According to a Reuters report, podcasts have become a a popular source of news and entertainment for Canadians.
The study, which included 93,000 surveys of online news consumers in 46 markets, including Canada, the U.S. and Australia, found that around one-third (34%) listen to a podcast on a monthly basis, with 12% accessing a show relating to news and current affairs. Also, 29% said they spend more time listening to podcasts than other traditional media, with 18- to 24-year-olds being the most active listeners.
“This is a great time for brands and advertisers to jump into podcasting. We see strong and steady growth of listening in the Canadian podcast listener,” president and co-founder of audio research firm Signal Hill Insights Jeff Vidler tells MiC. “Podcasts deliver a young, affluent and well-educated on-demand audience, a natural complement to linear TV and radio.”
According to Vidler, podcasts are an uncluttered medium. “Listeners are significantly less likely to see podcasts as having too many ads [like] TV, radio, social or online video,” he says. “And as far as ad format goes, host-read ads that leverage the deep attachment many listeners feel for their favourite hosts have proven very effective for direct response advertisers,” he adds.
Matt Mise, head of podcast agency Pacific Content, a division of Rogers Sports and Media, tells MiC that podcasts are also a good place for brands to create original content. “More and more brands are investing in original podcast content as a channel because storytelling works better there,” Mise says. “The diversity of content and creative storytelling is a welcomed change to people who may not be getting what they need from other platforms.”
And, as podcasting grows, new segmentation and measurement tools are emerging for brands. For example, Spotify head of ad sales in Canada Ivan Pehar says the audio platform launched Spotify Ad Analytics last year to help advertisers and agencies measure the impact of their ads.
Pehar adds that its Spotify Audience Network – a tool that allows advertisers to access a variety of podcast publishers like The Wall Street Journal, ESPN and Warner Bros. Discovery – has seen a “500% increase in advertiser participation since its launch in 2021.”
Looking ahead, the podcast industry could grow even further. “Podcast ad revenues in the U.S. have virtually doubled every two years since 2018 as ad revenues catch up to consumption, according to the IAB/PwC,” Vidler says. “And we’re starting to see the same kind of growth in Canada.”
According to a recent Acast study, more than half of Canadian marketers anticipate an increase in podcast advertising spend this year. Those who have purchased advertising space on podcasts are most likely to believe the market will grow (62%), indicating they had a positive experience doing so.
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