This is the show for creative entrepreneurs who have a message to share and want to live a life of freedom. Learn how to grow your network and net worth. Hear from exciting guests, and more. My name is Dylan Schmidt and Welcome to Digital Podcaster. How to utilize ads on your podcast? So if you're a podcaster, then you know that ads are a great way to monetize your show. But how do you go about incorporating ads into your podcast in a way that doesn't turn off your listeners, or just playing out is ineffective. So before we dive in today, I want to share some interesting stats with you I found 60% of podcast listeners have bought something from a podcast ad. More than half of us podcast listeners pay attention to the ads, and businesses spent an estimated $1.3 billion in podcast ads in 2021 39% of small and medium sized business owners are podcast users. So let's talk about some ways that you can use ads in your podcast without sacrificing the quality or the integrity of your show. First, let's start with the basics. So what kind of ads are there? And how can you use them in your podcast, there are two primary types of ads that podcasters use. There's pre roll, and then there's post roll. pre roll ads are those that play before the start of your podcast episode. And post roll ads are what plays at the end of your episode. You can also use and we'll talk about mid roll ads, which are those that play in the middle of your episode. But what I've seen is these are generally less effective than your pre or post roll ads. Because listeners are more likely to skip ahead or just tune out during the middle of an episode than what's at the beginning or the end the pre or the post. And the mid roll ads typically just interrupts the flow of the episode. But it's pretty common for podcasters to include it, so can't totally disregard those. But you're going to find the pre and the post most effective. So now that we know what kind of ads there are, let's talk about how to use them effectively in your podcast. When it comes to pre roll ads, it's important to keep them short and sweet. No one wants to listen to a long drawn out commercial before they even get to the main content of your show, especially if you have a guest on your show. And then you do another introduction for your guest. So instead, keep your pre roll ads to around 30 to 90 seconds. And this gives your listeners just enough time to hear what you're promoting without getting too annoyed. Post roll ads are a great way to promote any special offers or deals that you might have going on. For example, if you're running a contest or giveaway, you could promote that at the end of your podcast episode. You could also add a call to action for the listener to review your podcast on Spotify, or Apple podcasts or wherever they listen to podcasts. But just be sure to keep your ad reads straightforward. And to the point. podcast listeners are ritualistic in the sense that once they get a feel for your show, and how you roll, they set expectations around that. For example, if you have one episode that has a 32nd ad read at the beginning. And then in the next episode, you have a four minute ad read at the beginning, your listeners are going to be turned off. So it's important that you establish a certain cadence and rhythm with your ad reads so that your listener knows what to expect and when running ads on your podcast is what I would consider a must on pretty much every podcast out there. Because listeners expect ads at this point. And ads don't take anything away from your podcasts. They don't make your message weaker. They don't make you any less trustworthy. If anything, ads strengthen your ability to monetize your podcast and continually deliver high quality content to your listeners week after week. So if you're not running ads on your podcast yet, now is the time to start. And if you are running ads, make sure you're doing it in a way that's effective and doesn't turn off your listeners by using the tips in this episode. I hope that helps. I will see you in the next episode.