Podcasting has become an increasingly popular advertising medium over the past several years. It allows companies to cost-effectively reach a diverse and highly engaged audience and build brand loyalty among devoted listeners.
Let’s discuss some critical statistics about podcasts that you should know and why you should consider incorporating podcast advertising into your marketing mix.
Here's What You Should Know About the Demographics of Podcast Listeners
First, you need to know what kind of audience to expect from podcasts. Do podcast audiences align with your target demographics? Here are some statistics that can help you make that determination:
Who listens to podcasts?
- About two-thirds (66%) of all podcast listeners in the United States are aged 12 to 34, demonstrating that podcasts typically (but not always) draw a younger crowd.
- 43% of U.S. men and 39% of women listen to podcasts.
- Podcast listeners in the United States tend to be predominantly white (57%). However, listenership is increasing among other populations, including Hispanics (16%), African Americans (13%), and Asians (4%). This points to the diversity of the general podcast audience in the U.S.
- A sizable percentage of U.S. podcast listeners have a 4-year college degree (27%, vs. 19% for the American population in general).
How engaged are podcast listeners?
- This is an important question to ask since the level of listener engagement directly affects the ROI of a company's advertising. Fortunately, advertisers can feel confident that most people who tune into a podcast will listen to ads. Podcast listeners tend to be highly engaged anyway, with most consumers listening to at least 80% of each episode they play.
How often do listeners tune in?
- Podcast fans are a passionate group, and that's reflected in the amount of time they spend listening to their favorite shows every week. According to one survey, more than eight out of every ten podcast listeners spend 7+ hours per week tuning into podcasts. The really passionate podcast fans (22.4% of listeners) spend an incredible 22 hours or more per week listening to their favorite shows!
Where do people listen to podcasts?
- According to Oberlo’s research, most podcast fans spend time listening to episodes either at home (90% of the time) or in their car (64% of the time).
- Almost half of listeners choose to tune in when they walk around (49%).
How do people listen to podcasts?
- While there are still a few listeners who tune in over their laptop or PC, most American listeners (65%) prefer to use mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets, to consume their favorite shows.
Are podcast listeners loyal?
- In a word: yes. In fact, some 16 million people in the United States describe themselves as "avid podcast fans," according to a recent Nielsen study.
- The loyalty of listeners can also be seen in the actions they take: some 72% of consumers who have listened to a podcast for 4+ years have purchased something from a sponsored ad. This also indicates how much trust many listeners put into their favorite host's recommendations.
Advertising on Podcasts Can Exponentially Grow Your Audience
If you want to broaden your brand's reach and appeal, then advertising on podcasts may be the perfect solution for you. Podcasting is increasingly popular in the U.S. and abroad. There were an estimated 120 million listeners in the United States in 2021. It's no wonder that the number of podcasts is ballooning, with over two million podcasts available, containing a total of more than 48 million episodes (and counting).
Podcast advertising allows you to target a specific audience (or a specific subset of your audience) by engaging with the podcast's "lookalike" audience - people with the same interests and sensibilities as your ideal buyer. In addition, podcast advertising can enable you to reach a more global audience since its popularity is surging on an international level.
Why Podcast Advertising is So Effective
There are several types of podcast ads you can invest in, including:
- Audio ads (pre-roll, mid-roll, post-roll)
- Host reads (pre-recorded or live)
- Endorsements
- Custom segments
- Branded series
- Presenting sponsorships
No matter which types of podcast advertising you pursue, you can feel confident that your ads will reach a highly engaged audience who won't automatically skip them. For instance, research shows that 72% of podcast consumers have heard an ad while listening to an episode, and 40% of people find podcast ads to be "less intrusive" than other types of ads.
Podcast listeners are also more likely to follow brands on social media platforms after hearing about them via podcast episodes. Moreover, 60% of listeners admitted searching for a product after hearing about it on a podcast, according to Semrush. Buzzsprout reported even for consumers who haven't yet purchased because of a podcast ad, 81% state that they pay more attention to those ads than radio, TV, or digital ads.
How CoxNext Can Help
If you are interested in developing and executing a successful podcast advertising campaign, our team of experts at CoxNext can help. Our data-driven marketing approach has helped scores of clients take their advertising game to the next level, whether that's in the world of podcasts or other avenues of outreach. With some expert assistance, you can leverage the popularity of podcasts to your company's advantage and enjoy significant growth as a result.
