Making money out of radio shows no longer a herculean task

Darryl was super excited when he could finally sweet talk the local radio station inSeattle, to air his show. The first few months went by in a blur and then the reality hit. The sponsors and advertisers for his show were hard to come by. You could blame others, look for another job, or pray fervently. Or make a sincere effort to break away from the crowd and carve your own niche.

Not everybody is born Rush Limbaugh

Most radio show hosts fail to have their own voice and are usually poor mimics of more popular hosts. It pays to have your own brand of humor and hosting style. To top popularity charts a show has to have unique content. For those who lack swagger, a sweet, down to earth approach can gain listenership as it is any day much better than a forced stylish drawl.

Targeted niche 

Concentrate on reaching out to one specific group of audience. It is by far the easiest way to bring in the sponsors. Today’s hot topics may find eager listeners but eager sponsors might be a tad too hard to come by. A show that discusses at length about the healthcare industry (everyday there is someone critiquing or praising the Obama government for it, so you’d never run out of topics) is more likely to attract adverts from neighboring clinics and hospitals.

If you are not in the social media space, you are not getting anywhere

Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin are the holy trinity of the social media revolution. Post you radio show in any audio community site like Last.fm and share the audio link on social media platforms. Blog extensively about your show, or, if you don’t find the time, post transcripts of it, in places where, people care to look.

The avenues are opening up

Whether you are a radio show host, internet radio anchor, or podcaster, the avenues are opening up. Advertisers are forever on the look out for greener and more affordable pastures. The market is no longer controlled by the big sharks and tiny fishes have a space too. It just takes a bit of thinking out of the box, creativity, and hands on approach, to get the sponsors and advertisers, queuing up.