PodBiz | Where's The Money In Podcasting?

How do you build a podcast business when your audience is highly specialized, deeply regulated, and incredibly difficult to reach?Dan Kendall has spent nearly a decade proving that small, focused podcast audiences can create outsized business value. As the founder of Health Podcast Library and creator of Digital Health Today, Dan built one of the earliest podcast ecosystems dedicated to healthcare innovation, medical technology, and evidence-based content.In this episode of PodBiz, Dan breaks down how healthcare podcasting evolved from a niche experiment into a trusted infrastructure layer for audience education, brand positioning, and professional discovery.He also shares why many companies still misunderstand podcasting, how he sold his first sponsorships before the industry had clear pricing models, and why trust, not scale alone, is often the most valuable currency in podcasting.“I don't think having a podcast is a binary decision anymore. It's not do I don't I? It's about what kind of podcast do I create.”In This Episode, We Cover:Why niche podcast audiences can outperform larger shows commerciallyHow Dan monetized Digital Health Today before podcast ad standards existedThe role of trust in healthcare podcasting and branded contentWhy healthcare companies are using podcasts as educational infrastructureThe difference between owned, earned, and paid media in podcast growthWhy most organizations think about podcasting incorrectlyHow Health Podcast Library vets credible health contentWhat podcasting can learn from the Airbnb marketplace modelThe business opportunity behind highly targeted professional audiencesWhy podcasting is no longer a “should we?” decision for brandsEpisode Moments:(00:00) Why podcasting is no longer a binary decision(01:37) Where the money is in podcasting(04:13) Launching Digital Health Today(06:47) Dan’s first sponsorship strategy(14:14) Why niche audiences became commercially valuable(15:03) Selling annual podcast sponsorships(17:59) Podcasts as sales and education infrastructure(21:49) Building “WebMD for your ears”(23:15) The vision behind Health Podcast Library(27:18) Owned, earned, and paid media strategies(31:06) Why healthcare professionals needed podcast discovery tools(33:01) Launching the Health Podcast Awards(35:08) Why creators overcomplicate getting started(37:01) Using podcasts to educate customers before sales conversations(44:04) The Starbucks moment that validated podcast sponsorship(47:04) The biggest misconception about Health Podcast Library(48:24) Dan’s advice for podcasters entering niche industries(50:08) Why Dan is excited about podcast industry events and the Health Podcast SummitAbout Dan KendallDan Kendall is the founder of Health Podcast Library and the creator of Digital Health Today. With more than 30 years of experience across healthcare, medical technology, and innovation, Dan has become a leading advocate for evidence-based podcasting within the healthcare industry. Through Health Podcast Library, Health Podcast Summit, and related initiatives, he works to elevate credible health content and help creators, organizations, and professionals use podcasting more effectively for education, trust-building, and audience engagement.Connect with Dan KendallHealth Podcast Library Website: healthpodcastlibrary.com YouTube: youtube.com/@healthpodcastlibrary Instagram: instagram.com/healthpodcastlibrary LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/health-podcast-librarySome Additional PodBiz Buzz“Hope is a terrible strategy.”“What are the key things that you wish every potential client, user, consumer, patient, professional, whoever they are, what are the key things that you wish all of them knew before you flew out to see them?”“When they choose to trade their time and their attention for your content, what are you doing to help them be better in their life?”“Everybody's telling me they heard me on your podcast. I think this is your audience in this room.”PodBiz is the podcast about the business of podcasting. Hosted by industry veterans Norma Jean Belenky and John Kiernan, the show features conversations with creators, executives, and platform leaders to answer one question: Where’s the money in podcasting?Each episode dives into monetization strategy, adtech, branded content, IP development, and audience growth. Guests include leaders from Acast, Captivate, Crooked Media, Buzzsprout, True Native Media, Podfest, and more.Learn more: njbmedia.co | thepodhouseproductions.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

If you don’t own your audience, are you actually building a business?This week on PodBiz, Michelle Jackson, founder of Creators Getting Paid, breaks down why most creators struggle to monetize and what’s actually required to turn a podcast into something sustainable. Her work sits at the intersection of independent creators, community building, and revenue transparency, giving her a clear view into what’s working and where people get stuck.The throughline is simple: monetization isn’t about doing more content. It’s about building something around the content that converts.“There’s no one way to monetize a podcast… each podcast is completely different.”That flexibility is part of the opportunity, but also the problem. Without a defined structure, most creators default to focusing only on the show itself.“If you get nothing out of this whole conversation… you need to be collecting your audience.”Because the gap isn’t effort or even consistency. It’s ownership. This conversation looks at what actually needs to be in place beyond the podcast feed, and why building an audience you control is the difference between a project and a business.In this episode:Why there’s no single path to monetizing a podcastWhy most podcasters struggle to believe they can make moneyThe difference between building a show and building a businessAudience ownership vs. platform dependencyEmail lists, newsletters, and what actually mattersWhy content alone doesn’t convertWhen to pause, pivot, or rebuild a podcastCrowdfunding and alternative funding modelsThe tradeoffs of running multiple creative projectsEpisode Moments(01:13) Where the money in podcasting actually depends(02:58) Deciding to monetize your work(05:18) Why owning your audience is critical(10:29) Email lists vs. newsletters(14:17) Turning content into community(19:04) Why most content doesn’t convert(21:27) Taking a break to build something better(23:29) Crowdfunding as a funding model(27:08) Why podcasters get stuck at the show level(37:18) The cost of splitting focus(41:12) The opportunity for more creative podcastingAbout MichelleMichelle Jackson is the founder of Creators Getting Paid, a platform focused on transparency around how creators earn revenue. She works across independent creators and organizations, helping them build sustainable income through audience ownership, community development, and strategic brand ecosystems. She is also a long-time podcaster with over a decade of experience across personal finance and creator economy content.Some Additional PodBiz Buzz“I think, first of all, just deciding that you want to monetize your show… like unapologetic, I will make money.”“You need leads. You need people. You need a community to sell that to.”“Most people’s content is really boring… they’re just not taking risks.”“If you only focus on one project, it will grow faster.” PodBiz is the podcast about the business of podcasting. Hosted by industry veterans Norma Jean Belenky and John Kiernan, the show features conversations with creators, executives, and platform leaders to answer one question: Where’s the money in podcasting?Each episode dives into monetization strategy, adtech, branded content, IP development, and audience growth. Guests include leaders from Acast, Captivate, Crooked Media, Buzzsprout, True Native Media, Podfest, and more.Learn more: njbmedia.co | thepodhouseproductions.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.