Are you interested in earning money online? Have you ever considered monetizing your podcast to make some extra cash? It’s a very popular option that many podcasters take advantage of today, so let’s learn how it works.

First, let me say that monetization is not for everyone. In fact, some podcasters are adamantly opposed to pushing products on their audience for they feel it interrupts the conversation and compromises the intent of the podcast. Others, however, see monetization as a great way to leverage their audience and make some money to support the podcast. Producing a podcast is, after all, a lot of work and shouldn’t the host have the opportunity to earn some compensation in return?

Promote affiliate productsThe simplest way to make money with your podcast is to promote a product or service through an affiliate link. For example, I know my listeners are interested in smartphones and podcasting, so I signed up to be an affiliate at Amazon.com. In my podcast, I can promote the Glif smartphone tripod mount and instruct my listeners to visit mobilepodcaster.com/glif to find the right model on Amazon.com. If the listener (you) visit my link and buy something on Amazon, I get a small commission on purchase of between 4% and 8.5% depending on my monthly affiliate purchase volume. Other programs pay out a flat fee, such as Bluehost at $65.

Sell AdvertisingAnother potential method for making money with your podcast is to sell advertising. The success of advertising depends greatly on the size of your audience since advertisers aren’t going to want to invest in your podcast if you only have a small handful of listeners. Conversely, if your podcast has a big following, you can expect advertisers to approach you. Set up a advertising page with a form on your website so that potential advertisers can contact you specifically for this purpose.

Promote your own products or servicesIf you have a product or service to sell, your podcast may serve as a great platform to promote it and in turn can earn money when people buy. You can think of the podcast as a means to generate awareness, or you could use your podcast as a set of tutorials for your product, thereby generating consideration for your product. The best part of this strategy is that you earn a greater percentage on every sale, 100% in fact. I use this approach on this podcast and it work very well to promote my Mobile Podcaster apps.

What monetization strategies have you tried? What are some other tactics you’ve considered?