How many times in history has the death of radio been prophesied? As many times as radio has re-emerged through new formats and new formulas, keeping alive the simplest form of communication there has ever been: the voice.<\/p>\n
Online audio today covers radio stations, streaming, podcasts, smart speakers with their respective voice assistants, audiobooks and music platforms. During 2020, 60% of internet users listened to some form of online audio (IAB, 2020). What is more, 86% of consumers stream music and 75% of those do so on their smartphone as well (IAB, 2019).<\/p>\n
Interest in audio formats grew dramatically during the period after lockdown was lifted. Although people’s movement remains restricted even after that easing, listeners have not given up audio rooms or video calls, and are looking for new ways to fit this listening into their daily routines. Audio is also a good option against the fatigue produced by the earlier wave of video calls. It has become an even simpler form of connection.<\/p>\n
After the crisis the coronavirus caused \u2014 in advertising as much as anywhere \u2014 the digital advertising market needs to redirect its efforts towards new formats, and audio is among those audiences want most.<\/p>\n
The online audio ecosystem now looks set to become something resembling on-demand television. Digital audio is no portent of radio’s death; on the contrary, I would say it refreshes it.<\/p>\n
Radio professionals who have opened themselves up to the possibilities of podcasting stand out in this space, and do so with real skill. Those of us in communication and marketing are called on to do the same: to adapt to the audio revolution and see it as a fresh opportunity to strengthen the connections with our target audience.<\/p>\n
The unstoppable rise of the podcast<\/b><\/p>\n
A podcast is a piece of audio conceived to present a subject over time and capable of being downloaded. It began as a kind of content created by users, but more and more brands, media outlets and institutions are getting involved with the format. It is a fairly convenient one: it needs no radio studio and no complex technology. In the first phase of podcast production the emphasis was mainly narrative and educational; today the experience of listening for enjoyment, purely for entertainment, is gaining ground.<\/p>\n
According to figures from Chartable (2021), some 900,000 podcasts launched in 2020 \u2014 the equivalent of one podcast every two minutes over the year. Everything suggests that in 2021 and 2022 podcasts are heading for unstoppable growth.<\/p>\n
Recent studies show that the podcasts dominating the global market deal with education, society and the arts; in countries such as the United States, humour is gaining ground, while in Spain those focused on news and sport dominate (IAB, 2020; IAB, 2019). And it is not only the number of podcasts worldwide that is rising, but the audience for them too \u2014 reflected in the strategic commercial moves made by social media and music streaming platforms. In 2019 Spotify acquired Anchor, Parcast and Gimlet, and in 2020 Megaphone. More recently, in 2021, Twitter acquired Breaker.<\/p>\n
Some 44% of the podcast audience listen to most of an episode once they start playing it, while 43% listen to the whole thing (Chartable, 2019). That is more than 80% engagement once playback begins.<\/p>\n
For marketing and brand communication professionals, the format has the advantage of making it very easy to record content that can be consumed anywhere, at any time. Audiences do not need to be watching a screen while they take the information in.<\/p>\n
Clubhouse, the audio-based social network that arrived with a bang<\/b><\/p>\n
March 2020 brought Clubhouse into the world, a social network created by Paul Davison and Rohan Seth, both former Google employees. The platform allows group chat rooms of up to 5,000 users to be opened. What sets Clubhouse apart from other social networks is that interaction is possible only through audio: text messages, images and videos cannot be sent. Where other networks fold a mixture of interaction tools into their structure, Clubhouse offers communication through audio alone.<\/p>\n
In its first phase, Clubhouse granted access by invitation and only on iOS. That appeals to many users for the aura of exclusivity it confers, but it is also what still makes the platform a limited one for achieving meaningful reach in marketing terms.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile the model is being replicated: Twitter launched \u201cSpaces\u201d, closely resembling Clubhouse’s rooms, and Facebook is expected to add similar functionality to its existing Messenger Rooms.<\/p>\n
This audio-only form of broadcasting also presents itself as an alternative for streaming events. Attending a conference room purely as a listener is far more practical than attending a video chat room.<\/p>\n
Unlike podcasts, Clubhouse content is ephemeral by nature \u2014 something to bear very much in mind if we intend to enter the network as a brand and produce effective marketing content. I would already argue for content planning that allows for the possibility of that content ending up broadcast through audio alone. The more we learn to diversify formats, the better we shall keep pace with audiences that are increasingly active, increasingly creative and increasingly demanding of quality content.<\/p>\n
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Author: Georgina Marcelino Mercedes, PhD in Advertising and Public Relations, specialist in social media and new media communication; Master’s and degree in Advertising, specialising in creativity and management. She currently works as an independent consultant and speaks at events on creativity, communication and digital innovation, and lectures at CMI.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n References<\/b><\/p>\n Chartable (2019). The Chartable Blog. Here’s why we’re entering the Golden Age of Podcasts, in 10 graphs. February 2019. Retrieved 11 March 2021 from: chartable.com<\/a><\/i><\/p>\n Chartable (2021). The Chartable Blog. How podcasts powered through the pandemic \u2014 and what comes next. February 2021. Retrieved 11 March 2021 from: chartable.com<\/a><\/i><\/p>\n