Digital audio provides a unique way to reach consumers that most other mediums cannot. With the rise in popularity of podcasts, in combination with the accessibility and increased usage of the likes of Spotify and iHeartRadio, digital audio is big business. Despite this though, the marketing landscape has yet to fully embrace the medium.
While some formats, like podcasts, have only recently unlocked ad revenue opportunities, others have been available for some time. Advertisers have been slow to embrace this space, citing a number of potential concerns that have prevented them from actively investing. Scalability, brand safety, and key measurements of success have been highlighted as to why advertisers are reluctant to invest more in the digital audio space.
Scale
Let’s start by exploring the scalability issue by examining an underlying challenge for audio regarding the dichotomy of reach and engagement/attention. Professor Byron Sharp has frequently highlighted the importance of reach above all other measures of success. While the popularity and usage of digital audio continues to grow, it does not see the same kind of broad reach as other key channels. For example, social media platforms offer a way for marketers to reach a larger audience at low costs.
It can be argued that, while digital audio does not reach the same number of people as other channels, it does capture a person’s attention in a way that no other channel can. The types of content people listen to in digital audio falls into two main categories: music and podcasts. Attention when listening to music may fluctuate between active and passive listening depending on the situation. People listening on headphones on the bus are likely paying more attention to the music than those listening through a speaker in the lounge while doing other things. Podcasts, on the other hand, have been shown to truly capture an active audience.
The power of podcasts is the way listeners are highly connected to the hosts and are invested in the content. Acast, a company dedicated to helping hosting, monetisation, and development of podcasts, recently released its annual Sounds Smart report. In the report, Acast noted that 90% of podcast listeners finish the podcasts they start. Furthermore, 70% are focused on the content they are listening to. This active attention is the highest of any channel within this study, with TV (64%), social media (60%), and traditional radio (51%) behind it.
Brand Safety
While being able to advertise to a highly engaged audience is very desirable, it comes with brand safety risks. This is especially true for podcasts. With the easy entry point, it is possible for anyone to record and release their own podcasts. This brings with it a raft of challenges for brands, who need to ensure that they are buying high-quality inventory. This is where podcast aggregators like Acast can come in to assure brands of the value of the inventory.
Podcasts are not without controversy though. The true crime genre remains one of the most popular types of podcasts people listen to. While personalities such as Joe Rogan are always going to create controversy in their podcasts, something which most brands and advertisers would want to avoid. The challenge here is that Joe Rogan is one of the biggest podcast personalities in the world, reaching a large audience.
New tools have been created to help transcribe audio into text from podcasts. This allows platforms to better understand the content of podcasts, auditing podcasts almost immediately after posting. Brands can then apply keyword exclusions, meaning they will not appear within certain shows that contain these keywords. The ability to target, or sponsor, particular podcasts is another option for brands to leverage, ensuring messaging appears around content the brand is comfortable around. For the most part, music remains a relatively safe environment to advertise in. Genre and artist targeting can help ensure brand safety guidelines are followed.
Measurement
There is often a misconception regarding the most relevant measurements of success within digital audio. This is, in large part, driven by the fact that it is referred to as digital audio. Through this classification, an assumption can be made that all of the key digital metrics are available to be used. Bringing it in line with other digital channels. Objectives such as click-through rate, landing page views, and on-site conversions are often measured off the back of audio.
While it is possible to measure these, it should not be the approach for digital audio. This is because it relies on a user taking an action that is disruptive to the behaviour when consuming the medium. For the majority of people, the app they use to listen is running in the background. Listeners are then required to stop what they are doing in order to jump into the app simply to click on an ad.
While some performance metrics are possible, the real power is in awareness and driving consumer behaviour towards consideration. Engagement with an audio ad is likely not immediate, but research hints that digital audio can help drive awareness and consideration. Acast’s Sounds Smart report revealed that 33% of those who hear an ad during podcasts have then searched for more information on the product(s) advertised. In addition, roughly 70% of respondents said they took an action after hearing the ad.
With typical digital metrics not really possible due to consumption behaviours, softer metrics are key. Measuring completion rate may not be as appealing as other media metrics, listeners are connecting strongly with digital audio. The results may be difficult to measure, something that historically sees things fall out of brand and advertiser consideration. While the impact may be intangible, the resulting resonance can help establish saliency with listeners. Building a connection with brands that few other mediums can.