First Sale of a Podcast Media Property (and what we can learn from it)
Tim Bourquin, founder of the Podcast and New Media Expo, has announced the sale of his podcast media property, Endurance Radio. As far as I know, this is the first time a podcast media property has been sold. The details of the deal have not been revealed, but there are still some very interesting insights to be found.
If you have an established podcast media property, selling your podcast is a possible solution to the podfading dilemma rather than letting things fizzle when you lose steam.
How Much is a Podcast Worth?
There are several things that give an established podcast worth. Here are the assets that you might have that have interest to a prospective buyer.
- An audience that have expressed interest in a niche topic
- A relationship with that audience (some of which can be transferred to the new host/owner if you play things right)
- A community (the relationships that exist amongst your audience/users)
- A back catalog of content
- Established traffic sources in the form of search engine ranking, inbound links, etc.
- A recognized brand name (a known source of quality information/entertainment)
These are all things that you have worked hard to develop. They have a value. Someone is willing to pay for these assets because the time, work and resources have already been invested to build them.
Challenges of Selling Your Podcast
However, I can also think of some challenges that will arise while trying to sell a podcast. How do you place a dollar value on a podcast based on these assets. There’s little or no precedent.
Tim also pointed out that many of his potential buyers still didn’t recognize the value of podcasting in general or how to integrate it into their current site or marketing plan. Expect that you will need to educate buyers about the value a podcast. They may also be concerned about how to maintain the podcast themselves and will ask for a period of consultation.
The Value of Your List
I also find it very interesting that Tim found the buyer after sending a message out to his list. One of his listeners forwarded the message the individual that bought the show in the end. In my book I talk about the importance of building an email list. I fact, the email list further adds value to your media property.
To hear Tim talk more about the sale, listen to this episode of Podcast Brothers.
February 2nd, 2007 02:01
[…] Jason mentions today some interesting thoughts about the sale of a podcast. Here is an excerpt. Be sure to check out his site to get the full details. There are several things that give an established podcast worth. Here are the assets that you might have that have interest to a prospective buyer. […]
February 7th, 2007 10:12
[…] The details of the deal have not been disclosed to the public but the Endurance Radio Podcast was sold to Kevin Patrick w, a multitalented athlete and successful broadcaster who is also into producing podcasts for his clients and partnered with Usa Triathlon. […]
February 7th, 2007 12:11
[…] With the recent selling of Endurance Radio Podcast, another opportunity in podcasting industry has evolved and possibly, this can be one solution to avoid podfading dilemma. […]
February 20th, 2007 17:13
[…] Recently I talked about selling your podcast as a way to make money or as an alternative to podfading (letting your show fizzle). Along the same lines, I found an interesting post on selling a blog. Everything in the article applies to podcasts as well. […]
July 14th, 2007 23:34
[…] If you are looking to sell here is what matters according to Jason Van Orden […]
January 27th, 2008 03:16
[…] If you are looking to sell here is what matters according to Jason Van Orden […]
April 5th, 2008 15:52
[…] If you are looking to sell here is what matters according to Jason Van Orden […]
April 5th, 2008 15:53
[…] Tim Bourquin, founder of the Podcast and New Media Expo, has announced the sale of his podcast media property, Endurance Radio. If you are looking to sell here is what matters according to Jason Van Orden […]