17 Podcast Success Stories [2022]
Do you have knowledge and passion that you'd love to share with other people? Or perhaps you are a content creator and looking for ways to expand your revenue streams? If you match any of these criteria, then becoming a podcast host could be the perfect opportunity for you.
Podcasts are the new radio. Podcasting is one of the fastest-growing mediums for online audio, and it's not expected to slow down any time soon. But unlike traditional radio, podcasts are driven by content creators who have a passion for sharing stories with their listeners.
One of the main benefits that come with starting a podcast is the minimal investment needed to get started. All you need is a computer or phone with a microphone and a way to host it online. You can even create one on your own website if you want.
Here are some real-life success stories of starting a podcast:
1. Cars of Carlisle ($5.03K/year)
Darren Reighard (from Carlisle) started Cars of Carlisle over 4 years ago.
Over 150 high-end vehicles glistened in the sunlight, Porsches, Lamborghinis, Ferraris, Mercedes, all polished and lined up in neat rows.
My colleagues do an amazing job with their contributions to our overall automotive journey. On that note, I’d like to take a moment to put a special “thank you” out to all of the Cars of Carlisle team members, emphasizing how much I value everything they give to the business. In two years, I went from a dozen downloads and investing five figures of my own savings to now an annual revenue that is increasing, while downloads are exceeding 12,000.
2. Code Story ($60K/year)
Noah Labhart (from Dallas, TX, USA) started Code Story over 3 years ago.
My name is Noah Labhart - I’m a startup founder, CTO, and podcast host of the up and coming startup show, Code Story. On the show, I interview tech visionaries, uncovering the gritty details in building the next big digital thing. I've interviewed startup CTOs, CEOs, founding engineers, and tech visionaries about how they built their MVP's, scaled them, matured them, and built the teams to support their startups.
We are currently 88 episodes in and are working on early edits for Season 4, starting in January of 2020. We've interviewed individuals from digital startups of all shapes and sizes, and have amazing guests such as Courtland Allen of Indie Hackers, George Deglin of OneSignal, Tim Specht of Dubsmash, Ryan Graciano of Credit Karma, and Chris Slowe of Reddit.
3. Entrepreneurs on Fire ($2.04M/year)
John Lee Dumas (from Puerto Rico, USA) started Entrepreneurs on Fire about 10 years ago.
Heyo! John Lee Dumas (JLD) here, founder and host of Entrepreneurs On Fire, an award-winning podcast where I interview inspiring Entrepreneurs who are truly ON FIRE!
My goal from the very beginning: to inspire my audience, Fire Nation, to take their own entrepreneurial leap.
4. Cinquanta Cox-Smith ($120K/year)
Cinquanta Cox-Smith (from Killeen, TX, USA) started *Cinquanta Cox-Smith * about 13 years ago.
Hey, y’all I’m Cinquanta Cox-Smith I hate putting myself in a box, but If I had to explain what I do: I’m a Multipreneur. (Author, Podcaster, and Entrepreneur) I’ve been helping entrepreneurs start an EASY Print On Demand side hustle from anywhere for about 3 years now. I’m originally from a small town in South Carolina called Georgetown. It’s historic in many ways, especially for the Geechee Gullah culture. I’m an Army Veteran and my Husband (Shawn) is an active-duty soldier. We have 2 kids Kyree (15) and Sharye (12). Let’s not forget about our dog ChuChu. He's most definitely the star of this show.
I’ve always felt like this was just a hobby, or I was just making shirts but Print On Demand is so much more than that. It’s helped me create $7,000 in one month selling POD journals on Amazon KDP, it’s helped me land a Magazine Cover with my T-Shirts for Stars & Stripes (American Military Newspaper). It’s helped me teach over 10,000 people how to create passive & residual income from home with just a computer and some wi-fi. Most importantly it’s allowed me the gift of TIME. Time to spend and travel with my family. Once we get further along into this interview. I’ll tell you about how I accidentally started in the Print On Demand industry 12 years ago.
5. Ecom Crew Podcast ($420K/year)
Dave Bryant (from San Diego, California, USA) started Ecom Crew Podcast about 7 years ago.
EcomCrew is an ecommerce blog and a podcast where myself and Michael Jackness take off our ecommece hats and pretend to be journalists and investigative reporters.
We started EcomCrew around 2014. For the first 3 years we never monetized EcomCrew. This year we finally began to sell a membership to our private ecommerce group that includes exclusive access to ecommerce courses, webinars, events, etc.. Currently we do around $35,000 a month in revenue.
6. The Unofficial Shopify Podcast ($108K/year)
Kurt Elster (from Skokie, Illinois, USA) started The Unofficial Shopify Podcast about 8 years ago.
I'm Kurt Elster, and I host The Unofficial Shopify Podcast. With 750,000 downloads, 200 episodes, and four sponsors, it’s become quite the media machine for us.
7. SGPN ($360K/year)
Sean Green (from Los Angeles, CA, USA) started SGPN about 11 years ago.
My name is Sean Green and I’m the co-founder of The Sports Gambling Podcast Network and co-host of The Sports Gambling Podcast. In 2011 I hosted the first episode of The Sports Gambling Podcast with my partner Ryan Kramer. At the time I didn’t realize I was starting a business, I just thought I was talking about betting on football with my buddy.
In the following ten years, we’ve grown it from two guys recording their conversation in a garage to a legit sports gambling media empire. We have over 15 shows under our brand, multi-million downloads per year and have reached $30K/month in revenue.
8. Workology ($12.2M/year)
Jessica Miller-Merrell (from Austin, TX, USA) started Workology about 17 years ago.
My name is Jessica Miller-Merrell, and I am a workplace change agent, author, and consultant focused on human resources and talent acquisition living in Austin, TX. Recognized by Forbes as a top 50 social media influencer, I am the founder and CEO of Workology, a workplace HR resource, and host of the Workology Podcast.
Workology also has a training and development platform for HR professionals called LEARN by Workology. We offer on-demand courses for HR certification with Ace the HR Exam, career development for HR professionals with Upskill HR, courses for SHRM (Society for Human Resources Management) and HRCI (Human Resource Certification Institute) recertification credits, new manager training, audio courses, practice tests, and more.
9. Content Allies ($900K/year)
Jake Jorgovan (from Colorado Springs, CO, USA) started Content Allies almost 4 years ago.
Today Content Allies is doing ~$75k MRR. We produce 20+ podcasts and we have released well over 500+ episodes for our clients.
10. The Digital Vibe Podcast and Network ($240K/year)
Annette Thomas (from New York) started The Digital Vibe Podcast and Network over 7 years ago.
Hello, my name is Annette Thomas. I am the Creator and Founder of The Digital Vibe Podcast and Network. The Digital Vibe Podcast started as a Podcast and evolved to become a Network that comprises, a podcast, a publishing company, a network of affiliates, and a global brand that is networked and heard all around the world!
If you sum up all of these income streams it would be around $20k per month.
11. Fame ($204K/year)
Tom Hunt (from London) started Fame almost 3 years ago.
My name is Tom Hunt and we start and grow the world's most profitable podcasts at Fame.
We currently run this process for 10 clients and make approximately $17k per month.
12. Counterweight Creative ($192K/year)
Jeremy Enns (from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada) started Counterweight Creative over 6 years ago.
Hey there! I’m Jeremy Enns, the founder and Storyteller In Chief at Counterweight Creative, a podcast production and strategy agency.
I started the company 3 years ago, in 2016 with one client, making $15/hour and have grown into a team of 10 contractors producing more than 30 shows per week with revenue of over $10K/mo.
13. Podcast Answer Man ($4.6M/year)
Cliff Ravenscraft (from Kentucky, KS, USA) started Podcast Answer Man almost 5 years ago.
- My name is Cliff Ravenscraft. In November 2014, I made a commitment to work out six days a week, every week, for the rest of my life.
- Over the next decade, I built an online business where I became the world's leading authority on podcasting. I am personally responsible for training more than 40,000 people on the successful launch of their podcast.
- I’m now experiencing greater fulfillment and profitability than I ever dreamed imaginably.
- Professionally, I coach others where I have the incredible honor of going on a journey with my clients, as they CREATE the life of their dreams.
14. Women in Business Podcast ($1.2M/year)
Samantha Alford (from Los Angeles, CA, USA) started Women in Business Podcast over 2 years ago.
- Hi, I am Samantha Alford, the founder of the Women in Business Podcast.
- Women have been crushing it when it comes to starting successful businesses over the last few years. As we head into a new decade, it’s more important now than ever for investors to put their time and money into women-owned businesses.
- Here are some interesting and useful facts about women entrepreneurs and investors to consider. It’s clear that even though women are making gains when it comes to starting businesses, we still have a lot of work to do when it comes to getting women the capital they need to grow and thrive in their businesses.
15. Awesome Pros ($120K/year)
Brian Kearny and Pete Mockaitis (from Bloomington, IN, USA) started Awesome Pros over 2 years ago.
- Together with Brian Kearney, Pete Mockaitis founded Awesome Pros, a specialized drop-servicing business that now generates $10k in recurring income each month.
- Pete and Brian aspired to create a company that provided the top virtual assistants for people looking to build and publish their own podcasts.
- The founders help their clients with audio editing, transcript & show notes, and as well as promoting the podcasts. They want their client to focus on delivering the message while they take care of the rest.
- The strategies Pete and Brian used to expand their clientele can help you determine your niche and pricing. They took their company from an in-house solution to a $10k/mo business.
Read the full article on sidehustlenation.com ➜
16. I Know Dino ($60K/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 7 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 ➜
17. 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!
Hey! 👋I'm Pat Walls, the founder of Starter Story.
We interview successful business owners and share the stories behind their business. By sharing these stories, we want to help you get started.
Interested in starting your own business? Join Starter Story Premium to get the greatest companion to starting and growing your business:
- Connect + get advice from successful entrepreneurs
- Step by step guides on how to start and grow
- Exclusive and early access to the best case studies on the web
- And much more!
"An amazing network of founders that truly want to help each other grow their business."
Last chance to get this download.