Are you treating your podcast as a business or a hobby? And if you already have a business and a podcast, are you tracking the ROI on your podcasting activities?
If you don’t know the answer to those questions, pull out a notepad and take notes while listening to this conversation I had recently with CPA Erica Goode. She provides accounting and CFO services for female-owned businesses with revenues between $300k and $300M.
Y’all the woman knows what she’s talking about! But she graciously started “at the beginning”...
ROI = return on investment
Basically, anything you do in life has an ROI, a return on your investment. Financially the formula for figuring out ROI is what you get (income) divided by what you spend, times 100. Of course, there is a monetary component in terms of what you spend. But time is a consideration, too. And especially for a small business, you need to consider time and energy spent on marketing: Instagram and Facebook ads, Google ads, etc. So it’s important to ask yourself not only “What is this going to cost me (time and money)?” but also “Is it worth it?”
Let’s consider the cost of starting a podcast
So, for example, in order to work out the ROI of a podcast for your business, the basic cost for a podcast host (and I use and always recommend Libsyn) is $7-$15/month. A serviceable mic would cost $50 (and you could always upgrade later), headphones would run about $20, editing might run about $20-$25/episode, and your time. Time is really the big thing.
Erica and I talked through the thought process for different situations. (This conversation is really worth a listen as you’re thinking about making future investments in your business.)
One of the notable takeaways that Erica mentioned is the importance of having a strong call-to-action Don’t Wing It episode 4. This part is crucial in order to get that ROI…because if your CTA doesn’t feed into your business (or worse, if you have no CTA!), there’s no chance you’ll make any sales. And if you don’t make any sales…well, I think you can tell where that will end up, right?
And another thing
Before you consider investing in any activity for your business, it’s crucial to know what your sales funnel will look like. Your call to action may start, for example, with getting them to subscribe to your newsletter.
Fun Fact: Did you know that approximately 70% of your newsletter subscribers will purchase something from you at some point? How’s that for a reason to start building your email list?
How to start tracking your ROI
At the very first point of contact, ask people how they found you. That information alone is gold! Was it on Instagram? Google search? Your blog? Facebook ads? That piece of information will tell you exactly what is working and where you should be making an investment. It will tell you where to double up, and where to back off.
Listen to the entire episode here.
Have questions or want to contact Erica?
Her website: https://www.ericagoode.com/
On Instagram: www.instagram.com/erica.goode.cpa/
Just a reminder to treat your business (and your podcast) as a business, friend!
Because, as we well know, “life’s too short to wing it!”