PODCAST DEVELOPMENT

AUDACY

🔥 Breaking Down the $6 Billion Audio Investment Gap: New Research Shows Major ROI Opportunity

The audio advertising market in the USA is caught in a paradox: 24.5% of ad-supported media consumption is audio, yet only 8.4% of ad spend is attributed to audio.

This creates a great opportunity for marketers since audio provides a short-term profit ROI of 2.47 times, compared to the all-media average of 1.87 times, according to recent industry data.

Leading brands, such as P&G, are already tapping into the reach, effectiveness, and efficiency of audio. The study investigates whether barriers to audio investment are based on fact or perception.

The Key Points:

• Audio reaches 84% of no- and low-TV viewers aged 25-54

• Audio ads create significantly higher attention rates than other media: 10,126 Average Persons Reached per Million vs. 6,501 industry norm

• Multi-platform audio campaigns drive 50% higher ROAS compared to digital-only approaches

• New measurement tools allow for accurate tracking and optimization

• Audio drives impact across the full funnel: 49% awareness, 40% consideration, 45% purchase

Highlights:

The study has highlighted main barriers related to measurement, integrating creative elements, and strategic perception. However, proof of audio excelling in reach, attention, targeting capabilities, and driving both brand and performance outcomes is presented. Extensive case studies are given that demonstrate the effectiveness of audio across categories.

The Big Picture: For the podcast and audio industry, this research validates audio's strategic importance while highlighting areas requiring continued evolution:

• The need for harmonized measurement approaches

• To better unleash audio's brand building potential

• The importance of making audio easier to plan, buy and optimize

• The value of establishing audio-specific creative best practices

• The benefit of taking a portfolio approach across audio formats

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PODCAST INSIGHTS

YOUGOV

🎙️2024 Election Shows Dramatic Surge in Podcast Influence: YouGov Study Reveals 37% Weekly Listenership

Podcast platforms have become a significant tool in political communication, with both President Trump and Vice President Harris using them to connect with voters during the 2024 presidential election.

A survey by YouGov Profiles revealed that 37% of U.S. adults were regular podcast listeners during the weeks leading up to the election, highlighting the growing influence of podcasts in shaping political discourse. Democratic listeners (42%) outpaced Republican listeners (35%), while platforms like The Joe Rogan Experience and Call Her Daddy served as key venues for candidate appearances.

The Key Points:

• The percentage of weekly podcast listeners rose from 31% to 37% during the election period, showing increased engagement.

• Democratic listeners showed a podcast consumption rate of 42%, while Republican listeners had a consumption rate of 35%.

• Among weekly podcast listeners, 39% have a voting record in primary elections, and 32% have participated in political campaign events.

• Republicans gave The Joe Rogan Experience a 67% positive rating, while Democrats rated it at 44%.

• Political engagement among podcast listeners surpasses that of the general population, with 25% actively volunteering for political campaigns.

The Big Picture: For the podcast industry, this trend signals a significant opportunity and responsibility. Podcasters can now establish themselves as influential figures in political discourse, showcased by their ability to attract high-profile political guests and secure increased advertising revenues through sponsorships. Podcast producers gain from enhanced audience engagement and the capacity to develop tailored political content that resonates with distinct demographic groups.

The industry as a whole solidifies its reputation as a credible platform for political communication, showcased by significant partnerships with political experts and policymakers, potentially drawing more investments and fostering career advancement opportunities.

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🎙️ PODCAST NEWS

⏭️ Spotify AI Wrapped Feature Faces Backlash Over Insensitive One Direction Comments. One Direction fans are criticising Spotify's new AI-powered Wrapped feature for making inappropriate assumptions about users' increased listening habits without recognising that these were probably connected to Liam Payne's death.

⏭️ BetterHelp Leads Top 15 Australian Podcast Advertisers in Q3 2024. BetterHelp is the top podcast advertiser in Australia for Q3 2024, according to ARN's iHeart and Magellan AI report. The True Crime category is growing significantly, and EssenceMediacom Sydney is named the top agency for the quarter.

📢 PODBUSINESS & MARKETING

⏭️ Acast Acquires Wonder Media Network Podcast giant Acast has acquired Wonder Media Network to create Acast Creative Studios, which will help advertisers create audio, video, and social media campaigns.

⏭️ Wondery Users Stream 13 Million Episodes in 2024: Annual Playback Report Released True Crime was the most popular genre of the year, according to Wondery's 2024 podcast listening statistics, which show that users listened to over 13 million episodes totaling 529 million minutes.

⏭️ The Future of Podcasting: Why RSS Purism Could Hold the Medium Back Tom Webster believes that while RSS-based open podcasting is valuable, the industry should embrace multiple distribution platforms like YouTube and Spotify because listeners discover and consume podcasts there, rather than clinging to technical definitions of "true" podcasts.

🎧 FROM THE COMMUNITY

⏭️ November 2024 Podcast Rankings: US Publishers Show Growth While Global Networks Dip. The November 2024 Podtrac podcast rankings show mixed results, with US podcasts growing or stable, global networks declining, and two new shows, Tucker Carlson and Jay Shetty, entering the Top 20.

⏭️ Tom Parker Bowles and Henry Jeffreys Launch 'Intoxicating History' Podcast Exploring Alcohol's Impact on Civilization. TellTale Industries proudly presents a new podcast with Tom Parker Bowles and Henry Jeffreys as they explore how alcoholic drinks have influenced major historical events, from ancient times to the present day. It includes exclusive insights into the drinking habits of royalty and historical cocktail recipes.

⏭️ Goalhanger's New Spy Podcast Hits #1 in UK and Australia with 200,000+ Downloads. In its first week, a new intelligence and security podcast hosted by former CIA analyst David McCloskey and BBC journalist Gordon Corera topped charts worldwide and garnered praise from major media outlets.

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PODCAST TOOLBOX

• ✅AI Studios : AI video generator with realistic avatars, natural text-to-speech, and powerful AI video editing.

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• ✅ Wondercraft:  An AI-powered audio studio for creating ads, podcasts, and meditations without recording.

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