That’s one of the conclusions from a new study released by Cumulus and Signal Hill Insights. The 6th installment of the study examines podcast audience and advertiser trends over the past five years and covers usage trends, content trends, and advertising trends.
Here are a few bullet points from the report…
– Among weekly podcast listeners, the COVID-19 pandemic increased listening. In March 2021, 53% of weekly listeners reported spending more time with podcasts since the pandemic, up +29% from July 2020 (41%).
– 46% of weekly podcast listeners reported listening to their favorite podcast within a day of its release.
– Content is the main attraction for weekly podcast listeners. When choosing podcast subscription features, weekly listeners will pick exclusive content over an ad-free experience.
– Weekly podcast listeners are accessing their podcasts on more platforms. Still, Apple, Spotify, and YouTube have a strong hold on being the most used podcast platforms and continue to grow at the expense of other competitors.
– The report also concluded that weekly podcast listeners are comfortable hearing ads and the more time they spend with podcasts, the more ads they will accept.
This study was done with a national sample of 600 adult podcast listeners, specifically weekly podcast listeners. The report looks at heavy podcast listeners (those who listen 6+ hours per week) as well as podcast listeners based on when they started to listen – podcast pioneers (4+ years ago), podcast newcomers (past 6 months), and then the ones who started 2-3 years and in the past 7-12 months. The survey was conducted between March 19-25, 2021.
Download the full report HERE.
