Podcast advertising

Podcast advertising is a live-read 15 to 60 seconds audio ad a customer can hear in pauses of podcasts. It helps earn people’s trust, reach wide audiences, increase ROI, and promote products.

In this article, we’ll unveil the benefits and examples of podcast advertising. We’ll also figure out how it works and how to measure the performance.

Benefits of Podcast Advertising

People listen to podcasts on road trips, during exercises, or when they get ready for work. It’s a convenient, informative, useful, and exciting way to spend free time. The most popular shows in the US demonstrate excellent results since they have high numbers of views, reviews, and comments. Millions of people listen to podcasts, so why not use this channel for promotional purposes. According to statistics, 67% of podcast listeners perceive ads positively. Many people also say that they trust ads on podcasts more than other types of advertising. If listeners trust the podcast and ads on it, it means that they can explore brands and consider purchasing some useful products.

Podcast advertising is a new yet effective method to briefly tell listeners about your product’s value, discounts, promos, personal experiences, etc. If you do everything right, you’ll gain trust, enhance your target audience, reach new target groups, and promote products. Besides, this type of advertising provides you with warm leads. They are more likely to buy from your brand. You get better conversion rates and improve ROI. With the help of ads, people have the chance to listen to their favorite channels for free. You’ve probably listened to music and podcasts for free on Spotify. So, people positively perceive various ads.

You can make use of different podcasting platforms to advertise your product. iHeartRadio, Spotify, and PRX have millions of listeners and many advertising capabilities for your company. They will help you gain trust, enhance your customer base, and increase revenues.

Now that you know the pros, it’s time to jump into the process itself. In the next section, we’ll review how podcast advertising works.

How does podcast advertising work?

With programmatic audio, businesses can establish a special connection with the audience. An ad on a podcast is usually short audio the placement of which is similar to a video. Listeners can encounter ads on podcasts at the beginning, middle, and end of an episode. People perceive ads on podcasts better than those on other channels. This means that your company can achieve the necessary goals. According to statistics, 54% of people are more likely to buy from a company they heard about on a podcast.

Podcasting hosts insert ads that are 15-60 seconds in length in the podcasts episodes. The price of the ad spot depends on the reach, audio length, impressions, and downloads.

You are aware of the process now, so it’s time to figure out how to advertise on podcasts.

How to advertise on podcasts?

There are several rules you should follow to place ads on podcasts. We’ve prepared you a list of to-dos to ensure that the process goes smoothly. So let’s explore them.

1. Consider demographics. Unlike TV shows, podcasts don’t drive the attention of different audiences. However, you’ll get an excellent opportunity to target educated people seeking new information on podcasts. With podcast ads, you have a great chance to focus on the most active audience — millennials. They are in the perfect age, income, and education group. These people can show interest in your product and afford to buy it.
2. Be aware of the pricing. To avoid misunderstandings and overpricing when paying for a podcast ad slot, you should understand the basic pricing. Although you might think that some platforms can charge you much more than you expect, it’s not like that. The majority of podcast hosts use the same pricing principles. These networks apply the same formula to estimate the approximate cost of an ad slot. Some websites even offer a calculator for you to estimate the price of an ad slot.
3. Choose a podcast that meets your expectations. If you want your ad to be successful and attract people who might be your potential customers, you should be wise in your choice. Select a podcast that aligns with your product. There are many podcasts and opportunities to connect with niche audiences. Your task is to place your ad in the right episode to be more natural and related to the topic.
4. Choose several podcasts to advertise your ad. There’s no need to invest your money in one expensive podcast. It’s better to select the most suitable and popular podcasts to place ads on. Remember, although major podcasts have millions of listeners, they won’t recollect your brand if they hear your ad once. You’ll need to play your ad several times, and finally, you’ll have a huge total cost. If the ad doesn’t work, you’ll lose big money and the possibility to reach people and boost ROI. Several ads on smaller podcasts will bring you prospects and conversions.
5. Identify the most suitable type of ad for your product. Podcast ads can be different. You can purchase a native ad and play it in the beginning, middle, or end of the episode or ask producers to create sponsored content. The podcast host can even read the ad at the most appropriate moment during the episode. It depends on your budget, preferences, and end goals.

Now you know how to advertise on podcasts, so it’s time to unveil how to assess the performance.

How to measure the performance of podcast advertising?

An impression is a major metric you can measure the performance of your ad. In the case of podcasts, it depends on the number of downloads — the more downloads of the episode with your ad, the better the performance. For instance, if the podcast’s episode was downloaded 230,000, it signifies that your ad got 230,000 impressions. Then, you can assess whether the results meet your initial expectations or not.

You can also measure the performance with promo codes. You can share different promo codes in different episodes and see whether people come to purchase and use the code to get a discount or a gift. This way, you’ll capture which podcasts and episodes are the most effective. In addition to promo codes, you can use “How did you know about our brand?” questions. If customers come from podcasts, they’ll let you know.

It’s time to figure out the price of a podcast ad slot.

How much does podcast advertising cost?

The price of the podcast ad spot depends on the platform you’ll use, the ad length, and the ad type. Podcast advertising has its pricing structure you should be aware of to calculate the approximate cost of your ad per day, month, year, etc. Different platforms can apply either cost per mille or cost per acquisition rate to sell ad spots on their websites. The first one relies on the cost you’ll pay for 1,000 impressions or downloads. The second one is the price you’ll pay to obtain one new client.

According to Advertise Cast, a 30-second ad cost per mille will cost you $18 while a 60-second ad cost per mille — $25. The market of podcast hosting services is vast, and you’ll find a place for your ad in accordance with your budget and needs. In general, a basic platform will charge you $100-$500 for an ad spot. However, popular podcasting hosts with a huge listeners base may cost you more than $2,000. Your task is to conduct research and identify podcasts that meet your business goals and fee expectations.

Now you know the approximate price of an ad spot, so let’s grab some inspiration from examples.

Examples of Podcast Advertising

You can hear dozens of ads while listening to a podcast driving to work or back home. They are unique and designed to reach and resonate with their audience. It’s time for you to find out how to do it with podcast ads.

The Adam & Dr. Drew Show and EightSleep

For the podcast, the most important thing is to smoothly lead to the ad. The Adam & Dr. Drew Show did it well with the EightSleep promotion. First, the host started with the importance of mental health and then concluded that it’s affected by different factors. Dr. Drew mentions good sleep and all the necessary components. Here comes EightSleep, a company that sells smart mattresses. This is a perfect solution for people who care about their sleep and mental health.

Gimlet Media and Toyota RAV4

The famous manufacturer of cars prefers to use native ads on Gimlet podcasts. The ad is only 30-seconds in length yet informative. The narrator describes all the advantages of buying such a car. The car’s unique features make the driver safe and comfortable. The ad doesn’t include any specifications and podcast’s name so it can be used for several podcasts and platforms.

Podcast advertising is a new and effective way to gain the audience’s trust and increase conversions. As more and more people join podcasts, you’ll be among those who successfully implemented the strategy and see visible results.