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Hey Reader,

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Ready to make more money from your podcast? Then let's get to it.

Here's how I became a paying podcast listener for the second time:

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Podcast #2

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Podcast: Our Prehistory​

Membership fee: 3€/month

What’s included: Gated content; episode timelines and maps

Member since: September 2023

How I discovered the podcast: Apple Podcasts search

What I appreciate about the membership: Gated content, a general good vibe

Will I keep my membership? Yes, while the podcast is still going

Would I upgrade my membership: No, the added benefits (early access to episodes) don’t interest me enough.

My journey to membership:

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I’ve always been interested in human history. I visited the famous caves in Lascaux a few years ago and was blown away by the guide’s outrageously French accent and the beauty of the prehistoric art on the cave walls.

When I looked for a podcast about anthropology, I was surprised that there weren’t many to choose from. However, the one I did land on was undoubtedly what I was looking for.

Our Prehistory walks you through thousands of years of human evolution around the world. It’s well researched and beautifully told. Host Benjy Longworth provides sources and posts photos and maps to accompany his episodes. And it doesn’t hurt that his voice is incredibly soothing.

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I don’t think I was aware of his membership programme until he started referring to his episode about Neanderthals, which was for paying members only. Within the fairly confined group of people who are so interested in human evolution that they’ll seek out a podcast on it, Neanderthals are a hot topic. So mysterious! So misunderstood!

So in this instance, and as with Psychology in Seattle, I was motivated to pay for the podcast by gated content. However, unlike Psychology in Seattle, I knew that joining the membership for Our Prehistory wasn’t opening the floodgates to a whole heap of previously inaccessible content, as Our Prehistory has few members-only episodes. What it did give me was a feeling of deep satisfaction.

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Benjy is a busy person with some sort of job and some sort of life outside of podcasting. He also recently continued his own human evolution by becoming a father. His is a hobby podcast, but a truly beautiful one at that. So when he mentioned that he was gating some episodes and asking for money to access them, I was happy to pay up.
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Lesson: If they want to open the Gates, they need to give you the Bill(s)
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Gating your content adds a huge incentive to get people to pay you for the content you love to pay. But combine that gating with a gentle push—not a dramatic appeal but a thoughtful message and a secure means of paying you—and you’d be surprised how many of your listeners will put their hands in their pockets.
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How you can be like Benjy Longworth: Make all of your early episodes available to everyone so you can build a connection with your audience. Once you feel that connection is established, experiment with gating an episode on a popular topic.

Explain to your audience how they can financially support you, but most importantly, why they should. Don’t go overboard because your audience will more than likely understand why you’re asking for money for your content. Just put the option out there for them, remind them of it and thank them when they take it.

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Meet back here next week to find out one more way to boost your podcast membership.

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~Sarah at CopyHop~

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If you want to hear more from me, then connect with me on ​LinkedIn​.

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