Perspectives on Podcast Advertising

Industry experts + DISQO data highlight opportunities with podcast advertisers

Podcast advertising remains a big opportunity - and often a big challenge - for marketers. Optimizing spend to the right podcasts, audiences, and messages requires a keen understanding of the channel and its nuances.

To help marketers drive audio advertising success, we engaged two industry experts to provide perspectives on DISQO’s recent podcast research. Their viewpoints shed light on both opportunities and challenges in this rapidly-evolving space.

Our report, available for download here, explores the reach, appeal, and nuances of podcast advertising from a consumer perspective. With each datapoint, we offer context from experts to bolster takeaways and recommendations.

Get deeper data and a nuanced understanding of the podcasting environment confronting marketers and brands:

• Who  listens, and how do their demographics differ from the general population?
• How has listenership evolved in the past year?
• How often do listeners engage with podcast programming?
• What types of activities do audiences multitask with while listening?
• What elements of podcast ads drive maximum listener engagement?
• How do host-driven ads  differentiate in a crowded advertising space?

 
Below is a glimpse into the insights industry experts gleaned from DISQO’s data and what it  means for marketers. For a complete look at the data and in-depth perspectives on podcast advertising, download our extensive report here.

David McManus
Podcast Product Manger, The Atlantic

David is focused on monetization and analytics for audio products at The Atlantic. He is integral in the execution and coordination of their industry-leading podcasts, including WNYC, the Peabody Award-winning Floodlines, and BCG’s American Metamorphosis.

Listener engagement: “I think there's an untapped element of listener loyalty given the unprecedented relationship that listeners have with the shows that they love. It’s a weekly or daily relationship listening to these shows, and the mental engagement listeners have with them is truly special.

To a certain extent, we haven't necessarily tapped into these ads as fully as we can. A lot of marketers and advertisers are just starting to figure out the potential here.”

Big picture: “For your creative on podcasts to truly shine, you need to give hosts and programs room to have fun with it. If you can get to the point where the ads almost feel like a part of the show, you’re ahead of the curve. 

There's several shows where I make a point of listening to the ads because they're inside jokes from the show and they’re legitimately entertaining.”

Why DISQO: “We were trying to get a good understanding of downstream impacts for our branded show (American Metamorphosis). Our question was: ‘What effect is this podcast ultimately having, and how can we quantify it?’ 

That's ultimately why we brought The Atlantic into a relationship with DISQO. What we were missing was downstream attribution in terms of how this podcast is impacting perceptions of our clients across the brand funnel.”

Elli Dimitroulakos
Global Head of Ad Innovation, Acast

Elli drives global ad innovation by working with ad tech experts, governing bodies, agencies, and brand partners. Her work at Acast helps clients design launch standards and new technologies that both enhance the buying experience and drive advertising performance. 

Podcast growth: “With podcasts, you’re not just consuming content in a passive way. You're very immersed and leaned into the host. That host has become a friend. They're part of your day-to-day life. You've come to trust this host. 

A host can grab a microphone and collectively bring together a tribe of people that have the same beliefs, the same values, the same trials and tribulations. And I think with COVID-19, we all needed that collectively. And I think that's what helped podcasting grow much faster than was expected.”

Big picture: “Overall, we’re optimistic the investment gap in podcasts will continue shrinking, both from an ad-spend and a measurement perspective. 

Although it is the fastest growing medium and the majority of consumers are listening to podcasts, ad investments are far smaller. In fact, there's about a $4.2 billion investment gap between where consumers are engaged and where the ads are going.”

Why DISQO: “DISQO is helping us with podcast measurement and attribution in a variety of ways. By being able to assess exposure to podcasts directly and safely, we can isolate listeners and compare them to a matched control in a way that few other firms are able to do. 

And because they have a large population of digitally-metered panelists, we can not only see how ad exposure impacts attitudes, but also how it impacts behavior.”

Download our report today to see what over 30k consumers think about the current state of podcasts, and what experts at Acast, The Atlantic, and DISQO have to say about podcast advertising opportunities.