September 22, 2023

HRA 53: Podcast Networks Should Include Subscriptions

5 minutes

I am going to divert from my typical format and provide podcasters and podcast networks with another option to be an ad-supported network.

First, let me provide you with context - we were fully ad-supported when the pandemic hit in 2020, and we lost 60% of our advertisers in two weeks. We needed to pivot to survive and focus on what our audience wants. Podcast networks should be multi-dimensional to remain in the black, which means you are profitable and avoid struggling when advertising sales are down. Plus, with ad tech taking over podcasting - brands are demanding to get massive data about audiences, and everyone wants their own ad tech. This will turn off fans who do not want to be tracked remember they are listening to you because they want to hear what you have to say - not give advertisers all of their data. The sad thing is that podcast advertising is more than metrics, yet this is all brands and agencies want to focus on, and it's not why podcasting advertising is successful.

We took the time to vet several subscription services, and after reviewing features and benefits, we chose Memberful as our partner. We have been with Memberful for 2 1/2 years and are thrilled we picked them.

Here are four reasons why we went with Memberful and what you need to consider when selecting a subscription service.

First, we did not want to take away from our ad-supported fans, so we were careful in selecting what we were going to initially offer our fans to join our Club and pay for our content. My recommendation is to start small and build from there. So we decided to offer ALL of our shows ad-free and provide our fans with excerpts from before/after the shows as a bonus for joining our Club, AND we set up Discord to allow our Club members to hang out with like-minded people AND our hosts and staff hang out in it too.

We selected one tier in our Club at launch, meaning we only had one plan - $7 a month to join and have access to everything we offered. Based on our research, the biggest challenge with new Clubs was offering too many tiers and bonus content for joining - a lot of Clubs could not handle the work, missed goals, and disappointed fans. We wanted to avoid this, and we did.

After six months, we started adding more benefits to our Club along with a few different tiers, and it's an ongoing process of improvements. We added annual, corporate, and family memberships. We also added one-show memberships for people who wanted only a show and no other Club features and benefits. Then we started adding new shows in our Club that will only be offered in our Club. We carefully continue adding new features to our Club because we always want to deliver what we say we are going to do. It's important to maintain integrity.

Being partnered with Memberful means we have a strategic partner who is invested in our growth and network. They are constantly improving their services, and with open communication, they are true partners in helping us grow our Club. We meet quarterly to hear Memberful's advice, and they always update us on new features and tips that can help us grow. The response time from Memberful whenever there is an issue is stellar. I highly recommend Membrerful if you want a solid recommendation.

These show notes have been truncated due to length. For the full show notes, visit https://twit.tv/shows/host-read-ads/episodes/53

Host: Lisa Laporte

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