It seems like one day we all woke up and noticed the purple Apple podcasts app and poof — podcasting was born. That’s not the case, but podcasts have gained popularity rapidly in the last couple years.
According to Edison Research, The Podcast Consumer 2019, the audience for podcasting grew significantly in the past year. Today, 51 percent of Americans over age 12 have listened to a podcast, with 32 percent having listened in the past month, and 22 percent in the past week. Podcasting’s “Share of Ear” has more than doubled in five years, increasing 122 percent since 2014.
These are definitely statistics that marketers can’t ignore. The battle for the “Share of Ear” is just beginning and as we move into 2020, should be incorporated into brand marketing strategies.
If these stats aren’t sparking your interest, Nielsen recently put out research that examines, the shopping cart of podcast listeners, which is clearly important research for our industry. The research shows that podcasts listeners spend on $150 plus per week on groceries. Now do I have your attention?
Is podcast advertising right for your brand?
Podcast advertising is interesting because someone listening to a podcast is typically a dedicated listener as opposed to someone flipping channels, pages or browsing links. A podcast listener trusts the host and feels a real connection to them personally. While there are times when ads run on podcasts in a traditional sense, the most successful ads tend to be when the host does an ad read, which in turn creates a more authentic experience for the listener.
I recently attended Podcast Movement in Orlando, FL, an annual gathering of thousands of podcasters and those associated with the podcasting business. One of the many speakers at Podcast Movement was Heather Osmond, founder of True Native Media, an agency that connects advertisers with podcasts. I reconnected with Heather recently and she offered a few thoughts on podcast advertising.
“Make sure that the podcast has been published consistently for a period of time and listen to at least a portion of the podcast to make sure the content would resonate with your customers,” she said. “Ask the podcast if their hosting provider is Interactive Advertising Bureau 2.0 compliant. If the ads are being run on a baked-in basis find out how many downloads are happening per episode and if the ads are dynamically inserted. Definitely find out how many downloads the show is receiving per month”
When a podcast reports its “downloads” it is important to ask if these are unique downloads and not total downloads. Unfortunately, there is currently no cut-and-dried way to fact check podcast numbers being reported, but this should be coming soon as more advertisers look to podcasts as a way to reach consumers. For now, it’s not unheard of to ask that the podcast provide you with a screenshot of their unique downloads.
Advertising on podcasts can be beneficial for brands as long as they find the right podcast to reach their audience. Podcasters have access to demographics in their analytics and can tell you things like location, age and if their listeners lean male or female.
Just as you would ask a media outlet for their media kit, you should be asking for numbers and stats from your potential ad platform. Of course its important to check ratings and reviews, but this can be tricky because like social platforms, some podcasters are paying for ratings and reviews.
Healthy Bites is the advertising segment of the Produce for Kids podcast, Healthy Family Project. These Healthy Bites allow a health-conscious brand to be featured in a three-minute spot where key messaging is delivered in a fun way and I test out a product or recipe. It’s a great way to engage families and showcase healthy brands to listeners who are engaged in that space.
How to pitch your brand story to a podcast
Another great way a brand can reach the podcast listener is to have your brand featured or an expert from your organization serve as a host on a podcast. Every brand marketing department and agency should be incorporating podcast outreach in 2020 public relations strategy if they aren’t already.
A publicist would pitch a podcast the same way they’d pitch a story or news item to a traditional media outlet. Maybe the pitch is a unique grower story, a nutrition expert or dietitian who works with your brand, a spokesperson who can talk about a new product that is unique and trending. Perhaps you have a stellar founder who overcame obstacles to reach their goals. These are all great opportunities for a brand to be included in a podcast.
At Produce for Kids we are always in search of interesting guests for our podcast, Healthy Family Project. Our goal is to bring helpful information to the listeners, who in our case tend to be moms and dads, about what it means to be a healthy family.
I receive 30 pitches a day from public relations professionals about new products or a potential guests. It takes a lot for something to stand out, so when you are pitching your story, make it unique, think it through and put the angle first, not the brand. The brand will fall into place authentically with your story.
(Amanda Keefer is the host of the Healthy Family Project Podcast)
