Podcast advertising is a new way of reaching customers through digital audio files on current topics. It is more effective at capturing attention than traditional advertising, with podcast audiences taking action when presented with advertising. However, revenue infrastructure is less reliable than in traditional advertising.
Podcast advertising is a type of marketing related to digital audio files on current topics made available for download on the Internet. This type of advertising does not have a traditional format. It is usually compared with blogging or internet advertising as it is a new way of reaching customers based on the social media phenomenon.
Traditional advertising consists of television commercials, print advertisements, and radio spots made by professional agencies and sold to major production companies. Advances in technology and the expansion of Internet access and usage since the later part of the 20th century have opened up new opportunities for reaching consumers. Marketers have developed advertising approaches that have capitalized on the popularity of social media, the ability of ordinary citizens to contribute to the public source of news, information and ideas.
Podcasts are a type of social media similar to radio programs produced by amateurs or citizens. The show producer chooses a topic and records a digital audio file, expressing expertise or opinion. He uploads it to the Internet for anyone with an interest to hear, or makes it available through podcast archive sites for download to an MP3 digital audio player. Professional content providers can also make their audio available as podcasts, as well as radio shows and college lectures.
These days, anyone with a computer and some audio content can turn it into a podcast. Podcast advertising, however, only becomes available to those podcasts that are released regularly with a substantial enough audience. The advertising format is either a full audio spot, as would be used in radio, or a sponsorship announced by the producers of the show.
What marketers have found as they have observed the development of podcasting is that as a listener engages in searching for a podcast on a particular topic, downloads it, and often subscribes to the show over time, they pay more attention to any attached advertising that refers to the subject of the show. The on-demand nature of the experience appears to make podcast advertising more effective at capturing attention than traditional advertising.
Media polls consistently show that podcast audiences take some sort of action when presented with advertising attached to the show. If the ad prompts for a purchase, a significant percentage do. As a result, podcast advertising generates hundreds of millions of US dollars (USD) in revenue, although the infrastructure for getting that revenue from marketers to show producers is far less reliable than in the traditional advertising marketplace. Much of advertising revenue is directed to professionally produced podcasts, such as rebroadcasts of public radio or taped lectures from major universities, rather than the average amateur show produced in someone’s bedroom.
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