Podcast advertising trends 2023

According to Statista, with +$35.7 million spent in the first half of 2021, Better Help is the biggest advertiser in the podcast sector in the USA. 

That's well ahead of ZipRecruiter $13.6 million, Geico $13.5 million and Hello Fresh $13.3 million.

• But why does a startup specializing in mental health spend so much? 

• Does podcast advertising offer a return that can't be found on other communication channels?

• What are the advertising trends for 2023?

That's what I invite you to discover in this article, which should guide you in knowing where to make your audio advertising investments.

‍

The podcast advertising market is booming

‍

Podcast advertising vs. other advertising channels 

‍

By 2021, +92% of new brands have invested in podcast advertising.

‍

In 2022, +93.4% more advertising than in 2021 (France Pub, IREP, Kantar study).

‍

‍

What's behind this development? 

Podcast advertising: A format that appeals to listeners 

‍

Discover Pods' survey of 1,000 podcast fans found that 89.8% of listeners think podcast ads are effective...

‍

And for good reason: podcasting is a communication tool that : 

• Generate sales and purchase satisfaction with 

• 55% of podcast fans have bought an item advertised on a podcast(Discover Pods)
• 75% of podcast listeners say they are satisfied with a purchase made from podcast ads(Branding In Asia)

‍

• Maintains attention:

• 86.5% actually listen to ads (although they can fast-forward)

‍

• Distinguishes itself from other forms of advertising: 

• 51% of people who listen to 5 hours or more of podcasts a week say they pay more attention to ads on podcasts than to ads on other media(Edison Research)

‍

Increasing use of smart speakers 

‍

Whether in France, the UK or the USA, Smart Speakers have made their way into consumers' homes. 

‍

The result? 

‍

Increased listening to podcast ads and growing potential to activate purchases. 

‍

https://www.marketingcharts.com/digital/non-mobile-connected-devices-116087 

‍

Marketers' confidence in podcast advertising 

‍

44% of marketers are "very or extremely confident" in podcasts as an effective marketing channel(MarketingCharts)

 https://www.marketingcharts.com/featured-225606

Predictions for podcast advertising 

As listeners grow, so does advertiser interest. 

‍

So, while there has been an increase of +2.070% since 2015, predictions for podcast advertising are even higher with : 

‍

• By 2022, podcast advertising revenues in the U.S. are expected to exceed $2 billion(Interactive Advertising Bureau). 

‍

‍

• Podcast advertising is set to account for a third of all digital audio ad spending by 2024(Emarketer)

‍

‍

The podcast advertising market is changing

For 32% of marketers, podcast advertising delivers the expected results. 

Nevertheless, some techniques are more effective than others... and should become more so by 2023. 

‍

The most popular podcast advertising format

Words lie... but numbers don't! 

And today, 55% of ads read by podcast hosts generate the majority of podcast advertising revenues (Source IAB).

Worse still, ads read by advertisers and pre-produced account for a further 40% of revenues. 

Not surprising when you consider that 70% of listeners say they prefer ads read by the host rather than listening to pre-recorded ads.

‍

https://abdalslam.com/podcast-statistics 

‍

The Calliopé team's opinion 

It's a trend that's set to continue in 2023, given that brand- or agency-produced ads account (for now) for just 3% of all podcast advertising revenue.

‍

The battle between mid-roll and pre-roll advertising

‍

For the time being, mid-roll podcast ads - that is, ads that are integrated in the middle of audio content - will account for almost 2/3 (64%) of podcast advertising revenues (IAB) in 2021.

The Calliopé team's opinion 

However, this trend is set to diversify in 2023, with the share of pre-roll advertising revenues rising from 22% in 2020 to 32% in 2021.

‍

We'll have to rely on news podcasts in 2023

Although the podcast sector will tend to become more niche (see article on podcast trends), we can already say that podcast advertising will (again) rely on news podcasts. 

According to MediaWeek, in 2020, the top 3 of all podcast advertising revenues will rank as follows: 

• News podcasts (22%)
• Comedy podcasts (16%)
• Science podcasts (12%)

The news podcast is therefore the most profitable genre for brands and advertisers. 

The length of the podcast advertising format takes shape 

Ads from 31 to 60 seconds, which at one time accounted for a certain share of podcast ads, have dropped to 27% share in 2020. 

Those between 61 and 90 seconds have fallen to just 2% share, compared with 15% in 2020. 

But what happened? 

The podcast industry is coming of age, and with it a trend... 

16- to 30-second ads accounted for the majority (55%) of inventory sold, compared with around 4 in 10 in each of the previous 2 years.

Best-selling podcast ads last between 16 and 30 seconds

‍

Ads lasting up to 15 seconds accounted for 16% of inventory sold in 2020, versus 9% in each of the previous 2 years.

‍

Towards the advent of Programmatic podcast advertising 

‍

Unlike other advertising formats, for the time being, 80% of podcast listeners also claim that ads do not negatively affect the quality of the podcast.

Why is this important? 

Quite simply because it leaves room for DAI, or dynamically inserted advertising. 

Instead of being read aloud by the advertiser or podcast host, they are pre-recorded and inserted into the podcast according to the listener's marketing profile.

According to IAB, in 2019 DAIs generated just 48% of podcast advertising revenue. 

This is now a thing of the past: in 2020, they will generate 84% of advertising revenues.

‍