By Jacob Neff Pokémon Go Today The popular app clocks in at an ancient five years old. It has led to its own players being hit by cars.1 It even caused a pair of police officers to be fired for playing it on active duty in 2017.2 Despite all that, “Pokémon Go” continues to be one of the most successful mobile games of all time. … Continue reading Pokémon GO for the Gold: How successful games harness player feedback
By Jayson Holt In high school, Chavonne was pushed to go to college by well-meaning friends and teachers. Although she didn’t fully understand the financial burden before her, she enrolled at the University of Mississippi. In order to pay for school, Chavonne took on $20,000 of student loans. After three semesters, she dropped out of college. She could no longer afford to attend school and … Continue reading Benefits of Financial Literacy
By Andrei Mircea Who is Vitalik and why should you be like him? Vitalik Buterin immigrated to Canada as a child and first learned about Bitcoin at age 17 from his father. His crypto journey started when he began writing for a small publication called Bitcoin Weekly. He was paid five bitcoins (around $3.50 back then) for each article. Like most of us, Vitalik wasn’t … Continue reading Once in a Lifetime Opportunity
By: Bethann R. Decker The rapid rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine signals that hope is on the horizon for a return to normality. While many concerns remain about the pandemic (including the threat of new virus variants) the big question for businesses nationwide is, “Now what?” In the past year, millions of office workers adapted to the work-from-home (WFH) environment. Employers rose to the challenge … Continue reading The New Hybrid Work Model
By: Yazmin Roman Introduction When you read the words mental health disorder, who is the first person that comes to mind? Perhaps you have a loved one grappling with these issues. Perhaps you yourself are one of the billions of people whose mental health has deteriorated as a result of 2020’s occurrences.i What if I told you that mental health issues, including those caused by … Continue reading 3 Ways to Support Worker Mental Health
By: Solomon Berry As the United States has been rocked with the Covid-19 crisis, many citizens have struggled to keep their jobs, pay their rent, and support their families. The financial crisis caused by Covid-19 illustrates the immense life-style gap in the US between the top 10% versus the bottom 10%. While many lower-income individuals are fighting to survive, the top percent continue to live … Continue reading Universal Basic Income: The Possible Future
By: Brandon Bock Beep! Beep! Beep! The first noises of the day are not ones of peace but rather ones that are demanding your attention. It’s your alarm telling you to climb out of bed and begin the workday. However, you no longer need to brush your teeth, comb your hair, or even put on pants. Instead, you immediately stroll over to your nearby … Continue reading How Companies are Conquering COVID-19 from Home
By: Kezia Dearden Life has a sneaky way of creating meaning from seemingly inconsequential decisions, and every semester this truth is retaught. Should you get this apartment or the one down the street? Do you sit in the front of the class or the back? Will you sign up for a sports class in the morning or the afternoon? Depending on where you go, you’ll … Continue reading A+ Friends: The Connection between Your Friends and Your GPA
By Harriet Huang Eight billion dollars are spent on diversity and inclusion programs in business companies each year, but the majority of companies are not seeing the benefits from having more diversity and inclusion in their workplace.[i] While diversity and inclusion go hand-in-hand in the workplace, the difference between them is important to note. Diversity refers to the actual demographic makeup of a group, whether … Continue reading Why Every Company Needs to Improve Their Diversity and Inclusion Programs—Without Breaking the Bank
By: Marcus Corbett It’s a Friday afternoon in 2008. On the way home from elementary school your mom takes you to Blockbuster Video where you get to pick out one movie. Your first-choice film was sold out, so you settled for a different one. Once you get home, you open up iTunes, and listen—on repeat—to the 30-second preview of “I Gotta Feeling” by the Black … Continue reading Subscribe Now: The Future of Business
By: Kyle Ravsten The world has plummeted into lockdown. Businesses and societies have withdrawn to the safety of social distancing. By doing so the effects of an existing social epidemic have expanded. Replacing face-to-face communication with digital forms effect the efficiency and clarity of communications. Business tactics from decades proceeding the advent of digital communication hold a psychological, and biological, secret for success. These seemingly … Continue reading The New ‘Old’ Normal
By: Nathan Rock Introduction Over the span of four years, Google co-founder Larry Page donated more than $400 million from his private foundation to charity. While this might seem incredibly generous, it was discovered that “none of [the] $400 million . . . was actually going directly to charities.”[1] Instead, Page’s foundation was directing the money into a charitable-giving fund, called a donor-advised fund (DAF), where … Continue reading Philanthropy’s $141 Billion Problem
By Abigail Whitlock Out of the 5 million startups founded in 2020, only 10% will still be operating by 2030. According to research, the second most common reason why startups fail is a lack of capital. In order to succeed, entrepreneurs must secure the necessary funding. Many avenues exist for founders to obtain funding, including loans, grants, or investments from friends and family; however, one … Continue reading Nailing the Pitch
By Abby Dryer The American workforce has transitioned online. What can leaders do to continue a positive work environment in the digital workspace? COVID-19 turned even the best of businesses on their heads. Workplaces turned virtual. Rush-hour commutes to the office turned into navigating abandoned LEGOs on the walk to the kitchen table. People could no longer depend on the stability of what they were … Continue reading Zoom Into Leadership
By: Nathan Baker The first few months of 2021 have been nothing if not chaotic. Trying to find objective, factual information about the world’s constant changes can be difficult, and the abundance of left- and right-leaning biased media outlets don’t make things any easier. Amidst the confusion, the raise of the federal minimum wage sticks out as one of the most hotly debated and commonly … Continue reading A New Minimum Wage: A Look at the 2021 Raise the Wage Act
By: Nate Hawkins
The need to be constantly entertained in 2021 presses on ordinary people every minute of the day. What do you do when you’re on your lunch break? Or driving to work? Or making dinner? The answer for almost 40 percent of Americans is the same: podcasts. Podcasting has become the go-to form of entertainment for millions of people because it’s easy, engaging, and educational. Like other entertainment platforms, like YouTube or blogging, the podcast industry is rife with opportunity for profit through creating, investing, and advertising. The next great market opportunity has arrived, and it still has plenty of room to grow.
The term “podcast” gets its name from “iPod” and “broadcast”.1 This type of audio show started around 2005 with the launch of Apple’s iTunes. Many radio stations like BBC, CBC, Radio One, and NPR quickly jumped on board in an effort to upgrade from traditional radio to a more modern approach.2 However, the industry did not take off as some hoped. Competition for viewership with other forms of entertainment like YouTube hindered the podcast industry’s growth. The podcast show’s inability to accurately determine the amount of listeners also complicated the competition. Undeterminable viewership deterred many companies from investing in ad space, and podcasts consequently returned little to no profit.3
Since then, better technology and higher-quality content has helped the podcast industry take off. Figure 1 shows the growth of listeners since 2013.
Source: United States; Activate; Edison Research; PwC; 2019; 12 years and older.
Figure 1 shows the steady increase of podcast listeners, which is projected to increase in the coming years. To give a frame of reference for the graph, the number of monthly podcast listeners in 2020 (103 million) exceeds the number of viewers that watched America’s biggest event of the year, the super bowl (roughly 96 million).4
According to The Economist, one main reason for the increase in podcast listeners is technological advances. Better technology makes podcasts more accessible and easier to browse. Smartphones make it simple to subscribe to shows and download episodes with the click of a button. In fact, Apple iPhones even come with the Apple podcast application already installed, with all content completely free.
Another reason people are listening to podcasts is because they feel “productive” while doing routine or mundane tasks.5 In Lisa Perks’ study on podcast listener habits, she found that many people love to multi-task. They feel the need to listen to a podcast while folding their laundry, cleaning their home, or mowing their lawn, otherwise it’s time wasted. Perks’ epitomized this group of multi-taskers by stating, “If my phone’s dead or charging or something I feel like, ‘Ugh, waste of time’ when I could be listening while I’m folding laundry or whatever.” Listening to podcasts is an easy way to “be productive” while doing simple tasks. Other forms of entertainment, like social media or television, don’t have this flexibility.6
In addition to doing household chores while listening to podcasts, podcast lovers want to listen while commuting. New-age cars with internet and Bluetooth capabilities facilitate this desire. A study conducted by Notre Dame University finds that car’s ability to stream podcasts heavily contributes to the “great podcast renaissance.” The study explains why the podcast industry loves car-commuters: “Car-based listeners are captive, they tune in for long stretches at a time, and they’re valuable to advertisers.” While driving, it is difficult for drivers to skip advertisements or change stations; listeners almost always hear the ads. This means an increase in the effectiveness of podcast advertising and more money coming into the industry.7
The best way to illustrate the potential growth for podcasts is with Spotify’s nearly 1 billion dollar purchases. In 2019 and 2020, Spotify attempted to become the world’s premier podcast hub, totaling purchases for podcast shows and apps to 900 million dollars. One podcast alone, The Joe Rogan Experience, sold for nearly 100 million dollars. Spotify has invested heavily in an industry expected to boom.8
Other streaming giants have also been pouring money into the growing industry. According to Bloomberg Businessweek, Apple iTunes has been making and producing new podcasts intending to overhaul their podcasting business. Amazon has also gotten in on the action, recently acquiring a podcast producer, Wonderly, for its streaming service.9
So, what are the numbers that are driving these companies into spending billions on upgrading their services? Edison Research reports that podcast listeners are “young, educated, and affluent.”
Notice that 34% of the market fall between the ages of 15 and 34. Very few podcast listeners are over the age of 55. These listeners will continue to listen for decades to come. Furthermore, podcast listeners tend to come from households with large incomes, and therefore have more money to spend. This makes podcast advertising more profitable. Finally, podcast listeners tend to have more years of schooling. This is a good sign for the industry as those with more schooling tend to make more money, own a business, and make political decisions.
The demographics of podcast listeners show that their audience is already young, rich, and educated. Imagine where those same individuals will be 20 years from now and the buying power they will have. The podcast industry is booming now but has the potential for so much more as listeners continue to buy products advertised on their favorite podcast.
This is why Google, Amazon, Apple, and many other companies are now trying to get an edge in the market.
Why Do Ads Work on Podcasts?
Just like with television or radio, ads on podcasts come up between content about every 15 minutes and last about 1-3 minutes. Podcast advertising, however, is believed to be more effective. A study conducted by the Internet Advertisement Bureau (IAB) reports that 67% of respondents could name a product or promotion mentioned in a podcast advertisement.10 Bloomberg Businessweek reports that advertisers are willing to pay more per 1,000 listeners compared to super bowl ads.11 This trend can likely be explained by three advantages inherent to podcasts: hosts sell the product, listeners remain on the station, and marketers target the audience.
Podcasts are unique in that, instead of presenting an actor that’s reading a script, advertisements are usually done by the hosts themselves. Hosts frequently advertise products that they use themselves or mention during the show. This helps listeners stay engaged as they enjoy listening to the host. They are also more likely to trust the product because someone they know is advocating for it.
Another advantage that podcast ads have over television or radio ads is that listeners don’t have the option to change channels only to switch back three minutes later after the ad has passed. As discussed above, listeners tend to listen until the end of an episode, which means they listen to all the ads in between.
Finally, because podcasts usually have specific audiences, marketers can run specific ads. A podcast about business can run an ad about a hiring tool. A podcast about sports can run an ad about a sports bets app. These provide unique opportunities for marketers to sell to a target audience. This also makes advertisers more willing to spend more money which increases the value of the podcast industry.
Conclusion
Podcasting has come a long way in the last 15 years. More Americans every year are discovering the joys of listening to people talk about their hobbies and interests. Although the industry struggled in the early years with competition and uncertainty, it has increased steadily to become a major player in the entertainment business. This is evidenced by big companies investing heavily in their podcast businesses. Forecasts project that the industry will continue to grow in the coming years as more Americans begin to listen to podcasts and podcast advertising becomes more reliable.
Continue reading “The Podcast Industry: What’s the State of the Market?”
By Jaxson Stewart Printer go Brrrrr, Diamond Hands, Tendies: These seemingly random phrases lacked any centralized meaning just a few years ago. Fast-forward to 2021, and these phrases command the respect of millions of synchronized stock traders–communicating instantaneously through the online forums of Discord and Reddit. Game Stonks If you don’t follow financial news, GameStop, the blockbuster of video games, has recently dominated financial headlines. … Continue reading Day-trading: The Latest Deception Enchanting Developing Adolescents
By: Catherine Marshall Imagine that you have built your dream business from the ground up. You have spent countless nights awake working on everything you needed to make it thrive. And then finally it does; your business becomes a huge success, you’re raking in the money, and your dreams have become a reality. You now have the potential to take your company to other countries. … Continue reading Business and Localization
By: Olivia Colman Fashion fiends are hard to please. One day skinny jeans are all the rage, then the next day there is widespread internet debate over whether straight-leg jeans will take the crown. With trends, demands, and priorities shifting at high speeds, how do you keep customers of the fashion industry satisfied? The answer is optimized, customer-driven supply chains. Clothing defines both society as … Continue reading Expanding the Fashion Industry with Supply Chain
By Ashley Christensen Over the past year the United States has seen vast quantities of new businesses emerge. According to business formation statistics generated by the US Census Bureau, a total of 423,095 business applications were processed in February 2021 alone.[1] Contrast this number with 298,342—the number of business applications processed just one year prior in February 2020. The new businesses associated with the applications … Continue reading Turning a Dream Business into a Reality: Three Steps Not to Skip
