Where's the money in podcasting? Hosted by Norma Jean Belenky and John Kiernan, PodBiz dives into the strategies, trends, and tools driving podcast monetization and industry growth. From ad revenue and branded content to audience development and production workflows, we spotlight the real business behind the mic.
Each week, we speak with creators, executives, and innovators answering the one question on everyone’s mind: Where’s the money in podcasting?
Whether you're monetizing your show, launching a network, or just obsessed with the space, PodBiz is your insider guide to podcasting’s biggest opportunities.
Listen to new episodes every Monday- Let’s get down to PodBiz!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Where's the money in podcasting? Hosted by Norma Jean Belenky and John Kiernan, PodBiz dives into the strategies, trends, and tools driving podcast monetization and industry growth. From ad revenue and branded content to audience development and production workflows, we spotlight the real business behind the mic.
Each week, we speak with creators, executives, and innovators answering the one question on everyone’s mind: Where’s the money in podcasting?
Whether you're monetizing your show, launching a network, or just obsessed with the space, PodBiz is your insider guide to podcasting’s biggest opportunities.
Listen to new episodes every Monday- Let’s get down to PodBiz!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
At what point does a podcast become a business that advertisers want to invest in?
In this episode of PodBiz, Norma Jean Belenky and John Kiernan sit down with Heather Osgood, founder of True Native Media and host of The Podcast Advertising Playbook, to talk about what really matters in podcast monetization today.
Heather shares nearly a decade of experience connecting podcasters and advertisers, from the realities of download thresholds to how long it takes to close a brand deal, to why host-read ads remain central even as programmatic grows.
As she puts it:
“Most people prefer the host-read ad. You’re going to have a better result with a host-read ad. But when we can sprinkle in the programmatic as well, it really helps round out a whole monetization strategy.”
Heather Osgood is the founder of True Native Media, a podcast representation agency specializing in podcast advertising. With a background in radio sales and a love for podcasting, Heather has become an influential voice in the space. She’s a frequent speaker at events like Podcast Movement and PodFest, and she hosts the podcast, The Podcast Advertising Playbook, where she educates creators and advertisers alike on how to make podcast ads work. When she’s not connecting brands and shows, she’s hiking or spending time with her family at the beach.
Connect with Heather on LinkedIn.
Learn more at truenativemedia.com.
01:29 – Where’s the Money? | Why advertising still drives podcast revenue
03:21 – Podcasters or Content Creators? | Shifting how the industry thinks about influence
04:58 – Host-Read vs. Programmatic | What listeners and advertisers actually prefer
07:55 – Starting True Native Media | Heather’s journey from radio to podcast ad sales
14:13 – Brand Dollars Take Time | Why long sales cycles are part of the process
19:07 – Download Thresholds | 5K, 25–50K, and 100K monthly downloads explained
21:33 – Lessons Learned | Why Heather wishes she’d built tech sooner
23:41 – Looking Ahead | Podcasters as influencers and the next stage for ad buys
“If I start calling on Toyota today, I’ll be lucky if I get them to place ads on your show next year.”
“If you want individualized representation, I would aim for more like 25 to 50 thousand downloads per month.”
“I’ve stopped referring to our podcasters as podcasters and started referring to them as content creators.”
“If I could go back, I would start the technology side of our company sooner.”
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.