Let’s hope the new radio stars make the best of it….

Bharat Kanodia – Founder and Chief Appraiser