How to Get Podcast Sponsorship

Are you interested in landing your first podcast sponsorship deal? Podcast sponsorship is one of the best ways to make money podcasting. Here, advertisers pay to promote on your show in return for access to an engaged audience. Listen to some of the best podcasts for entrepreneurs to see how the pros flawlessly include sponsored ads in their episodes.

Sponsorship is a win-win situation. While brands have a direct line to a super focused audience that is interested in their niche, podcasters get financial help to run and grow their show. Whether you are a podcasting pro or just starting your podcast, getting a podcast sponsorship agreement can transform your show and make it a success.

Find out everything you need to know about podcast sponsorships below. We go into the different kinds of podcast sponsorships, podcast sponsorship rates and outline the steps you need to take to draw up a solid podcast sponsorship proposal.

Start your journey to land the best podcast sponsorship and maximize the revenue power of your show!

What Is Podcast Sponsorship?

Podcast sponsorship is a monetization strategy where brands pay podcasters to advertise inside an episode. Usually, this happens via pre-recorded messages (or adverts) placed at different places in the podcast. They could be read by the host (host-read ads) or pre-recorded ads, like what you hear on the radio.

Sponsorships give companies access to an engaged audience in their niche and let podcasters create income without directly billing their listeners. There are a few more plus points to a podcast ad campaign for both podcasters and companies. We’ve listed out a few for you below:

We are focusing on podcast sponsorship here. But, there are many other ways to make money podcasting. 

You could start using Patreon to build a fan-based community. This is a popular method used by creators where listeners can donate to support you directly. It also offers an option for tiered subscriptions – listeners can become monthly members in exchange for exclusive perks.

Perhaps explore affiliate marketing, especially if you believe your audience will benefit from a specific product or service. This is moving more into the world of influencer marketing, but can still be beneficial for podcasters.

Types of Podcast Sponsorship

Now you know what podcast sponsorship is, let's deep dive into the different types you may encounter.

Make sure you choose a method that fits both the marketing objectives of your sponsor as well as your audience. You can mix and match different styles of podcast sponsorship depending on your audience, content style, and financial goal.

Baked-in vs. Dynamic Ads

Recorded as part of the episode, baked-in ads stay with the content forever. For brands, they offer long-term exposure. However, over time, they can become dated and irrelevant. For podcast listeners, this kind of podcast advertisement usually strikes as authentic.

Dynamic ads let podcasters sell their ad spaces frequently and give sponsors far more freedom. Using ad servers, like Transistor or Podigee, they are positioned within a podcast episode and can be changed after the episode has been released.

Depending on your podcast sponsorship agreement, dynamic ads can be altered or spun through several episodes on one deal.

Affiliate Sponsorship

This is a good option for podcasters with a highly involved audience that values their advice.
As a commission-based approach, podcasters using affiliate sponsorship need to be sales savvy and have a knack for driving conversions for this to work.

During an episode, the host will highlight a product or service while offering a unique link or discount code. Each sale or sign-up from the podcast generates earnings on a commission.
Here's an example:

Honestly Unbalanced is a podcast hosted by Adam Hustler in the yoga niche. One of its sponsors is Liforme, a yoga mat brand. Adam frequently mentions how amazing these mats are and shares a discount code with the audience. He is upfront and honest that he gets a kickback.

In this situation, the listeners may be more inclined to follow through using Adam’s link as a way to support the podcast. Win-win!

Sponsored Episodes

Sometimes, sponsors want more than just a 30 second clip. You may have an opportunity to cover one whole episode or segment dedicated to your sponsor. The content will therefore centre around the industry or product of the brand.

This type of podcast sponsorship can be more natural and integrated than conventional advertising. This is also a good way for companies to educate viewers rather than sell.

Host-Read or Produced Ads?

The preferred and most successful form of podcast advertising are host-read ads. This is precisely as straightforward as it sounds. The podcast host reads the advertisement in their own voice and manner.

Because listeners believe the podcaster's advice, host-read commercials typically have greater conversion rates. Though they should fit the natural tone of the podcast host, they can be scripted or semi-scripted to make sure key points are highlighted.

So what about produced adverts?

The brand or a production crew could create pre-recorded adverts. As expected, these adverts turn out very polished and sound professional. But, that's their downfall. While they are slick, they often feel less genuine and lack the authority of a host-read advertisement.

Ad Placement

Ad placement is important and chances are sponsors will specify which they want in your contract. There are three options: the start, middle, or end. We call these pre-roll, mid-roll, and post-roll ads.

Pre-Roll Ads

Pre-roll ads are placed at the beginning of the episode – you may have already guessed that! Usually running between 15 and 30 seconds, these are quick clips.

Though some listeners may ignore them and perhaps skip them entirely, they are less disruptive and are starting to become more favorable.

Mid-Roll Ads

Mid-roll ads are set inside an episode at a natural content break. Usually lasting 30 to 60 seconds, this kind of pre-recorded commercial is where the host might say something like:

"Ok everybody, we’re gonna have a little commercial break. We'll be back in just a bit to carry on the discussion and find out x, y, z. [Mid-roll ad]... Welcome back! So Jane... Could you tell us about the most important turning point in your sporting career?”

IAB found this is the most effective placement of podcast advertisements in a study into U.S. podcast advertising revenue. Over 60% of respondents consistently choose ad placement part way through podcast episodes.

A great example of mid-roll ad placement can be heard in this episode of The Diary of a CEO. Skip ahead to 01:02:00 to hear the mid-roll ad transition.

Post-Roll Ads

Finally, we have the advertisements that play at the end of the podcast episode. Personally, we don't recommend this placement.

Usually a 15 to 30 second clip, this ad ends the show. This is the least helpful arrangement for brands since listeners may not make it all the way to the end.

8 Steps on How to Get Podcast Sponsorship

Step 1: Build Your Audience

Podcasts with an engaged audience appeal to sponsors more than just high download counts. After all, they want your audience to bite! Therefore, a smaller but highly active audience is more worth than a big, bored one.

Sponsors might find more appeal in a specialist podcast with 5,000 very active listeners than in a generic podcast with 20,000 casual listeners.

Start motivating audience participation and persuading listeners to post reviews, join social media conversations, and attend Q&A events. All of this takes time. So stay consistent and soon you will start to notice your audience becoming more engaged.

Of course, building your audience also depends much on consistent episode publication. A regular calendar helps your audience to trust your show, which will attract those sponsors.

Step 2: Design a Podcast Media Kit

Think of a podcast media kit as a CV or resume. It explains the reasons sponsors should collaborate with you and needs to look good while being easy to read. We recommend preparing a well-designed PDF or even a dedicated landing page on your podcast site.

A media kit for a podcast sponsorship proposal should include:

• Overview of your podcast. Outline everything, from the subject and target audience to your USP.
• Listener demographics. Potential sponsors will need to know details on age, location, and interests of your audience.
• Average downloads per episode and listener retention. You can find your download statistics and engagement metrics through your podcast hosting platform.
• Past sponsorships (if any) and testimonials from brands you’ve worked with.
• What you’re selling! Clearly state what ad spots, price, and sponsorship choices you are offering.

Step 3: Do Your Research

Not every brand will be suited for your podcast. Research pays off and saves time in the long run. Now it's time to identify potential sponsors.

Pay particular attention to sponsors that fit your audience and material. Investigate carefully and consider brands that run on related podcasts. They already pay for podcast advertisement and they may be open to more!

Consider the products you now use. After all, you are a specialist in your field, hence what you find helpful could pique the curiosity of your listeners! Should you already regularly highlight a company on your podcast, they might be interested in a formal collaboration.

Do your research and identify brands that would be a match.

Step 4: Approach Sponsors Using a Strong Pitch

Once you have your list of potential sponsors, the next step is sending a convincing pitch. Making direct contact is the easiest way to go about it. What’s the worst that could happen?
Your pitch for podcast sponsorship needs to be professional, transparent, and clear.

How should you set up your outreach email?

• Start with a personalized introduction. Say why you are contacting this particular brand. Have you been using their product for a while? Tell them about it and connect with them.
• Next, move on to your listeners and highlight how they are the target audience for the brand. This is where you can include audience demographics.
• Big up your achievements. It is vital to share analytics and numbers to showcase the potential reach to the brand. They’ll want to know downloads and engagement stats along with any past sponsorship success.
• Clearly outline podcast sponsorship options. If you have a rate card, add it in here. Also, mention what ad spots are currently available.
• Finish with an invitation to chat more. Make this CTA clear and ask, “When would be a good time to discuss?"

Step 5: Utilize Podcast Sponsorship Networks

You can skip step 4 all together and look at onboarding podcast ad networks if a direct outreach seems too much like work.

Linking podcasters with advertisers, podcast advertising networks serve as the middlemen. Top networks for podcast sponsorship:

• Podcorn
• ACast
• Gumball

Think of them like Hinge. Helping you find the perfect match for your podcast!

Step 6: Provide Flexible Sponsorship Packages

Sponsors value adaptation. So giving flexible package deals is definitely advised! You can customize your offers to match several budgets rather than a one-size-fits-all solution.

Tiered pricing is a neat and fair way to provide several sponsorship tiers (e.g., one pre-roll ad instead of a complete episode sponsorship).

Bundles of deals consist of podcast commercials accompanied with other promotions (such as email newsletter mentions, social media shoutouts, and so on).

Short-term podcast sponsorship agreements can be run on a trial basis. This allows you to gather stats to support a long-term deal later on.

Step 7: Negotiate a Podcast Sponsorship Rate

Once a sponsor shows interest, it is time to go over pricing and close a contract. A podcast sponsorship agreement is influenced by several elements, including the audience size and engagement level, ad placement inside the episode, length and exclusivity of the partnership.

Usually based on CPM (Cost Per Mille), podcast sponsorship fees represent the cost a sponsor pays per 1,000 downloads of a given episode. Some sponsorships, meanwhile, also apply flat rates or CPA (Cost Per Acquisition) approaches. We’ve listed these different types of podcast sponsorship rates below.

Again, time to research is crucial here. If you can, try to find out what other podcasts in your niche are charging.

If you want to quickly estimate your potential earnings, check out The Influencer Marketing Hub and their free podcast revenue calculator.

CPM-Based Pricing

CPM – cost per mile – is the most common pricing model used in podcast sponsorship agreement. It is determined by the episode's download count within 30 days of release.

Standard industry fees vary depending on the ad placement. We’ve looked into rates provided by Gumball to give you a rough estimate:

Using these rates as an example:

For a mid-roll commercial, for instance, your podcast would make approximately $300 each episode if it attracted 10,000 downloads each episode and a sponsor paid $30 CPM.

Remember, especially if you are recording a host-read ad, you might request a higher rate if your audience is very engaged and making significant impressions and high downloads!

Flat-Fee Rates

Some sponsors might prefer to have a fixed payment rather than deals based on CPM. This is typical of specialized podcasts with extremely active listeners, even if their total download counts are smaller. 

Flat free rates can range from anything between $100 to $2,500 per episode. They are dependent on the following variables:

• Listener loyalty and audience involvement
• Brand applicability to the niche of the podcast
• Exclusivity—that is, exclusively highlighting one sponsor each episode

CPA and Affiliate Deals

We’ve already covered that affiliate sponsorship is based on performance and commission. This is starting to enter the world of influencer marketing.

CPA and an affiliate program are attributed to the total number of sales your podcast generates.

Generally speaking, e-commerce partnerships pay between 10% and 30% for each transaction. For services, including software trials or subscriptions, they run between $5 and $50 per sign-up.

Branded Content

You might be in talks with a brand interested in most of a full episode. That is really great. Well done you! You're crushing this; this is a really exciting possibility.

Depending on the reach and specialty, length and degree of brand integration, and whether the sponsor obtains exclusivity, sponsored episode costs usually fall between $300 - $10,000+.

Step 8: Do The Work!

Your work isn't done once you find a sponsor! In fact, it’s just begun.

Now, you need to make sure your podcast is producing high-quality adverts that benefit your listeners as well as your sponsor. You must keep your sponsor pleased! Sponsors are more likely to come back for future campaigns if you produce an outstanding job first time round.

Make your host-read ads interesting. Rather than reciting a dull script, tell a personal tale about the product. And make sure the integration is flawless; adverts should seem like they fit your show naturally.

Remember to monitor your ads' performance. This gives sponsors listener comments, measurements of interaction, and any relevant data. This knowledge will also help you write your next podcast sponsorship proposal.

Steer Clear of These Common Podcast Sponsorship Mistakes

While getting sponsorships is a fantastic method to make money from your podcast, blunders could actually cost you money and sour ties with advertisers.

Here are the most common mistakes made in podcast sponsorship deals:

• Selecting sponsors outside your audience.
• Overloading episodes with adverts.
• Unauthentic delivery.
• Underpricing yourself and agreeing to low rates.
• Not collecting performance metrics.
• Ignoring long-term opportunities.
• Having an unclear agreement.

Let’s look at each of these in a bit more detail.

Selecting Sponsors Outside Your Audience

Accepting sponsorships from companies that contradict the main interests of the podcast is a fatal error! If the product or service is irrelevant to your audience, then why would they engage or listen to any CTA’s?

Fall into this trap, and you will not only lose your audience, but your sponsor will not get a return on investment. 

How can you avoid this common pitfall? Only work with companies whose target market and niche fit your podcast. This is a relationship you are building, and you need to be a match.

Overloading Episodes With Adverts

Too many adverts in one episode will turn listeners off and give the content an unduly commercial feel. Should advertising be too frequent, listeners may begin to skip or tune out completely. This is something you want to avoid at all costs.

Maintain an appropriate ad-to-content ratio. Most effective podcasts let advertising run one or two times per episode, max!

Unauthentic Delivery

Though they are strong, host-read ads won't appeal to listeners if they sound forced. You may even alarm some of your audience with a hostage style delivery!

Host-read ads need to have some of the host's personality added in. This could come through as a share of experiences, testimonials, or a creative narrative to personalize sponsorship messages.

Underpricing Yourself And Agreeing To Low Rates

Some podcasters embrace low sponsorship rates and totally undervalue their audience. It’s hard to start increasing rates, and long-term underpayment adds a strain to your bank balance.

You are valuable! Work out a podcast sponsorship rate that reflects that.

Not Collecting Performance Metrics

Sponsors want data on how their commercials fare. Therefore, not providing data might make renewing arrangements more difficult. 

Showing ROI (return on investment) requires metrics. Your sponsor will want stats on downloads, listener interaction, and promo code redemptions. Track all of these along with click-through rates using trackable links.

Ignoring Long-Term Opportunities

It can be easy to concentrate all your efforts on one-off transactions instead of looking for long-term sponsorships. But continuous income and, with time, improved brand integration, come from regular sponsorships.

You can offer cheaper bulk rates, perhaps a three-month sponsorship rate, to motivate longer commitments.

Having An Unclear Agreement

Unpaid bills or misalignment of goals typically results from informal agreements or verbal commitments. You want to avoid this, quite naturally.

Use a podcast sponsorship agreement and include payment terms, ad placement and length, performance requirements, and exclusivity provisions.

Are You Ready For Podcast Sponsorship?

Podcast sponsorship is a good way to make money podcasting. It lets companies interact with your active audience while you get financial kickback. Understanding the many forms of sponsorship, negotiating a good rate, and creating a strong sponsorship proposal can help you to draw in appropriate sponsors and foster long-lasting working relationships.

You need to be proactive to be successful. Don’t wait for podcast sponsors to approach you. You need to go out there and find the opportunities.

If this is too much to take in on your own, call in the big guns. Saspod is here to assist you if you need professional advice or are confused about where to start. Our team of podcast experts brings the knowledge you need!