By Rob Ranieri
The last few years have seen podcast popularity continue to soar, with lockdown bringing new listeners and longer consumption times. The aftermath of COVID has proven the resilience and adaptability of the medium, with continued growth. Since the pre-pandemic days of 2018 the percentage of Australians who listen to audio online every month has grown from 50% to 78% (The Infinite Dial 22). 2022 saw big trends in the continued dominance of Spotify, podcast hosts as influencers and celebrity podcasts continued to bring new listeners (and more $$) into the genre. What does 2023 hold? We asked podcast industry leaders, hosts and production experts for their predictions.
1. Video Integration
Sharon Taylor, Managing Director of Omny Studio predicts that video will be a big trend in podcasts for 2023, specifically the industry figuring out how to make it complimentary to podcasts.
So, how can an audio platform integrate video successfully? Isn’t the whole appeal of a podcast that it is screenless? Can you even call a video podcast a podcast?
Video integration has been part of podcasting for a while now. Due to its ability to upload long-form content, YouTube accidentally became the biggest platform for podcasts, forcing the platform to take podcasting a bit more seriously. In the US, YouTube now has a dedicated podcast page, where users can explore new and popular podcast episodes, shows and creators, as well as recommend podcast content. Video-first consumers are now more likely to discover podcasts. Similarly, in April 2022, Spotify introduced tools to all their creators in the U.S, Canada, New Zealand, Australia and the UK, allowing them to post video podcasts on the platform, allowing audio-first consumers to have the option to also view their favourite podcast hosts.
Ultimately, video podcasts give consumers more choice - whether they’re listening on audio-only, watching the video, or even toggling between the two.
This is a great thing for the industry, allowing for more personalisation and consumption. There also have been rumours that TikTok will branch out to include music and podcasts. Media platforms have seen the value in podcasting and don’t want to miss out.
Creating short videos from a podcast is also a way to increase the discoverability of podcasts on other platforms. UK podcast Help I Sexted My Boss is a great example of a podcast utilising TikTok to drive new listeners to their podcast, with some of their TikTok videos garnering over 6 million views. Successfully using short video format to entice fans to check out the podcast for more in-depth content, Help I Sexted My Boss was able to get its content out to non-podcast listeners, reaching incremental audiences.
We predict that 2023 will be huge for podcasts leveraging the video format to extend, diversify and grow their reach and potential.
2. More News Podcasts
Dylan Buckley, host of Dylan and Friends, predicts
“2023 will bring a trend of short informative pods that are 5-7 minutes.”
Greg Muller, host of Motherlode agrees; “There are some good examples of really engaging current affairs podcasts, which don't sound like radio programs such as The News Agents from the UK. I think this is where your news will come from more and more.”
News podcasts account for only seven per cent of the existing podcasts, but news content is far more sticky and engaging than other types of podcasts. (City Journal). It is also interesting to note that news podcast listeners are getting younger. In Australia, 16 per cent of podcast listeners are under the age of 30, and the majority of weekly radio listeners are those over 50 (City Journal). With COVID bringing accelerated, long-term shifts to the media consumption landscape, the way we consume news has been disrupted. As both the quality of broadcast and calibre of talent grows on news podcasts, it is highly likely to gain popularity this year.
3. Podcast Advertising Gets More Effective than Ever
It has never been easier and more effective to advertise on podcasts. We recently partnered with Veritonic for end-to-end measurement and analytics capabilities that allow us to gain actionable insights that further the ROI on our client’s advertising dollars. This means that we can provide unparalleled insights to understand and optimize the performance of our advertising campaign investments, ensuring increasing ROI for our clients.
Liz Keen, producer of The Long Haul elaborates: “Podcasting is still maturing in terms of its relationship to brands and advertising. I think there will be some shifts in this space as brands better understand the power of the medium, and the potential ROI if a show has developed a sincere relationship with a listener (particularly if the brand can share some values that the listener relates to).”
It is now possible to gain rich data into podcast advertising including (but not limited to) impressions/downloads, attribution pixel tracking, brand lift, CAC (cost of acquiring a customer) and offline outcomes. Not only is this data available, it is revealing great success and potential in podcast advertising. Neilson has revealed that the top 10% of brand lift campaigns tend to have nearly three-quarters of their impressions tied to audio (Inside Radio).
4. Younger Emerging Audiences
With 2022 seeing innovation such as toy company American Doll releasing their own podcast, it seems very likely that your average podcast listener is getting younger and younger, with 13-18 year olds discovering the medium in droves.
With screen time being a big concern for parents, podcasts offer a more educational offering. Groundbreaking kid/teen podcasts like Wow in the World and Kids Short Stories with Mr. Jim are already growing in popularity and paving the way. Furthermore,
we have seen the appetite for niche content in Gen Z arise through their obsession with TikTok - podcasts offer a platform to delve even deeper.
Annalise Nielsen, Senior Manager of Business Development at Pacific Content says
“I see Gen Z audiences growing, but I think this is more because Gen Z is growing older, entering post-secondary school and the workforce, and podcast content is more relevant to their new interests — not because podcast content has shifted or changed to become more interesting to younger audiences.” (Pacific Content).
We can’t wait to see what the world of podcasts has in store for us this year. All signs point to another strong year for the medium in terms of quality of shows, diversity of genres and more listeners, which makes it a compelling format for any advertiser. Contact us anytime to learn more, it’s easier than ever to harness the power of this highly effective medium.
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