7 Podcast Business Success Stories [2023]
Here are some real life success stories of starting a podcast business:
1. Castos ($1.5M/year)
The startup podcast with more than 500 episodes to help you launch and grow. 10 million+ downloads. 500+ five-star reviews.
Craig Hewitt (from Winter Garden, FL, USA) started Castos ago.
In 2017, Craig Hewitt founded Castos, a popular podcasting platform.
Castos makes podcasting easy and accessible to everyone with their hosting platform and integration of the Simple Podcasting plugin
More than 10M people have downloaded the 500+ episodes of podcasts uploaded by Castos.
At present, the Seriously Simple Podcasting pluginhas been installed over 30,000 times, and the Castos hosting service has 10,000 active users
The company generates about $1.5M in ARR
Read the full article on nichepursuits.com ➜
2. I Know Dino ($0/year)
There has never been a better time to build an online business around a topic you care about. This week’s guests on The Side Hustle Show are proof of that. Garret Kruger and Sabrina Ricci are the husband and wife team behind , which started as a side hustle and is now the world’s #1 dinosaur podcast. Not bad for a couple of non-paleontologists. It wasn’t an overnight success. In fact, it took 6 years for the two of them to feel comfortable going full-time in the business. But they’ve had a blast along the way and they’re doing what they love doing most - interviewing paleontologists, talking about dinosaurs, and building a passionate dino-loving community. Tune in to The Side Hustle Show interview to hear: how Garret and Sabrina grew their audience the different ways they monetize their show how you may be able to borrow some of the same tactics for your business
Garret Kruger and Sabrina Ricci (from San Francisco, CA, USA) started I Know Dino over 8 years ago.
I Know Dino is a dinosaur podcast produced by the husband and wife team of Garret Kruger and Sabrina Ricci. Primarily it started as a side business and is now the world's #1 dinosaur podcast, is
They conducted interviews with paleontologists, held dinosaur-related discussions, and created a vibrant community of dino enthusiasts.
The podcast didn't become successful right away. Instead, it took the two of them six years before they felt secure enough to work full-time in the company.
Since new dinosaur species are discovered frequently, she and Garret recognized a need for a podcast that would cover these discoveries.
The couple started their website in 2012 and their podcast in 2015 as hobbies, hoping that it might, at most, bring in a little extra money.
Read the full story on sidehustlenation.com ➜
Learn more about starting a podcast business:
Where to start?
-> How much does it cost to start a podcast business?
-> Pros and cons of a podcast business
Need inspiration?
-> Examples of established podcast business
-> Marketing ideas for a podcast business
Other resources
4. Journey To Launch ($252K/year)
In this week’s rewind episode, Co-Work With Me as I discuss unlearning purpose and how to stop letting analysis paralysis keep you from pursuing your side hustle. Check out this episode and others on , , and This episode is brought to you by: Host and personal finance educator Jamila Souffrant shares practical and tactical ways that you can achieve your dreams of Financial Freedom & Financial Independence. Subscribe and listen to the Journey To Launch podcast wherever you listen to podcasts. Links mentioned in this episode Click here to subscribe via RSS feed (non-iTunes feed): Announcements Join our Facebook Community If you’re looking for a community of supportive side hustlers who are all working to take our businesses to the next level, join us here: Guest Social Media Info Side Hustle Pro –
Jamila Souffrant (from New York, NY, USA) started Journey To Launch over 7 years ago.
Jamila Souffrant is the founder of Journey to Launch, a podcast that offers information and tools to help people increase their savings, pay off their debt, and achieve financial independence.
- Her passion started in 2016 as a personal quest for financial independence.
- She launched Journey to Launch first as a blog in 2018, where she used to jot down her journey from being broke to achieving economic empowerment.
- The success of her blog motivated her to launch The Journey to Launch podcasts.
- The podcast has helped many listeners come out of debt, stop living paycheck to paycheck and build-savings.
- She received notable media attention in 2018 from outlets like Money Magazine and Insider.
- The podcast had an exceptional year with over 2 million downloads and a Forbes feature.
- Journey to Launch has 10K+ email subscribers, a monthly audience, and social research of 150K+.
Read the full story on forbes.com ➜
5. Cary Jack - The Happy Hustle ($300K/year)
Cary Jack is a lifestyle entrepreneur, founder & author of The Happy Hustle, top 1% globally ranked podcast host, int’l keynote speaker, professional actor/model, biohacker, eco-outdoorsman, and humanitarian striving to make a positive impact on this planet. Top 3 Value Bombs: 1. The 3-day effect states that those in nature for 3 days show lower pre-frontal cortex activity responsible for stress and anxiety. That means lower pressure, improved memory, elevated mood, better sleep, increased self-esteem, better vitamin absorption and so on. 2. Whether you come to Montana and do the Montana Mastermind Epic Camping Adventure or you just go to the wilderness on your own, it’s highly recommended to integrate more nature in your life. 3. Focus on becoming a conscious consumer to support corporations that have sustainable supply chains so that we can protect our planet for future generations to enjoy. Check out Cary's video to learn more about his Montana Mastermind. Apply and get a $500 discount - Sponsors: : Learn how to grow better by connecting your people, your customers, and your business at ! : A graphic design platform where anyone can easily craft professional and unique visual content for social media and digital marketing in minutes! Visit today to try it for free!
Cary Jack (from Bozeman, MT, USA) started Cary Jack - The Happy Hustle ago.
Cary Jack is a lifestyle entrepreneur, founder & author of The Happy Hustle, top 1% globally ranked podcast host, int’l keynote speaker, professional actor/model, biohacker, eco-outdoorsman, and humanitarian striving to make a positive impact on this planet. Top 3 Value Bombs: 1. The 3-day effect states that those in nature for 3 days show lower pre-frontal cortex activity responsible for stress and anxiety. That means lower pressure, improved memory, elevated mood, better sleep, increased self-esteem, better vitamin absorption and so on. 2. Whether you come to Montana and do the Montana Mastermind Epic Camping Adventure or you just go to the wilderness on your own, it’s highly recommended to integrate more nature in your life. 3. Focus on becoming a conscious consumer to support corporations that have sustainable supply chains so that we can protect our planet for future generations to enjoy. Check out Cary's video to learn more about his Montana Mastermind. Apply and get a $500 discount - Sponsors: : Learn how to grow better by connecting your people, your customers, and your business at ! : A graphic design platform where anyone can easily craft professional and unique visual content for social media and digital marketing in minutes! Visit today to try it for free!
6. JAR Audio ($1.44M/year)
@jar_roger is a Co-founder of JAR Audio, one the world’s largest podcast production companies. He discusses why many brands are choosing to create podcasts and his own experience building JARaudio.com IG: rogernairn
Roger Nairn, Jen Moss, and Aaron Johnson (from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada) started JAR Audio over 4 years ago.
- One of the biggest podcast production companies in the world, JAR Audio, was founded by Roger Nairn, Jen Moss, and Aaron Johnson.
- They eventually started the agency to replace traditional advertising with high-quality, high-performing podcasts.
- JAR Audio is a full-service branded podcast agency that assists brands in making meaningful and quantifiable connections with their audience.
- JAR's podcasts consistently achieve listen-through rates of 95–100%. Comparatively, the watch-through rate for professionally made YouTube videos is around 50%.
Watch the full video on youtube.com ➜
Hey! 👋 I'm Pat Walls, the founder of Starter Story.
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