Although the podcast industry isn’t growing as fast as it was during its peak in the 2010s, it is still growing year over year. According to the Podcast Industry Report, it’s expected to reach $94.88 billion in value by 2028.
From a consumer standpoint, this means that one-third of Americans listen to podcasts regularly as of 2021. That’s 104 million listeners! So if you’re not advertising on podcasts yet, it might be time to start thinking about it.
We understand why you might not be, though. For one, audio commercials can seem less splashy than visual ads, whether they’re digital in nature or even something more traditional, like a television commercial. And speaking of traditional media, some people tend to confuse podcast commercials with radio commercials—and in their minds, it sounds almost old-fashioned to throw their advertising budget behind.
But while we can understand the source of these hesitations, we’re also here to refute them.
Podcast advertising offers a lot of unique opportunities for brands to reach their customers and clients in unexpected ways and unexpected places. Here are a few of the perks:
- Go anywhere with your audience. Some people reconsider radio commercials because they ask: Who is still listening to the radio? And are they only listening during limited windows, like commutes to and from work, in their cars? Well—we can have a conversation about the benefits of radio commercials another time, but—those limitations don’t exist for podcasts. People tune in from their cars, yes, but also at the gym, on public transportation, while shopping, and just about everywhere they go, thanks to the ubiquity of earpods and personalized playlists. In marketing, we say it’s essential to meet people where they are—but with podcasts, this means that you can meet them absolutely anywhere and everywhere, and you never need to disconnect.
- Reach people where they don’t expect it. Some of your prospective customers and clients might not expect to hear from you in the middle of their favorite podcast. That’s why it’s an excellent choice to capture their attention. Small, local podcasts can be an especially great option for small, local businesses. You can choose podcasters and shows that are in thematic agreement with your brand—but you can also go entirely opposite to make an impact, too. A cheese shop can appear on a wellness podcast with an ad about how cheese leads to happiness and earn an authentic nod of agreement from the listener—and lead to brand affinity or even a purchase in the near future.
- Find niche audiences. Similar to the point above, podcasts allow you to connect with niche audiences. You can learn a lot about the demographics of listeners and subscribers to podcasts and understand exactly who you’re speaking to, helping to ensure you’re reaching solid leads who are likely to connect with your brand, products or services, and your message. A cheese shop advertising on a foodie podcast makes a lot of sense, of course. If cheese-buyers tend to be married females in their 30s-50s, a true crime podcast might also be a surprisingly wonderful match.
- Track impact. You can learn how many listeners are tuning in each time your ad airs through the podcast’s own tracking metrics. Even if someone is pausing or fast-forwarding during pivotal ad-play moments (sometimes, even if they’re turning down the volume or otherwise fussing with headsets) the podcast can track what’s up to give you the most accurate reading about who your message is really reaching. You can also use promo codes, vanity links, and other methods to get even more accurate numbers.
- Low costs. Here’s perhaps the best news—unlike some other formats, podcast advertising still tends to be relatively low-cost. Looking at average industry rates, a 30-second spot can be about $18 per CPM, with a 60-second spot at about $25. (Of course that will vary by the show’s popularity, whether you want the show’s talent to build the commercial for you, and other variables…) If you’d like, you can go big and sponsor an entire episode or an entire season.
These are just a few of the reasons that podcasts offer companies unique opportunities to not only reach new audiences but engage their existing audiences on a deeper level.
If you’re interested to learn more about how this approach might work for your company, what the budget would look like, and ideas for where and how to connect with appropriate podcasts, reach out to the team at Mad 4 Marketing.
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