By Holland Cooke
Consultant
Jason Reddick’s The Complete Guide to AI Side Hustles is aimed at beginners trying to build passive income. But read it through a broadcaster’s lens and it suggests a blueprint for how radio talent and podcasters can leverage AI to expand their influence, diversify revenue, and stay indispensable in a media economy that rewards relevance and speed.
His central thesis is simple: AI doesn’t create talent – it amplifies it. And that’s especially advantageous if you are already a communicator.
AI Enhanced Audio Services: Your Voice, Supercharged
Reddick writes about “leveraged skills,” and the most leveraged skill you have is your voice. Consider exploiting AI tools to offer:
- local tourism audio guides,
- church or nonprofit announcements,
- fundraising video narration,
- audio newsletters for local businesses,
- corporate training narration,
- e-learning or product demonstration voiceovers.
Each of these is high-trust, high-value, and repeatable. Businesses want a real human voice, and if you’re on radio or have a popular podcast, local businesses already know and trust your voice. AI simply lets you scale it.
Repurposing: Your Secret Weapon
Reddick emphasizes turning one idea into multiple assets. You already generate hours of content. With AI, that becomes:
- a monologue turned into a newsletter or newspaper column,
- a segment turned into a blog post,
- a rant turned into a daily, shareable email.
You’re already doing the hard part. AI helps multiply the output.
“Small, Fast, Useful”
Reddick likes what he calls “microproducts” – simple digital items that solve a problem quickly. As a broadcaster or podcaster, you already know how to explain things clearly and in plain English.
Whether you are repackaging interviews you already do or advertisers you already have (or want), or exploring your own personal interests, or simply addressing the everyday issues you yourself confront as a consumer, what can AI help you produce?
- “How to Explain Tech Problems to Customer Support”
- “How to Write a Complaint That Gets Results”
- “Explaining Big News Stories to Young Children”
- “Talking to Teens About Online Safety”
- “How to Cancel SiriusXM Without the Runaround”
- “Welcome! Starter Kit if You’re New to the Area”
- “How to Sound Confident on Conference Calls”
- “Airport Survival Guide for Infrequent Flyers”
Why These Work: They’re “evergreen” (relevant today and a year from now), high-utility (solves a problem quickly, low-lift (AI drafts, you refine), and trust-based (your voice + clarity = credibility).
If AI can scale your talent, the only limit now is your imagination. You can read the first two chapters of “The Complete Guide to AI Side Hustles,” free, here.
Holland Cooke (HollandCooke.com) is a consultant working the intersection of broadcasting and the Internet. Follow HC on Twitter @HollandCooke and connect on LinkedIn