Case Study: AdLarge Podcasts Excel At Delivering ROI
Photo by Jonathan Farber on Unsplash
Getting started with podcast advertising can be intimidating. It’s unlike any other media channel, but that’s a good thing.
By understanding what makes podcasting unique and having a strong sense of who your target customer is, it’s possible to confidently (and successfully) navigate this space.
We love a good success story, and this one was too good not to share. Let’s find out how a new-to-podcasting advertiser found its voice and a new audience.
THE CHALLENGE
A wellness brand was solely relying on social media affiliate marketing, but seeing little return on investment. With social media being so crowded today, this company needed to cut through the clutter and start converting audiences into buyers. Podcasting became the brand’s first major marketing investment to help capture more sales and drive revenue.
WHY PODCASTING
So what about podcasting initially caught their attention as a viable marketing channel? The trust factor that listeners have with hosts and the “I heard about it on a podcast” phenomenon.
True Crime podcasts also piqued their interest for their attention-grabbing quality not found in other genres and their ability to sustain high audience engagement. Plus, there’s a halo effect for brands that support shows with a clear mission—whether that’s shining a light on injustice or bringing media attention to cold cases.
THE GAME PLAN
The first step was to guide this advertiser through the podcast ad buying process every step of the way—from familiarizing them on the latest capabilities to mapping out a sufficient test campaign that followed best practices.
Next, it was time to identify the podcast environments and connect the brand with the right hosts. Every show was vetted to ensure they could speak authentically to the product.
To tap the “I heard it on a podcast” effect, the buy was centered around dynamically-inserted host-read endorsements to build trust and brand familiarity.
Finally, ROI was to be measured strictly based on vanity code usage.
THE RESULTS
“AdLarge has the highest number of high performing podcasts of any network we are running with and by far the highest success rate among tested shows, leading to renewals and increases in investment.”
AdLarge Podcast Network shows were twice as effective when compared to other networks purchased. The brand’s initial success with shows like Going West led them to pursue campaigns in podcasting again this past year, ramping into a more focused investment this year.
The brand’s online sales multiplied by 50 times. They can directly attribute podcast advertising to their success.
THE MAIN TAKEAWAYS
DO ensure investment levels and budgets are sufficient enough to deliver ROI.
DO select shows based on quality content, quality audience, and brand suitability.
DO let hosts try the product so they can speak authentically to their experience.
DON’T count out dynamic ad insertion. When done right, DAI host reads have the same impact as baked-in host reads, but with added benefits like impression tracking, attribution, and back catalog reach.