[Hot Tip] How I Doubled PayPal Donations...

[podstart.com]

Do you accept PayPal donations for your podcast?

Here's a fast, easy way to significantly increase your results:

(1) Give people a specific goal or project to support.

For example: mAudio Soundcard Fund, $250

(2) Let people "brag" by showing the names or nicknames of your top donors on your web site.

How?

I've tested these PayPal donation boosters with success:

Donation Booster
http://www.donationbooster.com

This is an online service with a free and paid version. The free version includes an ad under the donation button, and the paid version ($4.95/mo) has a few additional features.

Donor Top List
http://whois-online.net/paypalstats.htm

This is a script you install on your site. It shows the names of top donors and the total donations. $25 one-time.

Hope this helps!

Ramon Williamson

For more podcast promotion and revenue generation tips, sign up for my free newsletter at http://www.podstart.com

[yaz]

how to double your tip jar?

[podstart.com]

how to double your tip jar?

Yes!, a much better title for this :-)

R

[yaz]

you missed a whole thread about this, loser...

[podstart.com]

you missed a whole thread about this, loser...

Loser?

Don't bother. Just posting a helpful tip.

R

[alissa]

his caption says 'new to the alley'

be nice.

[theFerf]

thank you alissa :)

[yaz]

fine, maybe i was harsh with the whole "loser" thing, i just get annoyed when it comes to people begging for money...

[theFerf]

i agree on the begging thing, but there are other types of "asking" for donations. if you have noticed, i have had a paypal button on this site from day one. have i asked for money, no, but the people that respect this site and know how hard it is to maintain (and pay out of pocket for) have happily contributed some cash to keep me going. And for that, I can not thank them enough.

oh, and just to clarify, podstart, the topic yaz was referring to early is here:
http://www.podcastalley.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=379

[yaz]

you have a paypal button, i think we might have one too, but i don't think we've ever mentioned it until now...matter of fact, i don't even know if it works...

[podstart.com]

Fact is, I don't ask for PayPal donations on my sites. I tested this specifically over a three week period last month because a lot of people were asking me about it.

I offered the results here as an FYI for anyone wanting to increase their donations.

Ramon Williamson

[PaulCasting]

Podstart... I'm shocked that your contribution has become "controversial". I, for one, thought it was EXCELLENT! Please don't let the negative response deter you from posting further tidbits.

I don't think a Paypal button is begging, nor do I think mentioning it is begging. Begging, is expecting something for nothing.

If a baseball team charges to watch the game, are they begging? If you walk away from it entertained, then you got something out of it. As we all know, Podcasting, if it's done right, takes time and money to do.

[cybercooler]

I too am new to the alley (but find it pretty addiciting). I did a searhc for "paypal" and except for this and a couple other post, I didn't see any tips on getting more donations, but only if you had any class asking for donations.

[PaulCasting]

I remember when I first got on the internet back in 1995 (I think that's when it was... 14.4 kbps modem, ugh!) and people were all up in arms about the folks trying to make money on the internet. It was kind of stupid when you look back on it.

Money isn't anything but a tool to use when bartering. If I invest a portion of my life-energy (time or thought or skill or whatever) and you find it to be of value, you are willing to give up a portion of your life-energy in exchange for it. What you may offer isn't going to be of interest to me, but it is to someone else... so in comes money.

If you like a show, throw em a schekel or two. If you don't, delete it and move on. Who cares if someone is making money at this or not. It's a FREE MARKET system. If people hate hosts asking for Paypal donations, they will stop listening.

I say, more power to you, either way. Doing it for money or as a hobby. love what you're doing and make a positive contribution to the world.

[jeffoest]

Yaz - I think that one thought that perhaps can remove some of the 'distaste' from your mouth is to think of money exchanged as completely win-win proposition. Essentially the best and most successful business models have happy money givers and money recipients - both sides win. The payer is glad to have the service because the utilitiy he recieves is greater than their payout.

Yea - podcasting's not quite up to that level yet (especially since micro-payments are still not practical) but I think framing the 'begging' in those terms - the whole thing becomes more agreeable.

Looking at it another way, the market is way cool. Take Dawn and Drew for example. If having their tip jars and doing their promos during their shows leads to less people listening (I'm sure just like the rest of us, they monitor their stats), they would have to consider the cost/benefit of thier decisions. The market will tell us what is the right thing to do - much more than a few comments on a bulletin board.

BTW - I really think we should be encouraging folks like Ramon to share 'success stories' with the rest of us. Keep in mind that you may not gain too much from it but others (perhaps the silent majority) always appreciate true experiences (and pitfalls).

[yaz]

baseball teams charge you money because they pay their players millions of dollars, i can go to the park and watch the local high school play for free and no one asks me for money...

[PaulCasting]

Yeah, until they come around with their $2.00 candy bars and cookie dough.

My point was, if you find a personal value in something, then why not share something of value to them?

[yaz]

this is gonna go the same way as that other post, here's what i think in a nutshell (again):

1# asking for money is classless

2# receiving money for doing something that requires work is ok

3# people sending money to you because they want to, not because you begged for it is ok

how many people that are begging for money are getting any anyway???

[alissa]

it's really a sticky subject. and the bottom line is that everyone has to figure out what their line is.

our show right now working on putting together a compilation cd that we can sell of artists featured on the show. we're kind of all looking at it as a fun hobby that we can use to promote our music and make connections.

it's hard to come to a consensus though about stuff like this. because everyone has different values when it comes to money.

[docsnavely]

I would be scared to hit the paypal button on Bibb's blog only because my money would most likely end up funding Bibb's "wishlist".

Bibb's a great guy, but I don't wanna pay for his freakin geeky baseball card collection!

[yaz]

hey doc, don't sweat it, i make fun of his baseball habit everyweek when i go there, pretty soon instead of sitting on a chair i will be resting my lethal *** on a mound of baseball cards, he can be such a geek at times...