IAB and PwC US this month released a study forecasting $1 Billion in revenue for the podcast ad market in 2021, in the US. This is the double of the revenue spend by advertisers in 2017: $479 million.
According to IAB, direct-to-consumer retailers and financial services spent more on podcast advertising than other industry categories. Overall, five business categories represented nearly three-quarters of all advertising revenue captured:
- Direct-to-Consumer Retailers (22%)
- Financial Services (21%)
- Business-to-Business (14%)
- Arts and Entertainment (10%)
- Telecommunications (7%)
Host-read ads continued to be the preferred ad type, constituting nearly two-thirds of all podcast advertising. Direct response campaigns were still the most popular ad type, but are decreasing in popularity, as brand awareness and branded content ad types rose in use.
IAB says cost-per-thousand (CPM) was by far the most dominant pricing method.
“Today’s technology has created an audio-first environment where audio is the preferred interaction—and consumers have put podcasts front-and-center,” said Anna Bager, Executive Vice President, Industry Initiatives, IAB. “Podcast storytelling is deeply engaging and provides marketers with a brand safe environment that enhances the appeal to advertisers. IAB has been a strong supporter of the podcast marketplace, and we look forward to spotlighting the medium’s latest at this fall’s IAB Podcast Upfront.”
ABC Radio, Adswizz, AudioBoom, Authentic, ESPN, Gimlet, iHeartMedia, Market Enginuity, National Public Media, Megaphone LLC, Podcast One, Inc., PMM, Inc., Rawvoice, Stitcher, WarnerMedia, Westwood One, and Wondery sponsored the IAB/PwC Podcast Advertising Revenue Study.