What makes a podcast valuable? Is it immediate popularity, or something deeper? "Every podcast you create will exist for many years to come," observes Clayton M. Coke of The Cashflow Show podcast, highlighting the lasting significance of podcasting as a medium that creates permanent records of our conversations and ideas.

Clayton reveals how he uses his platform to interview business owners about their successes, failures, and personal interests, but his most compelling point centres on creator compensation – why should podcasters provide their platforms as free promotional vehicles when PR teams are being paid to pitch guests? This conversation challenges the status quo and advocates for proper valuation of podcasters' work.

We also look at some of the practical aspects of the TrueFans platform, with Sam explaining how the funding tag works to create sustainable income streams for independent creators. This feature allows listeners to set monthly budgets that automatically distribute micropayments to their favourite podcasters with each new episode – creating a fair exchange of value between creator and audience.

In this episode Sam and Claire highlight a number of valuable resources for independent podcasters including newsletters like Eurowaves, Ear Worthy, and Podnews.

We also spotlight AMPD Studios in Cape Town, South Africa – a remarkable free podcasting hub founded by Jon Savage that provides recording facilities, equipment, and support to podcasters of all experience levels. This community-focused initiative now faces potential closure after losing a major sponsor, highlighting both the power and fragility of creator support systems.

Whether you're a seasoned podcaster or just getting started, this episode offers insights into creating lasting content while building sustainable creator-audience relationships.

This episode discusses:

• Why podcasters should be paid for their work, especially when providing promotional value to guests
• The funding tag and the TrueFans support mechanism that allows podcasters to receive micropayments from listeners
• How comments and feedback create meaningful connections between podcasters and listeners
• The podcast blogs and newsletters — such as Eurowaves, Ear Worthy, and Podnews – that provide valuable industry resources
• Other useful podcasting resources, including The Future of Podcasting and podcasting2.org, that help creators understand and implement Podcasting 2.0 features
• AMPD Studios in South Africa offers free recording facilities for podcasters but needs financial support

Ready to support independent creators? Download the TrueFans app today and start streaming value directly to the podcasts you love.

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The true cost of quality storytelling.

In this episode, Claire chats with Fariba Nawa, the award-winning investigative journalist behind the On Spec podcast.

Fariba trains journalists worldwide to tell the stories they are personally connected to through sound, ultimately producing documentary journalism that rivals that of major broadcasters.

Since launching in 2019 with Kickstarter funding, On Spec has evolved through six seasons, each with a distinct theme, including disinformation, how borders define us, and a two-year investigation into Iran's targeting of dissidents abroad. The On Spec production process involves extensive collaboration with local journalists, providing them professional development while ensuring stories maintain deep personal connections to the communities they portray.

Meanwhile, the podcasting landscape continues to evolve toward more direct creator support. TrueFans features make it easy for listeners to financially support creators with one-off or continued payments, and offer creators options to divide those payments among their contributors with payment splits – allowing teams like On Spec's to automatically divide listener contribution among hosts, producers, and contributors.

Plus, as the industry debates moving content behind paywalls, what does this mean for accessibility, discovery and sustainability?

This episode discusses:

• Funding options for podcasters: from grants and individual donors to listener support
• TrueFans will soon launch as a native iOS and Android app
• How to use payment splits to automatically divide listener payments among team members
• What do paywalls mean for advertisers, and does secure RSS offer a more favourable option for independent creators?
• Spotify now supports transcripts from the Podcasting 2.0 standard
• Who Claire met and which indie podcasts won at the International Women's Podcast Awards
• How TrueFans showcases independent creators on the app's home page

Discover how TrueFans can help your independent podcast thrive through improved discovery, direct monetization, and enhanced listener engagement.

And if you'd like to chat with us about your independent podcast or music, send a comment or super comment in TrueFans to any Creators episode by clicking on the speech bubble icon or on the comments tab.

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The lived experience of independent podcasters is one of both liberating freedom and unique challenges. How can the TrueFans listening platform address those challenges and help indie creators keep creating?

Through an interview with Joana PR Neves, host of Exhibitionistas podcast, and conversations between Sam and Claire, this episode of Creators discusses:

• The power of podcasting to give voice to independent creators who might otherwise go unheard
• How asking for financial support for your podcast can meet listener resistance
• TrueFans features that help creators earn directly from listeners through streaming payments
• The challenges of describing visual experiences in an audio format
• How chapters and image attachments can enhance the listener experience
• Recent research that shows that audio-first platforms still dominate despite YouTube's growing presence
• How to claim your show and start earning on TrueFans
• The independent podcasts shortlisted for the International Women's Podcast Awards
• The incredible diversity of content being shared by independent podcasts
• An indie podcast wins at the True Crime Awards

Discover how TrueFans can help your independent podcast thrive through improved discovery, direct monetization, and enhanced listener engagement.

And if you'd like to chat with us about your independent podcast or music, send a comment or super comment in TrueFans to any Creators episode by clicking on the speech bubble icon or on the comments tab.

Listen to Exhibitionistas here.

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Music: How It Is from Ketsa Music

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