🚀 2024 Podcast Landscape: Insights from Groundbreaking Survey of 5,071 Americans

In June 2024, the largest public study concerning podcasting in America was done through a survey by Sounds Profitable and Signal Hill Insights. The survey involved 5071 Americans aged 18 and above who participated in a released online survey. A number of topics related to podcasts were concentrated on in the study, including listener behavior, frequency, and motivations.

The Revelations:

• A large population study showed that 53% of Americans aged 18+ listened to or viewed an audio or video podcast in the last 30 days, which is up significantly from previous podcast consumption. It's important for the industry to learn just how these video-first consumers react to podcasts and whether they switch out to non-podcast video or remain loyal to podcasts.

• The male domination in the audience base can thus be attributed to the nature of the content provided by male YouTube stars and their popularity. This year, 2024, witnessed five new entrants in the Top 20 podcast listing-a fact showcasing the thriving nature of the medium to keep up with new content.

• With over 60% of the Hispanic/Latino and Black populations falling under the 53% of Americans aged 18+ listening to podcasts, this is a good opportunistic time for the podcasting marketplace. Subsequent reports will consider these groups in terms of gender and age to point out the richness of listening experiences that characterize different demographics.

• The data shown in this study is very credible for Asian-American podcast consumers, who have thus far been underrepresented in podcast studies due to sample size constraints. Asian-American podcast consumers are over-indexed in being monthly listeners at a rate of 62%. Perhaps even more salient to the point, though, are the 57% of monthly podcast listeners who identify as LGBTQ+ Americans-this is another great growth opportunity for podcast creators.

Zoom in:

Podcasters need to be strategic about word of mouth to get the next generation of listeners; growth channels include YouTube and paid ads.

It is the perceived pressure of time constraint that makes podcasts appealing, yet listener attrition due to decreased quality can affect audience retention. The Persuadables are the next target audience for podcasts; these are people who are ready and willing to listen to new content. In positioning for this audience, the Persuadables, podcasts can be set up as one sure-fire remedy against boredom and aimless scrolling.

Podcast Landscape 2024 really hit it home: with 53% of Americans 18+ listening to podcasts on a monthly basis, podcasts are real growth. The listenership also reflects the makeup of gender and race/ethnicity in the population, making this a very mainstream medium. Growth may be slowing while users take longer to transition from triers to regular users.

Top 20 favorite podcasts: Comedy, News, Sports, Political Talk, True Crime, History, Celebrity Interviews, Self-Improvement, Pop Culture, Health & Fitness, TV & Film, Technology, Drama or Fiction, Science, Business, Spirituality, Education, Video Gaming, Religion. The more mainstream the audience, the more interest in podcasts about TV, Film, and even brands.

Zoom Out:

The podcast landscape has changed so much. Podcasters, meanwhile, have to keep working on ways to be unique and meaningful for a growing audience-and tackle those challenges-to continue finding success in this dynamic audio ecosystem.

The podcasting world is increasingly a mainstream medium, with deep interest from TV, film, and brand-related content. Podcasting content is as mass-appealable as it has ever been with a variety of sponsors that contribute to the growth of the medium.

The Podcast Landscape also showed the durability of Black and Hispanic audiences, plus those previously underreported in large numbers, like Asian-Americans and the LGBTQ+ audience. Podcasts attract a singular and varied collection of audiences that advertisers should pay close attention to. On the other hand, podcasts still haven't been able to involve women and people over 55, though there are signals that the age makeup is starting to change.

YouTube has set in stone and fleshed out its position on podcasting, at least where discovery is concerned. Podcasters need to spend some time of each episode talking about what podcasts bring to the table that nothing else can and foster a sense of urgency for the format, so when one listener "falls," they fall to another podcast, not to TikTok.

Conclusion:

Podcasting is an integral part of the podcast world; what used to be YouTube now takes over most of the drives for new hits to mediums. Where podcasters should focus their efforts: attract new audiences and plant a feel of urgency about the medium so that it's another podcast catching them, not TikTok.

The Data and Sources :

The Podcast Landscape 2024 rounds up such research into the podcast industry's audience-in this case, video-first consumers. This report, informed by data from 5,071 Americans 18+, seeks to understand the various subgroups and segments comprising the podcast universe. It tries to gain insight into which of these consumers prefer non-podcast video and which can be retained.

Why it matters:

With podcasting bound to continue to surge in popularity, it is already integral that creators recognize the singular value they bring to their listener base and move to actively support the medium. It's easy to speak to this notion of digital, of being lost in the crowded room of the world wide web, as podcasters can attract and retain listeners in the competitive digital landscape by emphasizing the unique value proposition of their podcasts and creating engaging content for listeners.

Our Take:

Podcasters should utilize the viewership base of YouTube for promoting their shows and reaching out to new listeners. Artists can keep themselves relevant using numerous platforms and strategies to attract a wide variety of viewers.

Full report below 👇 or click here for the video

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