Listen up!
It’s no secret that podcasts are becoming one of the most popular channels for consumers to get information. Unfortunately, it’s not always easy for advertisers to know where to focus their budget in order to capture (and keep) the attention of the right buyers. In case you haven't heard enough compelling podcast stats yet: 42 million Americans (or 15% of the US population) listen to a podcast every week. That’s five times the number of people who go to the movies! Advertisers recognize a rapt audience when they see one: 85% of people who click “play” on a podcast listen to nearly all of it. Without the right research, however, it’s difficult to pinpoint the right podcast to deliver your message. Advertisers that explore which podcasters have the right audience demographics for their brand are the ones whose messages lead to conversions. Understand where you fit, what kind of ads will resonate with your audience and how to invest the right resources to see results.
Find your fit
Here’s some good news: 75% of podcast listeners not only pay attention to podcast ads, but they also follow specific calls to action after hearing them.
The key is in the connection to the audience.
Is Podcast Advertising Effective?
Podcast ads are capable of generating two to three times more engagement than radio ads, and 61% of podcast listeners claim to have bought something after hearing a podcast ad. Podcast advertising revenue topped $678.1 million in 2019 and is projected to exceed $1 billion by 2021. It’s no wonder that more businesses are steering towards this novel way of advertising.
key factors to keep top of mind when marketing your podcast:
Planning: Quality content requires a solid plan that maps out what topics you will discuss (and with whom), why that content maps back to brand objectives or content pillars, and when it will be released. After all, a failure to plan is a plan to fail.
Here are some ways you can find your target audience:
Production: Ensuring that you have the best quality audio means you have to keep up with podcast production best practices. This doesn’t mean spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on a podcast studio – you just need a solid wifi connection, a good microphone and some professional audio editing software.
Publishing: The days where you could simply publish new content and expect users and searchers to find it are long behind us. Publishing is key to your podcast marketing strategy in a few ways: Making sure you’re on the right distribution channels and making sure you’re publishing at a consistent cadence so return listeners know when to expect (and look for) new content.
Promotion: If you’re proud of something, you naturally want to brag about it! The same goes for your podcast content. Make sure you have a promotion plan, which includes content optimization, social promotion, paid media, and relevant influencer activation and coverage.
Sounds easy, right? The trick to podcast marketing is consistency and dedication.
Choose the best placement
Podcast ads usually have three different placements: pre-roll, mid-roll, and post-roll. As the names suggest, pre-roll ads take place at the beginning of a podcast episode, mid-roll ads take place in the middle, and post-roll ads come in after the episode is over.
Pre- and post-roll ad placements are shorter and cost less. However, it is easy for listeners to miss them since they aren’t a part of the episode.
Pre-roll– a 15-50 second ad at the beginning of the podcast.
Mid-roll ad placements are slightly longer and cost more. They typically garner more engagement as they appear within the podcast’s content. Using a host read ad allows the episode to seamlessly transition into the advertisement without disrupting the tone of the show. The most valuable time spot is mid-roll because listeners are more engaged and less likely to skip through the ad. If you don’t want to spring for a mid-roll ad, a pre-roll spot is a second-best option. People are more likely to listen to a commercial before the show starts then after it ends!
Mid-roll- a 1-1.5 minutes in the middle of the podcast.
Post-roll - a 15-30 second ad at the end of the podcast.
The script format is slightly different for each type of placement.
Pre-roll Format
Prerolls are around 20 secs long, so try and keep your script to about 100 words. They often begin with a shout out from the host, briefly thanking the sponsor for today’s episode and then a few sentences describing the product/service, the value for the listener, and the call to action. You can try using an engaging hook or question to grab the attention of the listeners.
Example Preroll Script
This podcast has been brought to you by RealtyShares. With RealtyShares, you can invest in professionally-vetted real estate deals in just a few minutes. Join thousands of other investors by registering free at RealtyShares.com/podcast.
Browse all the investments at no cost once you’re qualified, invest as little as $1,000 per transaction, and diversify your portfolio in minutes by visiting RealtyShares.com/podcast. RealtyShares has already returned over $10 million to investors to date. Visit RealtyShares.com/podcast.
Mid-roll Format
Midrolls are around 60 secs long, so try and keep your script to about 200 words. Make sure to read it aloud and time yourself. Use a bullet point format that highlights the key things you want the podcast host to mention, but also allows them some freedom for improvisation. Try to mention your call to action at the beginning and then again at the end as a reminder for the listener.
Example Mid-roll script (I used these scripts at RealtyShares!):
If you have money in the stock market, you probably broke even this year. Maybe you even lost money! But, if your dollars were in invested in real estate in San Francisco, New York, Seattle, Chicago or almost any other major city in the U.S., you likely enjoyed solid returns. Diversification is the name of the game when it comes to investing. If you’re looking to diversify your portfolio with real estate, look no further than RealtyShares.com [at RealtyShares.com/podcast]. RealtyShares is an online real estate investment marketplace that allows accredited investors to invest as little as $1,000 per transaction in residential and commercial real estate projects across the United States. RealtyShares is active in over 100 major metro areas. Thousands of investors use our platform to invest in real estate deals that are sourced and vetted by our experienced investment professionals. You can browse and invest in minutes, all from your computer.
Call To Action: Go to realtyshares.com/podcast to create your free account today. We have already returned over 10 million dollars to investors. Start investing today at realtyshares.com/podcast! Investments are risky and may lose value. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
Postrolls are the same length and format as prerolls, so you can use a very similar script.
Example Postroll Script
You work hard for your money, so you should get the most return on your investments with the least amount of work. So you should check out RealtyShares.com at RealtyShares.com/podcast. RealtyShares is an online real estate marketplace that lets you invest in private real estate investments reviewed and vetted by investment professionals. You can invest as little as $1,000 in different real estate projects, diversify your risk, and participate in both short- and long-term investments.
The perfect podcast ad script contains the following key components:
Now that you understand the different time slots, it is essential to know what type of read you should purchase. Choosing the right time slot read is crucial because it affects the actions your listeners take after hearing the ad. There are two types of time slot reads.
Live read–This is when hosts integrate your product into the current episode in an authentic way, maybe even improvising on the spot.
Recorded read–This is a timeslot in which a host pre-records an audio commercial about your product that will be played during a specific time slot within the podcast episode.
Use host-read advertisements
Since 2018, host-read ads have been the preferred ad type in podcasts.
According to a study performed by Nielsen, host-read podcast ads were “significantly more likely to be described by respondents as authentic and believable, and less likely to be felt as forced.”
When you let a podcast host read your advertisement, it follows the original tone of the show and is integrated seamlessly to match what the host is talking about. To have an authentic ad, encourage the podcast host to try your product. Listeners can distinguish when a podcast host has tried a product, compared to when they haven’t.
In contrast, podcast advertisements that are prerecorded and placed throughout podcasts lack engagement opportunities. Listeners can fast forward through the programmed ad, causing a loss for your business and the podcast.
Pay attention to attribution
To justify spending money on podcast advertising, it’s important to track its effectiveness.
Here are some tips to make podcast ad attribution simpler for your business:
EachNight sends podcast listeners to a dedicated landing page to track their ad’s performance.
When EachNight approaches podcasts they would like to advertise on they can provide podcasts with a specific landing page to be mentioned during the advertisements. Then, they can track the traffic to this page. The visitors that visit the newly created landing page are directed solely from the podcast.
Distribute a podcast-specific discount code.
When users use this special discount code to purchase your products, you’ll l know that they came to your ecommerce website from the podcast.
Include a “How did you hear about us?” question in the user registration flow.
When you include this question in your website registration form, users can check off podcasts as an answer, helping you keep track of your traffic sources.
Average Podcast Advertising Rates
According to AdvertiseCast, the industry average rates for podcast advertising are:
Pricing Calculator ( click it)
Here are the average rates based on all active listings within AdvertiseCast's marketplace. Podcast audience size is determined by how many downloads each episode receives on average over a 30 day period. CPM is cost per mille or cost per 1,000 listeners. Please note these are marketplace averages. To see specific ad spot pricing for a podcast, please visit their listing page.
Reporting Data for 1,746 Podcasts
It’s no secret that podcasts are becoming one of the most popular channels for consumers to get information. Unfortunately, it’s not always easy for advertisers to know where to focus their budget in order to capture (and keep) the attention of the right buyers. In case you haven't heard enough compelling podcast stats yet: 42 million Americans (or 15% of the US population) listen to a podcast every week. That’s five times the number of people who go to the movies! Advertisers recognize a rapt audience when they see one: 85% of people who click “play” on a podcast listen to nearly all of it. Without the right research, however, it’s difficult to pinpoint the right podcast to deliver your message. Advertisers that explore which podcasters have the right audience demographics for their brand are the ones whose messages lead to conversions. Understand where you fit, what kind of ads will resonate with your audience and how to invest the right resources to see results.
Find your fit
Here’s some good news: 75% of podcast listeners not only pay attention to podcast ads, but they also follow specific calls to action after hearing them.
The key is in the connection to the audience.
Is Podcast Advertising Effective?
Podcast ads are capable of generating two to three times more engagement than radio ads, and 61% of podcast listeners claim to have bought something after hearing a podcast ad. Podcast advertising revenue topped $678.1 million in 2019 and is projected to exceed $1 billion by 2021. It’s no wonder that more businesses are steering towards this novel way of advertising.
key factors to keep top of mind when marketing your podcast:
Planning: Quality content requires a solid plan that maps out what topics you will discuss (and with whom), why that content maps back to brand objectives or content pillars, and when it will be released. After all, a failure to plan is a plan to fail.
Here are some ways you can find your target audience:
- Google “Topic target audience is interested in + Podcast”.
- Browse podcast directory category listings for many shows about one theme.
- Use Facebook’s Audience Insights tool to figure out what pages your users interact with most then find podcasts related to those subjects.
- Look through podcast networks that cater to specific shows. For example, HeadGum (a comedy podcast network), Wondery (known for its immersive podcasts), and EarWolf Podcast Network (known for its celebrity-hosted podcasts) are networks that allow brands to advertise across multiple shows.
Production: Ensuring that you have the best quality audio means you have to keep up with podcast production best practices. This doesn’t mean spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on a podcast studio – you just need a solid wifi connection, a good microphone and some professional audio editing software.
Publishing: The days where you could simply publish new content and expect users and searchers to find it are long behind us. Publishing is key to your podcast marketing strategy in a few ways: Making sure you’re on the right distribution channels and making sure you’re publishing at a consistent cadence so return listeners know when to expect (and look for) new content.
Promotion: If you’re proud of something, you naturally want to brag about it! The same goes for your podcast content. Make sure you have a promotion plan, which includes content optimization, social promotion, paid media, and relevant influencer activation and coverage.
Sounds easy, right? The trick to podcast marketing is consistency and dedication.
Choose the best placement
Podcast ads usually have three different placements: pre-roll, mid-roll, and post-roll. As the names suggest, pre-roll ads take place at the beginning of a podcast episode, mid-roll ads take place in the middle, and post-roll ads come in after the episode is over.
Pre- and post-roll ad placements are shorter and cost less. However, it is easy for listeners to miss them since they aren’t a part of the episode.
Pre-roll– a 15-50 second ad at the beginning of the podcast.
Mid-roll ad placements are slightly longer and cost more. They typically garner more engagement as they appear within the podcast’s content. Using a host read ad allows the episode to seamlessly transition into the advertisement without disrupting the tone of the show. The most valuable time spot is mid-roll because listeners are more engaged and less likely to skip through the ad. If you don’t want to spring for a mid-roll ad, a pre-roll spot is a second-best option. People are more likely to listen to a commercial before the show starts then after it ends!
Mid-roll- a 1-1.5 minutes in the middle of the podcast.
Post-roll - a 15-30 second ad at the end of the podcast.
The script format is slightly different for each type of placement.
Pre-roll Format
Prerolls are around 20 secs long, so try and keep your script to about 100 words. They often begin with a shout out from the host, briefly thanking the sponsor for today’s episode and then a few sentences describing the product/service, the value for the listener, and the call to action. You can try using an engaging hook or question to grab the attention of the listeners.
Example Preroll Script
This podcast has been brought to you by RealtyShares. With RealtyShares, you can invest in professionally-vetted real estate deals in just a few minutes. Join thousands of other investors by registering free at RealtyShares.com/podcast.
Browse all the investments at no cost once you’re qualified, invest as little as $1,000 per transaction, and diversify your portfolio in minutes by visiting RealtyShares.com/podcast. RealtyShares has already returned over $10 million to investors to date. Visit RealtyShares.com/podcast.
Mid-roll Format
Midrolls are around 60 secs long, so try and keep your script to about 200 words. Make sure to read it aloud and time yourself. Use a bullet point format that highlights the key things you want the podcast host to mention, but also allows them some freedom for improvisation. Try to mention your call to action at the beginning and then again at the end as a reminder for the listener.
Example Mid-roll script (I used these scripts at RealtyShares!):
If you have money in the stock market, you probably broke even this year. Maybe you even lost money! But, if your dollars were in invested in real estate in San Francisco, New York, Seattle, Chicago or almost any other major city in the U.S., you likely enjoyed solid returns. Diversification is the name of the game when it comes to investing. If you’re looking to diversify your portfolio with real estate, look no further than RealtyShares.com [at RealtyShares.com/podcast]. RealtyShares is an online real estate investment marketplace that allows accredited investors to invest as little as $1,000 per transaction in residential and commercial real estate projects across the United States. RealtyShares is active in over 100 major metro areas. Thousands of investors use our platform to invest in real estate deals that are sourced and vetted by our experienced investment professionals. You can browse and invest in minutes, all from your computer.
Call To Action: Go to realtyshares.com/podcast to create your free account today. We have already returned over 10 million dollars to investors. Start investing today at realtyshares.com/podcast! Investments are risky and may lose value. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
- Invest in private real estate deals from your computer in minutes
- All deals are first reviewed by experienced professionals
- You can create an account and browse deals at no cost once you’re qualified
- Invest as little as $1,000 per transaction
- Thousands of investors use our platform and RealtyShares has already returned over 10 million dollars to investors to date
- CTA: Create a free account at RealtyShares.com/Decode
Postrolls are the same length and format as prerolls, so you can use a very similar script.
Example Postroll Script
You work hard for your money, so you should get the most return on your investments with the least amount of work. So you should check out RealtyShares.com at RealtyShares.com/podcast. RealtyShares is an online real estate marketplace that lets you invest in private real estate investments reviewed and vetted by investment professionals. You can invest as little as $1,000 in different real estate projects, diversify your risk, and participate in both short- and long-term investments.
The perfect podcast ad script contains the following key components:
- The intro – this is often a personal story from the host that acts as a segue into the concept of your product. Or it can also be a statistic that creates context around the product.
- Talking points– these are the key value propositions around your product or company that you want to make sure the host mentions during his live read.
- Call to action– this is the most important part. This is where you tell the listeners what you want them to do, which is usually visit your website at yourwebsite.com/yourvanityURL. Make sure that the host reads your call to action at least 3 times at the end of the live read, literally spelling it out if necessary.
Now that you understand the different time slots, it is essential to know what type of read you should purchase. Choosing the right time slot read is crucial because it affects the actions your listeners take after hearing the ad. There are two types of time slot reads.
Live read–This is when hosts integrate your product into the current episode in an authentic way, maybe even improvising on the spot.
Recorded read–This is a timeslot in which a host pre-records an audio commercial about your product that will be played during a specific time slot within the podcast episode.
Use host-read advertisements
Since 2018, host-read ads have been the preferred ad type in podcasts.
According to a study performed by Nielsen, host-read podcast ads were “significantly more likely to be described by respondents as authentic and believable, and less likely to be felt as forced.”
When you let a podcast host read your advertisement, it follows the original tone of the show and is integrated seamlessly to match what the host is talking about. To have an authentic ad, encourage the podcast host to try your product. Listeners can distinguish when a podcast host has tried a product, compared to when they haven’t.
In contrast, podcast advertisements that are prerecorded and placed throughout podcasts lack engagement opportunities. Listeners can fast forward through the programmed ad, causing a loss for your business and the podcast.
Pay attention to attribution
To justify spending money on podcast advertising, it’s important to track its effectiveness.
Here are some tips to make podcast ad attribution simpler for your business:
- Drive listeners to a dedicated landing page only referenced within podcast ads.
EachNight sends podcast listeners to a dedicated landing page to track their ad’s performance.
When EachNight approaches podcasts they would like to advertise on they can provide podcasts with a specific landing page to be mentioned during the advertisements. Then, they can track the traffic to this page. The visitors that visit the newly created landing page are directed solely from the podcast.
Distribute a podcast-specific discount code.
When users use this special discount code to purchase your products, you’ll l know that they came to your ecommerce website from the podcast.
Include a “How did you hear about us?” question in the user registration flow.
When you include this question in your website registration form, users can check off podcasts as an answer, helping you keep track of your traffic sources.
Average Podcast Advertising Rates
According to AdvertiseCast, the industry average rates for podcast advertising are:
- $15 for a 10-second ad CPM
- $18 for a 30-second ad CPM
- $25 for a 60-second ad CPM
Pricing Calculator ( click it)
Here are the average rates based on all active listings within AdvertiseCast's marketplace. Podcast audience size is determined by how many downloads each episode receives on average over a 30 day period. CPM is cost per mille or cost per 1,000 listeners. Please note these are marketplace averages. To see specific ad spot pricing for a podcast, please visit their listing page.
Reporting Data for 1,746 Podcasts
| Listeners Per Episode | 30-Second Ad CPM | 60-Second Ad CPM |
| 500-999 | $21 $0.12 | $23 -$0.61 |
| 1000-2499 | $24 -$1.03 | $34 -$1.84 |
| 2500-4999 | $22 -$0.14 | $30 $0.31 |
| 5000-24,999 | $21 -$0.17 | $28 |
| 25,000-99,999 | $22 $0.11 | $30 $0.29 |
| 100,000-999,999 | $29 $0.25 | $29 $0.28 |
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