Podcasts: A Sound Idea For Content Campaigns

A quiet revolution is starting to make itself heard in waiting rooms, on the morning commute and in hushed studies all over the country.

Spurred on by ever-increasing smartphone penetration of 86% [1] in the UK and by the normalisation of on-demand culture, podcasts are emerging as the audio-format of choice for many.

12% of the UK population are weekly users of podcasts. This is a 58% increase on the last two years.

Recent figures from RAJAR have shown that 12% of the UK population are weekly users of podcasts. This is a 58% increase on the last two years. And if the US is anything to go by, where nearly 1 in 4 of the population tune in monthly [2]

Podcasts are a great example of how viewing the worlds of on and offline media as binary no longer works. The advent of video-on-demand led us to rethink the way we plan and buy linear TV and digital video; now radio and on-demand audio services such as podcasts are also blurring these audio lines. What’s more, these new(ish) formats are offering another outlet for the current trend of user-generated content, already seen with blogs and vlogs.These democratic and authentic media have opened a door to more hard-to-reach younger, affluent audiences

There are two elements that particularly excite me about the power of this opportunity;

The first is flexibility. Podcasts enable the user immediate access to a world of searchable content to suit every mood and every taste, whenever and wherever they want. Furthermore, digital audio has a distinct advantage over its visual cousin; it can be consumed whilst the listener is performing other tasks such as commuting, exercising or, like me, watching the kids in the pool whilst immersing myself in the compelling audio world of In The Dark.

Only around 23% of podcast ads are skipped vs up to 90% on YouTube

The second element is engagement. As a whole, podcast listeners are a super-engaged audience. There is a very low rate of skipping ads vs other content-driven media. Only around 23% of podcast ads are skipped vs up to 90% on YouTube [3].

So why is this exciting? Well, this flexibility and engagement allows us media folk to help our clients to isolate fully engaged, niche audiences at affordable rates.

In a climate of creative, content-driven media solutions, podcasts offer brands an exciting component to any integrated content strategy. They can work seamlessly with social media, mobile video and beyond.

To find out more about how podcasts could enhance your next campaign, get in touch.


References:

[1] “Wave 9”, 2017 UM
[2] “State of the Media: Audio Today 2017”, 2017 Nielsen
[3] Acast