Jennifer Henczel, a podcaster and author, has overcome personal tragedy to build a thriving community for women podcasters. 

After her husband survived a near-fatal accident, she realized the power of connection and support. 

Inspired by her husband’s support from his volunteer local coaching community, Jennifer sought to create similar connections for entrepreneurs. An impromptu lunch meetup drew 50 business owners, revealing unmet demand.

During her husband’s recovery, the couple found inspiration listening to podcasts, leading them to launch their show. Jennifer then started a group for women podcasters that quickly gained traction.

“Women podcasters are so brave in lifting their voices and sharing their message, and so I wanted to celebrate that,” Jennifer says.

She sees continued growth potential in podcasting despite the recent surge to 4 million shows from 1 million pre-pandemic. However, she notes that this still pales in comparison to websites.

“There’s still huge growth potential. The media companies are still investing in podcasting,” Jennifer says. “People are still looking for podcasts within every niche you can imagine.”

This epiphany led her to create the Women Podcasters Network and launch the Women in Podcasting Awards, now boasting over 10,000 members and nearly 400 award nominees in its inaugural year.

Her initiatives go beyond simple networking. She provides affordable resources, time-saving templates, and monetization plans tailored specifically for women in the podcasting space. 

The platform combines practical tools with a mission to elevate women’s voices globally, addressing the challenges female creators face in the industry.

Jennifer breaks down the rise of podcasting, explains effective monetization, and shares her vision for the future of women in the creator economy.

The Rise of Podcasting

The exponential growth of podcasting in recent years can be attributed to two key factors: improved accessibility and its power as a community-building tool.

“When I first started studying podcasting about 15 years ago, it was very difficult [to start],” she says. “Now, it’s easier, more than ever, to start a podcast and to find and listen to podcasts.”

This ease of use extends to creators and listeners, enhancing engagement between podcasters and their audience. 

Jennifer highlights the medium’s community-building potential: “Podcasters are creating communities around their podcast, and communities are starting to have podcasts at their center.”

Despite the lowered barriers to entry, newcomers still face challenges in areas such as equipment selection, message crafting, and audience identification. To address these hurdles, Jennifer has developed resources for her membership community. 

“I’ve created time-saving templates specifically for podcasters that I wish I had all along the journey from starting, growing, and monetizing your podcast,” she explains.

Women Podcasters Network

The Women Podcasters Network offers a resource suite to support podcasters at every stage of their journey. The network caters to a diverse community, from beginners to seasoned professionals.

The network’s core offerings focus on community building. “Connection is vital to our well-being, business, podcast, and ourselves,” Jennifer says. “The platform facilitates collaboration among members with “thousands of interview swaps.”

Accessibility is another key priority for the network. Jennifer has intentionally kept the membership fee low at $5 per month, noting that “these materials normally would cost a lot more.”

Maximizing Podcast Revenue

While sponsorships are often seen as podcasters’ primary revenue stream, Jennifer advocates for a more diversified approach to monetization.

She argues that alternative monetization methods can be more lucrative, especially for independent podcasters who may need more audience numbers to attract high-paying sponsors.

Jennifer’s strategies for podcast monetization include affiliate marketing, course creation, and digital product creation, which involves offering downloadable resources or tools to listeners.

“You could be making a lot more with some of the other strategies I show,” she says.

Jennifer stresses the importance of a comprehensive show notes strategy to support these efforts. This includes offering lead magnets, incorporating affiliate links, and crafting SEO-friendly episode titles. 

She also touches on email marketing, claiming it “outperforms” any other advertising or promotional strategy.

Looking at industry trends, Jennifer notes the growing convergence of audio and video content in podcasting. 

“A lot of podcasters now are adding video to their podcasts, which is amazing,” she observes. This shift is partly driven by platforms like YouTube introducing podcast-specific features, opening up new monetization avenues for creators.

Jennifer also points to improved creator compensation across various platforms as a positive development. “Many people can combine those now and start making money on some of their content,” she states.

Three-Piece Advice for Women Podcasters

Jennifer offers three key pieces of advice for women starting their podcasting journey. 

First and foremost, she recommends simply starting. “I wish I had started sooner,” Jennifer admits, cautioning against excessive preparation. “You need to learn as you do it” because improvement comes with practice.

Secondly, Jennifer advises against overspending on equipment. “Start with the lowest-cost mic,” she suggests, sharing that her current favorite microphone is a relatively inexpensive gaming mic.

Lastly, Jennifer stresses the value of community engagement. “Get connected, be part of a community, because the podcasting community is the most beautiful,” she says, adding that the industry is supportive, collaborative, and largely conflict-free.

Women in Podcasting Awards

The Women in Podcasting Awards aims to recognize and elevate women’s voices in the industry. Unlike traditional awards that often involve high costs and burdensome application processes, Jennifer designed these awards to be both affordable and user-friendly.

The awards adopt a “people’s choice” format, focusing on community engagement over judging panels.

Jennifer’s approach serves a dual purpose: it celebrates podcasters’ achievements and provides a tool for building an audience. 

“People are seeing their listenership numbers go up,” Jennifer notes, revealing that people get more responses and engagement with their audience through this awards process.

To further support nominees, Jennifer offers complimentary access to her “Rise Reached Results Roadmap” membership, which provides training on community building and podcast monetization.

The inaugural awards feature 38 categories. Winners will be announced at a recorded event on October 22 and receive recognition and shareable assets to promote their achievement.

Roadmap for Empowering Women Creators

Jennifer is set to expand her initiatives to further support women creators in the podcasting industry and beyond.

One key development is the growth of the Inspiring Innovators Club, a platform designed to help entrepreneurs, podcasters, authors, and speakers monetize their expertise. 

“We provide many valuable tools at a lower cost than many of the programs out there,” Jennifer explains. The club, priced at $27 per month, offers resources such as customizable course templates, leveraging Jennifer’s background in curriculum development.

The success of the Women in Podcasting Awards has prompted plans for its expansion. 

“We will continue having the awards because they’ve been well received by the nominees and the podcasting industry in general,” Jennifer notes. She invites industry players to sponsor the awards, emphasizing the impact of such support on empowering women’s voices globally.

Building on this success, Jennifer reveals plans to launch an entrepreneur awards program, responding to demand from the broader business community.