Costs and pricing
Part of How podcast advertising pricing is built, and what sits outside the media rate
Podcast advertising hidden costs in England: six extra lines, with worked sums
Six costs outside a podcast advertising rate card in England, with worked sums: re-records, overseas sellers, late interest, renaming, extra rights, reports.
What to take away
- A rate card prices the slot. The invoice and the contract can add six more lines.
- Overseas VAT and late payment interest follow written rules, so you can price them before you sign.
- The other four lines depend on your contract, so ask for each one as a named figure.
- The sums below use assumed inputs. Replace them with the numbers in your own quote.
Which six costs sit outside the rate card?
Start with the re-record. Ad disclosure in a podcast must be given at the beginning of the ad. A read that opens with the pitch and puts the sponsor tag at the end may need recording again, and studio time is rarely free.
Paid promotion that sounds like editorial is also a banned practice under Schedule 20 of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, unless the payment is made clear in the content or by sounds the listener can identify. A disclosure policy fixes the wording before anyone records.
| Cost line | What triggers it | Where to settle it |
|---|---|---|
| Re-record | Missing or late ad label, or a changed claim | Script approval clause |
| Overseas seller: VAT and currency | Seller based outside the UK | Contracting company and invoice |
| Late payment interest | Invoice paid after the due date | Payment terms |
| Renaming | Segment named after a brand | Written consent from the brand owner |
| Extra rights | Reuse beyond the agreed window | Licence and usage clause |
| Bespoke reporting | Reports beyond the standard dashboard | Reporting schedule |
Example: the six lines with worked sums
Assume a £2,000 media invoice, before VAT. Every other input in the table is an assumption made for the arithmetic, not a market rate.
| Line | Assumed inputs | Sum | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Re-record | £150 per read, 2 reads redone | 2 x £150 | £300 |
| Overseas seller: currency | Quote of US$2,500; the rate moves from £0.80 to £0.84 per dollar | $2,500 x (0.84 - 0.80) | £100 (the £400 reverse-charge VAT is accounted for, not added) |
| Late interest | £2,400 invoice, 30 days late (see below) | £288 x 30 / 365 | £23.67 |
| Renaming | £200 artwork plus £150 new intro | £200 + £150 | £350 |
| Extra rights | Reuse fee of 25% on a £600 read | £600 x 0.25 | £150 |
| Bespoke reporting | One custom report | Flat fee | £250 |
If every line fired at once, the extra cost would be £1,173.67, about 59 per cent of the media line. Most campaigns trigger one or two lines, so treat the total as a ceiling for planning, not a forecast.
What changes when the seller is overseas?
Some podcast sellers contract from outside the UK. The reverse charge guidance from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) states that for supplies of services from outside the UK you must account for VAT under the reverse charge procedure. That is work for the buyer.
The value must also be accounted for in sterling. On a £2,000 invoice, the standard rate of 20% means £400 of VAT to account for. A VAT-registered buyer should ask an accountant whether it can be reclaimed, so the £400 is not added to the total above.
What does paying late actually cost?
Payment terms are a cost you control. Under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998, a qualifying debt carries simple interest as an implied term of the contract.
The late commercial payments rules set statutory interest at 8% plus the Bank of England base rate for business to business transactions. Take a UK seller that invoices the £2,000 media line plus 20% VAT: £2,400.
Assume a base rate of 4%. The annual rate is 8% + 4% = 12%, so a year of interest is £2,400 x 0.12 = £288. Daily interest is £288 / 365 = 79p, and thirty days late adds about £23.67.
The amount is small for one invoice, but it repeats across a multi-episode campaign. Check the contract too, because it may set a different rate.
Which costs hide in names, rights and reports?
A trade mark protects the name of a product or service. If you call a segment "The Acme Money Hour", you borrow Acme's name. Renaming after launch means new artwork and a new intro. Search for similar trade marks first, and get written consent before you record.
Rights are the next gap. Running a bespoke read past the agreed window, or cutting it for social posts, usually needs a separate licence. Put the reuse terms in the commercial contracts before the first episode goes live.
Reporting is the last line. The ad formats you choose decide how much extra data you can buy. Pay for bespoke reports only when a decision depends on them, and test that with the return on investment method.
How should you sense-check a seller's figures?
Ask what the audience research behind the numbers measures, and when it was produced. Downloads, listens and reach are not interchangeable. A seller who quotes one measure and charges on another creates waste you pay for later.
Common questions
Should I ask for an all-in rate?
You can, but check what it bundles. An all-in rate that leaves out extra rights or reporting moves the hidden cost; it does not remove it.
How much contingency is reasonable?
There is no single correct figure. Hold back an amount you can name, tie it to re-records and make-goods, and review it after the first campaign with a new seller.
Does paying for reporting always improve results?
No. Paid reporting earns its place when you have a decision to make with the data, such as renewing, changing creative or moving budget between shows.
