🎙️TODAY’S BRIEF

• 🔥 Consumer Values vs. Marketing Strategies: A Study Overview

• 🚨 Podcast Insight: Understanding Podcast Listeners: Motivations and Advertising Strategies

• 🌏 Podcast Elsewhere:  Top Political Podcasts Explored as Election Season Approaches

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IHEART MEDIA
🔥Consumer Values vs. Marketing Strategies: A Study Overview

iHeartMedia, along with Malcolm Gladwell's Pushkin Industries, today released its second annual report, "The New American Consumer 2.0," in which it states that nearly half of Americans, or 44%, feel unseen by advertisers.

The Study: Findings from independent studies conducted by Morning Consult, Advertiser Perceptions, and Critical Mass Media reveal a chasmic gap between marketer assumptions and consumer values, hindering effective engagement with valuable consumer groups.

Zoom In: One study showed that 72% of consumers refuse to buy a brand that puts the blinkers on and ignores them, while 75% are ready to pay more for a brand that shares values with them. To achieve higher results in marketing, marketers should be closer to real influences and authentically reflect customers' values and passions.

Thirdly, there's a growing unease by consumers regarding heavy reliance by marketers on hyper-targeting, data, and AI. 67% of all consumers hate the fact that they are being "targeted" by an ad-a fact which, on one level, suggests this level of ad targeting may not be working. While marketers plan to spend 9.5 billion on personalisation and hypertargeting campaigns in 2024, 7 out of 10 consumers claim digital ads are irrelevant despite targeting.

Key findings from the Advertiser Perceptions Ad Pros Community show that 44% of Americans felt ignored by media and advertisers, while 72% said they would pay more for brands that reflect and represent their values. Consumers vary by geography-urban, suburban, and rural-by race and ethnicity. Fully 72% said they would avoid buying from an advertiser if the company didn't care about people like them.

Zoom Out: Americans make their purchasing decisions based on approval, research, and saving up, while marketers can buy any second without asking for any approval. There is a lack of consumer trust in being followed by efficient advertisements; 82% of them make purchasing decisions based on communities, friends, families, or religious leaders.

Marketers look at health and diet fads, while cold plunges and vegan/vegetarian diets are just a couple of activities that make consumers cringe. Consumers say religion and law and order mean more to them by two to one than all other factors, but marketers turn their attention elsewhere. Marketers think of luxury items in the form of designer labels and accessories, but for the consumer, the key indulgences are more down-to-earth: brand name paper towels and meat of a premium grade.

Why it matters: This report essentially says, "Check your bias at the door," because marketers consistently underestimate the real usage of broadcast radio, which comprises plus two-thirds of all audio listening. As Conal Byrne, CEO of iHeartMedia's Digital Audio Group, noted, it is important marketers realize their bias and understand that broadcast radio and podcasts comprise such a huge component of peoples' daily commute.

Our take as a podcast producer: It is important that the podcast producer realizes that broadcast radio and podcasts have a very deep influence on the daily routine in consumers, especially while driving or commuting to and from work. How these audio platforms dominate and affect people's lives allows us to tailor our content more personally to their liking and needs.

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🗞️ TL;DR - PODCAST NEWS

• A new feature that allows users to convert their research into an AI-generated podcast is being tested by Google.

• The Stanford University Student Podcast looks at true crime podcasts as part of their Arts program.

• In recent years, podcasting has become a potent storytelling, reporting, and audience engagement tool in India.

• LAist will get a big boost in its mission to expand and improve independent local journalism.

• Award-winning journalist and best-selling author, Bryony Gordon, announces a brand-new podcast, The Life of Bryony, available from Monday 16th September. 

• As the U.S. general election approaches, many of us can't get enough political coverage! Edison Research utilised Edison Podcast Metrics™ to analyse the top political podcasts from both sides of the political spectrum.

• While ad cookies and their future may be getting all the attention, Amelia Coomber of Podscribe says something else is changing much more quietly that may affect podcasters just as much.

  
  

PODCAST INSIGHT 
🚨 Understanding Podcast Listeners: Motivations and Advertising Strategies

Podcasts are popular content for educational purposes, entertainment, and leisure. While there may be many reasons for listeners to interact with podcasts, the top three are: learn something new, to entertain, and because of great storytelling. This was analysis that was recently published on Triton Digital's blog by Jeff Vidler of Signal Hill Insights.

Zoom In: Indeed, motivations do range by genre, with News listeners looking for informative content and Comedy listeners leaning more towards humor than the average podcast listener.

Mr. Vidler advises that one should use audience motivations for creative development and planning. He says the podcast audience is most likely to listen for entertainment, interesting stories, and learning-again, setting guidelines for creative approaches that keep them listening.

Zoom Out: Listeners of Comedy are going to most engage with humorous or mood-lifting adverts; News listeners will pay more attention to informative ads. Business, Health and Fitness, and Education podcasts are most likely to house products, services, and messages related to self-improvement. True Crime and Fiction listeners are open to advertisers offering a mental escape.

Why it matters: This will help you understand those motivations which may fine-tune host-read ads and announcer reads to specific audiences and hence more effective advertising strategies. Pre-produced ads open the door to a creative strategy using audio in a creative way to paint a picture or project a mood that aligns with listener expectations from their favorite podcasts and amplifies ad effectiveness overall.

Our take as Podcast Producer :Understanding diverse podcast audiences' motivations and preferences will help manufacturers develop better ad targeting to improve engagement. With creative strategies in pre-produced ads, podcast producers can only capture the attention of listeners much better and drive superior results for the advertisers.

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IN COLLABORATION WITH SOUNTHPATH
🎧 Introduction to Story Editing

ABOUT THIS CLASS

There’s a common assumption that if you’ve been a producer for long enough, you can transition seamlessly into the role of editor. But story editing involves a specific skill set and a nuanced bedside manner. In this class, you’ll learn how to think like an editor, and you’ll gain the tools to help others craft tightly woven stories. 

We’ll discuss how to evaluate pitches, help producers focus their stories, support them in the reporting process, and conduct live edits. We’ll also cover best practices for providing structural feedback and line edits at different points in the production process, and how to offer rigorous critiques without disillusioning the producer.

Geared toward producers with little or no editing experience, the course will involve hands-on practice, a few homework assignments, and a live group edit. If you’re working on a story and would like to have it edited in class, please let me know on the first day of class. 

📅 Monday, December 2
Wednesday, December 4
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📌 NOTICE BOARD

• September 18 : Radio Academy Festival 2024 - London, UK

• October 3 & 4 : International Women's Podcast Festival - London, UK

• October 8 : Café Convos: A Networking event by BIPOC Podcast Creators - New York, USA

• October 18- 20 : Afros & Audio Podcast Festival - Baltimore, MD

• January 16 -18 : Podfest Expo - Orlando, USA

Visit Podwires Marketplace to post your upcoming events or job openings for free.

🔆 FROM OUR COMMUNITY

• Lateefa Dawkin has written an interesting article about effectively promoting your podcast that you should check out.

• Matt Medeiros of The Podcast Setup wrote an interesting article about helping podcasters get paid called the "Funding Tag".

• Podbean has a great blog post up about the amazing power of audio ads!

• Cassandra Mitchell wrote a lovely article about the power of authentic storytelling. It's a great read if you're looking to build loyalty and trust in your podcast audience!

• I just read the most interesting article by Signal Hill Chief Insights Officer Paul Riismandel! He wrote about how to make ads more effective, going from "data-driven" to "insights-driven." It's a great read, and I highly recommend checking it out!

🛠️ PODCAST TOOLBOX

• 📢 Zencastr is an all-in-one podcast production suite that gives you studio quality audio and video without needing all the technical know-how.

• 🎙️Rode - is an Australian-based audio technology company specializing in the design and manufacture of microphones, headphones, audio interfaces, and audio software.

• 🎧 Epidemic Sound - is a company that provides content producers with access to a sizable library of royalty-free music.

• 📼 Tubebuddy - is a complete tool for YouTube channel management and growth.

• 🪀 Swell AI turns podcasts or videos into transcripts, clips, show notes, articles, summaries, titles, newsletters, social posts, and more.

Browse more Tools ➡️

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