From Insights to Action: Turning Podcast Trends Into Campaign Strategy
Reminder: Tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. EST experts from Signal Hill Insights, Barometer, and Sounds Profitable join SiriusXM Media Associate Director, Podcast Sales Marketing Sophie Anderson for an hour-long free webinar. The conversation includes, but is not limited to, how video, scale, and AI are shaping the podcast ecosystem, how brand safety and measurement advancements are changing targeting, and how brands can balance innovation and authenticity to drive real, measurable impact. Grab your digital seat now!
Apple Enters the Video Podcast Fray
Analyst Adam Bowie weighs in on Apple’s announcement of video podcast support within Apple Podcasts (currently in developer beta, slated for the next iOS update this Spring). Bowie is particularly interested in how financial relationships will change as a result of dynamically-inserted ads becoming more commonplace in video podcasting. A landscape so nuanced, the piece comes with a flow chart to demonstrate the differences in audio and video distribution.
Little Dot Studios dug into 800+ YouTube channels and 11.2 billion monthly views to see what really hooks audiences. From 2023 to 2024, ultra-longform videos (120 minutes or longer) topped in watch-time and revenue, averaging 100x more ad revenue than a 20-minute upload across channels monitored for the report. From December 2024 to May 2025, the average length of YouTube’s most popular videos dropped 21%, from ~35 minutes to ~28 minutes. A change Little Dot Studios, in part, attributes to a January 25th, 2025 algorithmic update, which impacted ultra longform video viewership. This algorithmic drop seems to have acted as a balancing maneuver, evening out watch-time for shortform, longform, and ultra-longform. Little Dot Studios’ key takeaway for creators is to keep a close eye on what content and trends fans are loving, both in owned content and across the platform. Fandom is format-agnostic.
Podcast Movement Graphic Generator
Are you coming to Evolutions by Podcast Movement at SXSW 2026? Podcast Movement has just unveiled a nifty tool allowing you to upload a headshot or selfie and have it automatically placed in a graphic announcing you’re attending the three days of Evolutions programming at SXSW. It’s slick, easy to use, and offers both square sizing for LinkedIn and vertical sizing for Instagram. For example, I whipped one up for myself while writing this very segment.
Audion launches AI agent for digital audio advertising
Digital audio company Audion has launched Audion AI, a tool designed to address the fragmented nature of podcast measurement. In practice, the AI analyzes popular consumption platforms (including Spotify, Deezer, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and Amazon Music) to report back on relevant and high-performing content. Data that’s then aggregated with Audion’s own data (e.g., campaign insights, brand lift studies, historical performance signals) to optimize ad activations and media investments. Given the fragmented nature of podcast distribution and analytics is a recurring pain point cited by brands new and old, it’s cool to see more tech aiming to bridge that gap.
Partner Highlight: Gretchen Smith Dubois
Continuing our series of interviewing folks from the business of podcasting about current events, today I’ve got a new interview with Ad Results Media VP of Media Gretchen Smith Dubois. She argues audio podcasting’s power stems from intimacy, repetition, and emotional connection. While that’s great for podcasting, it can lead to situations where creators branch out into new media without remembering that special sauce that made the original audio appealing. Other topics include the savvy investment Netflix has made in video podcasting, and the realities of using nuance to navigate podcast content some might consider not brand-safe. Read the whole thing here on Sounds Profitable!
…as for the rest of the news:
- Oxford Road has a new ORBIT report, this time looking at the top 15 performing Sports podcasts (and top 5 sports networks), built from $1.6 billion+ campaign data from over 500 advertisers.
- Night CEO Reed Duchscher appeared on Bloomberg Tech to discuss the firm recently raising $70 million to expand into music and live events.
- Mark your calendar for Wednesday, February 25th, at 3:30 p.m. GMT for AudioStack’s new FastTrack webinar Sound & Secure: Trust, Safety & Ethics in the age of AI Transformation.
- Comedy duo and podcasters Jake and Amir have announced they are launching J&A Studios, with an associated Patreon account for funding. The official announcement notes both hosts remain advisors and investors in Headgum.
- Libsyn has signed a multi-year exclusive hosting partnership with the show Life Wide Open with CboysTV, including monetization from Libsyn Ads.
- Tide has signed a three-month partnership with Sport Social Podcast Network to be integrated in the networks’ rugby vertical during the Six Nations tournament, including a collaboration with For the Love of Rugby.
- Daily pop-business news podcast The Best One Yet has signed to Acast for a multi-year strategic partnership, including global distribution and ad sales rights for both the audio and video simulcast.
