What It's About
A couple shares their prehistoric love of dinosaurs through a roaring good podcast.
Words of Wisdom
When it comes to succeeding in the competitive world of podcasting, Sabrina and Garrett have two top pieces of advice. “1. Be consistent. Releasing episodes on a regular basis gives your listeners something to look forward to, and they trust you to deliver and 2. Build a community. You want to build your community, so your listeners tell their friends and family to listen, and so you build relationships with people who want to support you and your show.
Fun Fact
Sir Richard Owen first named these ancient reptiles in 1842, calling them “Dinosauria.” He was inspired by the Greek words deinos meaning “fearfully great” and sauros meaning “lizard.” [Source]
Notes from Chris
Episode 1725
Years before Sabrina and Garrett Ricci had ever met, they spent separate childhoods being completely enamored by dinosaurs. When they fell in love, and moved to the east coast, their passion project traveled with them. Exploring their new area, they took field trips to museums and historic sites. They especially loved the American Museum of Natural History. Time and time again, they found themselves drawn to the dinosaur halls. Now as adults, their love for the ancient reptiles was anything but prehistoric. Soon after, the newlyweds realized that they wished there was a podcast on dinosaur news, but couldn’t find one. So, Sabrina and Garrett decided to start it. Sometimes Jurassic times call for Jurassic measures! They had no experience with creating podcasts before. However, they were avid podcast listeners. They knew what they liked and disliked about other people’s shows, and made sure to use that knowledge when outlining theirs. Six months after their initial idea, the couple officially launched I Know Dino the podcast in January of 2015. Ironically, this was just six months before the movie Jurassic World was set to be released. Which, although not planned, was a perfect marketing technique for their new business. They got about 500 downloads that first month and it grew from there. With their consistent posting schedule and star-class interviewees, I Know Dino was off to a great start. A few months later, Sabrina and Garrett got their very first listener donation on Patreon, where they’d set up a supporter campaign. In the next episode, they gave that listener a shoutout, and told them that the contribution made them feel “all warm and fuzzy.” Six years in, Sabrina and Garrett have grown I Know Dino to 50,000 downloads every month. They have interviewed all kinds of fellow dino-enthusiasts from paleontologists to paleoartists (some who worked on Jurassic Park and Jurassic World) to writers and even dinosaur dancers over the course of 350 episodes. They make about $5,000 a month from advertisements, in addition to selling merchandise, donations and books. The overall income fluctuates but Sabrina was able to quit her job as a product marketing manager in February of this year and commit to I Know Dino full-time. The couple has also added another side hustle to the mix: an online class called the Complete Podcasting Course. They want to teach others how to create, grow, launch and monetize their own podcast, and they are planning on launching soon.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
- Learn more about Sabrina and Garret and check out their website, IKnowDino.com.
- Creative Illustrator Creates Creative Podcast for Creatives: This freelance illustrator did design work for Google and Nickelodeon, but after giving a talk at his church he decides to start a podcast—which now earns up to $70,000 a year on the side.
- Essential Oils Podcast Produces $2,000/Month in Passive Income: A stay-at-home mother starts a podcast about essential oils and pulls her family off government assistance.
- Call Center Employee Uses Patreon to Fund LGBTQ Podcasts: A call center team lead uses Patreon to support two LGBTQ activism podcasts, earning over $800/month in contributions.
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