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New insights on listener tolerance and engagement for podcast advertising
The “Ad Nauseam” report, produced by Sounds Profitable in collaboration with Signal Hill Insights, delves into the landscape of podcast advertising and its reception among podcast audiences. The study surveyed 1,011 American podcast listeners to share their views and tolerance towards podcast ads. Here are the key findings:
Listener Attitudes and Ad Tolerance
- General Reception of Ads: An impressive 52% podcast listeners either enjoy or are indifferent to podcast advertising. Tolerance varies notably by age, with younger listeners (18-34) showing more acceptance than their older counterparts (50+).
- Skipping Behaviour: Although 48% of respondents claim they often skip ads, real-time behaviour during episodes indicates that 70% listen to most or all ads, highlighting a gap between perceived and actual behaviour.
Ad Effectiveness
- Discovery and Purchase Impact: Podcast advertising proves effective, with 60% of the podcast audience discovering new products and 47% making purchases based on these ads. Typically, listeners hear an ad 2-3 times before buying, with 76% of these purchases happening within a week.
- Influence on Buying Decisions: A significant 74% of listeners who purchased an advertised product found the podcast ad to be a key influence in their decision-making process.
Ad Frequency and Repetition
- Expected and Acceptable Frequency: The podcast audience generally expects 2-3 ads per episode, with an average perception of 3.2 ads in the last episode they listened to. About 57-60% believe the number of ad breaks in their favourite podcasts is appropriate.
- Tolerance for Repetition: While 92% find hearing the same ad once or twice acceptable, more than that becomes bothersome. Notably, 53% of listeners dislike hearing the same ad more than once in an episode, and 28% report reduced interest in the product due to repetitive ads.
Creative Preferences and Execution
- Reasons for Skipping Ads: The main reasons for skipping ads are lack of interest or relevance (39%) and familiarity with the product/service (30%). Interesting, funny, or novel ads are skipped less frequently.
- Preferred Ad Types: Host-read ads are favoured, yet 77% of the podcast audience feel that skipping ads doesn’t affect their support for the show. Only 21% use promo codes to ensure the show gets credit, the least cited reason for using them.
- Desire for Variety and Creativity: Listeners appreciate diverse ad formats, with 59% indicating they would tolerate ads better if they were different from typical ones, such as being a mini-drama or a song.
Recommendations for Advertisers and Podcast Agencies
- Focus on Quality: While there is no perfect number of ads, it’s clear that too many can harm both the show and the sponsor. High-quality, engaging ads are crucial to maintaining listener interest.
- Educating the Audience: Podcasters and podcast agencies should better explain the role of podcast advertising in supporting the show to foster greater listener understanding and support.
- Avoiding Excessive Repetition: Over-repetition can lead to listener annoyance and reduced attention. Striking a balance and ensuring variety in ads is essential.
The “Ad Nauseam” report highlights the nuanced balance needed in podcast advertising. Effective ads respect listener tolerance, uphold high creative standards, and avoid excessive repetition. For podcasters and podcast agencies, these insights can help craft strategies that enhance listener experience and ad effectiveness.
What can we learn for German podcasts?
So what does this mean for German podcast advertising? Primarily, we usually find that trends in the US are reflected in other podcast markets….including in Germany and the DACH region. Based on this assumption, we would expect that podcast listeners’ tolerance for podcast advertising is at the very least similar for our audiences. And, we believe that this is true.
On average, German podcasts have 3 podcast ads in them. And, we have found that the likelihood of someone skipping a podcast ad can be reduced by applying best practices when creating the ad and choosing its positioning.
As a result, we see that the effectiveness of campaigns that we produce for our clients is very high…..demonstrating that the podcast listener is not only hearing the podcast ad, but they are actively listening and responding to the message.
Is podcast advertising still an essential part of your media mix? Absolutely.
About Audiomy
At Audiomy, we are a fully independent, podcast media agency with access to the entire German and DACH podcast advertising market. Our approach to building your strategy and identifying podcasts puts your needs at the heart of the solution.
We are podcast advertising experts…..working with a client list of over 100 brands to produce their advertising campaigns and deliver an incredible 40M audio impressions.
We work with you from briefing to strategy, delivery and campaign reporting. Making it easier for you to benefit from the power of podcasting.
Book a meeting with Audiomy today to understand how advertising in German podcasts can meet your needs.