3 Things Podcasters Want Advertisers to Know For 2023
This goes for podcast listeners too!
Photo by Austin Kehmeier on Unsplash
Savvy brands know not to pull back advertising efforts in tough times, but rather focus their investment on high-value media channels.
Coveted for its array of influencers, highbrow audience, and less cluttered environment, podcasting will continue to be in demand from advertisers who want need to be more strategic about their ad spend.
Part of perfecting your podcast advertising strategy means thinking less transaction and more partnership. It’s an investment, and it takes time to build a relationship with not just the podcaster, but their audience too.
This is one of the reasons why we publish our annual Podcast Buying Guide—to help brands identify everything they need to form stronger alliances with podcasters and their content.
To make the most of those partnerships, here’s what podcasters (and their listeners) want advertisers to know.
They want partners that are safe for their brand too.
Brand suitability is a big topic in the advertising world, and third-party solutions that understand the contextual nuance needed to analyze podcast content are already being deployed.
While brands can begin to feel confident about the content they choose, brand suitability goes both ways. Podcasters want to know that the advertisers they are backing align with their mission and the issues impacting their listeners’ lives. To ensure alignment, understand the show’s advertiser history and who the audience is. And not to be forgotten or ignored is the faithful host read. Using the host’s voice for your messaging comes across as authentic to listeners, instilling trust and an affinity for brands that is unmatched.
At the end of the day, podcasters want to do right by their audience. If they can’t get behind a product or a brand doesn’t align with their values, it’s probably not a good fit for either of you.
They want to try your product.
Podcasters are consumers too, and like their listeners, they’re looking for products that will make their lives easier. They also have their own loyalties to brands they trust. If they’re willing to try your product and talk about it with their listeners, that read is going to make an impact.
Podcast listeners really like to be influenced by their favorite podcasters. According to the 2022 After These Messages study done by Sounds Profitable, 71% of weekly podcast listeners trust podcast ads more in general than other ads, while 81% trust host-read ads specifically. Podcast listeners are also more likely to find the ads they hear useful because the host takes time to tailor their reads with personal experience.
Their listeners won't mind announcer reads, but...
As advertisers look for more ways to achieve scale in their campaigns, they’ll turn to programmatic solutions and turnkey creative to create efficiencies.
Host reads are still strong drivers for brand awareness and affinity, but After These Messages found that also utilizing announcer reads may help cut through the clutter. After being exposed to three different types of ad creative, podcast listeners' response to announcer reads was just as positive across key metrics like ‘unaided recall’ and ‘likelihood to learn more.’
If you’re going the announcer-read or programmatic route, consider what kind of investment you will make in creative execution. Create bespoke announcer reads that incorporate voice talent, music, or messaging designed for the intended audience and format. The final creative should be tailored to this environment and designed for the ear first.