Before we get started, we want to quickly shout out AV123 – an audiovisual show by Voice123 and their recent episode interviewing Sounds Profitable’s very own Bryan Barletta. Catch the episode here!
How are brands doing with their podcast businesses? By Kaiwen Yans
An op-ed looking into the state of branded podcasting in China. Along with podcasting’s overall growth in the country, global brands like Louis Vuitton and Nike have started launching branded podcasts in Chinese. As with other markets, podcast advertising proves cost-effective when compared to social media and display costs. And traditional sponsorships are growing as well, with brands like women’s jewelry company YIN sponsoring special segments/episodes of existing podcasts. [Source]
The Podcast Opportunity for Food and Beverage Brands by Tom Webster
Webster’s guest article highlights research conducted by Sounds Profitable showing podcasting’s ability to outperform other mediums in lower-funnel measures. The Medium Moves the Message found on average podcasting led to a 16% positive differential in taking action on an ad, compared to 6% for radio and just 1% for TV. While there are food and beverage brands already leveraging branded podcasts and unique integrations, the medium still remains a huge opportunity for the industry to tap into new, engaged audiences. [Source]
YouTube’s Pitch to Advertisers Stresses Creator ‘Stars’ by Sahil Patel
YouTube’s presence at TV upfronts this year includes a strong focus on reframing popular content creators as being as important as top showrunners and actors in the world of traditional TV. A premise the podcasting industry is built on, with podcast advertising’s infancy built on influencer marketing and building personal brands. Podcast audiences have shown repeatedly that they are loyal to hosts, not necessarily shows, and will follow said host to new platforms and shows when such moves happen. [Source]
IAB’s Gabilan Sees Symbiotic Future For Connected TV and Podcasting
Cintia Gabilan, VP of the IAB’s Media Center, sees the intersection of CTV and podcasting as a promising pathway for advertisers to connect with audiences. Both mediums have grown quickly and have promising forecasts. Though with fast growth comes challenges like audience fragmentation causing issues with targeting and buying. Gabilan stresses the importance of standardizing measurement and addressing both existing privacy regulations, like the GDPR, and upcoming legislation. [Source]
Disney is sold out of ads in the first 2 games of the NBA Finals by Alyssa Meyers
The NBA finals are once again a hot ticket for advertisers, with Disney selling out their inventory for Games 1 and 2 as of writing, and expecting to sell out Game 3 soon after. SVP of revenue and yield management at Disney Advertising, Jim Minnich, shared that tech and financial services are extremely popular ad categories vying for the space with an influx of new advertisers joining as well, showing “double-digit growth in new advertisers year over year”. While big games sell out quickly, the growing sports podcasting scene provides an entire medium of NBA-adjacent content – often hosted by players themselves – waiting for brands to invest. [Source]
To illuminate audience perceptions and expectations, Sounds Profitable’s latest study surveyed 1,000 weekly podcast listeners. The new study, Ad Nauseum, debuts Wednesday, June 12th at 3:00 p.m. EST.
How much is too much when it comes to podcast advertising? The truth is elusive: ask someone how many ads are too many, and they will likely tell you “one”, but as study after study has shown, podcast advertising works and works well, all the same. Join Tom Webster on June 12th for a free 30 minute dive into Ad Nauseam’s findings.
…as for the rest of the news:
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Rain News covers new local media advertising forecast from Borrell Associates, projecting an increase in streaming audio spend and decrease in radio.
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The New York Times News app has added a “listen mode,” enabling another path for NYT subscribers to engage with its audio content outside of the NYT Audio app.
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Amplifi Media CEO Steven Goldstein writes about podcasting’s ability to capture younger audiences in a world where traditional media’s average demographics continue to age.