It’s not ads.

That line saddens me. It really does.

I know that might seem odd, especially for people that podcast because they are passionate, but for someone like me, who wants to see everyone able to pay their bills through work that makes them happy… I have to be able to tell my clients that it is possible, thus the questions move towards, “who has done it before, and how?”

What I’m against is people walking into a room and starting with that. As others have said, podcasting (and other social media) involve SKILL. and if you don’t build the skill, talk of money is pointless.

Also, talk of money is IRRELEVANT to podcasting. A good business model may involve podcasting, but I strongly believe that for most people, podcasting in an of itself is not a business model.

It’s an analogy I’ve used before – if you dig fishing, and before you even learn how to fish you ask “How can I monetize fishing?” You’re missing the point. Learn how to fish first, then think of how you could make money doing it.

When it comes down to it, if you aren’t able to catch fish, having a business plan is pointless.

There’s always room to turn a hobby into a business. That’s how many businesses have come into being and I believe that’s one of the best ways to create a successful business. I’ve often heard people say something like “I’m going to open a bakery” or “I’ve started a business in which I cook dinner in my clients’ homes” but I’ve never heard anyone say “I’m going to convert my quiche into currency”.

Monetizing sounds like you’re putting a price tag on anything that’ll take a sticker. Making a business out of your hobby sounds like you’re going to put time and effort into making something worth selling and have pride in what you do.

The Non-Monetizers say they do it for passion and that passion would somehow be tainted with money. I dont believe that.

And the monetizers(if that is a word) are all painted as being un-passionate money grubbing worms. I don’t believe that.

What i do believe is to put your passion first. I would challenge anyone here to tell me that passion and giving does not come first for me. We decided (John and I) that the “Intent” is more important than the term. If you go into business with the sole vision as to look at social media as a “Harvesting” opportunity than you deserve to be hated. However, if your intent is to use podcasting as just another means in which to communicate, add value, and share your passion then i think your all good.

Hell, if i didn’t care, and i wasn’t passionate about what I did, neither would anyone else. This is a very transparent medium, and you can see right through the fakers.

By the way – Sage, you are a massively talented person, and storyteller but there might be a sponsor somewhere who would value your content for what you put into it. There might even be a sponsor that fit with your core values.

My 2Cents…wait, that’s 4cents now
Keith

I’m not against making money in this medium. I’m against the medium being saturated with garbage which devalues it for everyone, producers and consumers alike.

The fact that monetization questions appear in many if not all podcamps and whatnot is, to me, a symbol of how many people are looking for that business advice related directly to podcasting as an industry, and I don’t think that it is a bad thing that they are looking for it.

As for the quality of those in it for the money, I agree, they suck. We bloggers have had to deal with blogs that only exist to make money for a long time, but please don’t forget that there are some high quality productions that only exist because there is a business opportunity for those that enjoy new media.