Podcast Revenue Idea: Provide 20 second Job Listing Spots in Place of Ads
February 14th, 2007 | Posted in blog 2 Comments »
I have been thinking about how to monetize Tech Writer Voices. Most podcasters spend a lot of time creating and editing audio for their podcasts. What’s the return on investment? You can make money with podcasting, but the ads (such as ads for hosting services or other products), don’t seem to generate enough profit to be worthwhile.
However, I just stumbled upon an idea that may prove to be a powerful revenue generator: selling job description spotlights. For $20, I’ll read your job posting for at least 20 seconds at the beginning of the next Tech Writer Voices show.
Why would you want to list your job on Tech Writer Voices? Because, plain and simple, this is where all the people who are passionate about technical writing hang out. If someone is listening to topics about technical writing on his or her iPod while driving or working out, this person is passionate about the field. You want to hire these people. What do you think — would this idea work?
Sponsors
Tags: Podcasting
If you liked this post, keep updated with new content: Subscribe to I'd Rather Be Writing.
Both comments and pings are currently closed.
3977 Subscribers
There’s a lot in what you say,... (
Mark Baker (5)
DiSc (3)
Jen (3)
Richard Hamilton (3)
Jenny (2)
Sarah Maddox (2)
Sarah O'Keefe (2)
Aneesha (1)
Barrie Byron (1)
Catherine Crane (1)
Job ads have a pretty narrow window of relevance, and your podcasts are archived for a long time. It might be worthwhile for some companies, but you’d have to be very clear about the timeframe when you describe the job or people will be calling your sponsors about jobs that closed months ago.
It might work better to think about the qualities of technical writers and what products/services they might be interested in hearing about, and find sponsors who would like to reach those people. I hear ads for GoToMeeting.com on several different podcasts, even Inside Home Recording–it seems like tech writers would be a better fit for business-oriented virtual meeting software/service than guitar players are. GoDaddy also sponsors several podcasts I listen to, and with the Web such a hot topic in information delivery and reporting, they might work too. Then you could think about approaching the organizers of the STC conference, your contacts at MadCap Software, and other consultants you’ve interviewed about some level of one-time or continuing sponsorship. Just brainstorming a bit–we all think about this at least a little bit.
Thanks for the suggestions. I will get around to contacting these companies and services soon. I keep meaning to do it.