With the Spotify Audience Network, advertisers have a broad range of easy-to-use, audience-based targeting tools including demographic targeting, geographic targeting, and even audience segment targeting. Advertisers can reach highly engaged, targeted audiences within podcasts both on and off-Spotify. The network now includes the audiences listening to podcasts from four Spotify studios (Spotify Studios, The Ringer, Gimlet, Parcast), leading third-party podcasts from off-platform publishers like ViacomCBS and The Wall Street Journal, and podcasts by local Australian publishers.
Spotify reports advertiser reaction has been promising: within three months of launch, nearly 60% of Spotify’s US podcast advertiser base is advertising with the Spotify Audience Network.
In a recent report, Advertiser Perceptions asked over 200 podcast advertisers, “Which buying method works best for achieving your company’s podcast campaign KPIs?” The top two responses by a wide margin were “by audience segment” and “across a podcast network”.
Peter Manten, regional head of advertising sales AUNZ notes: “Spotify continues to innovate and push audio advertising forward. In April we launched Streaming Ad Insertion for podcasts in Australia, a significant advancement in podcast advertising measurement and transparency for brands. With the launch of the Spotify Audience Network, we continue to connect brands with their audience, at scale and with sophisticated targeting. As we expand our slate of local and international podcasts, our brand and agency partners can look forward to more exciting developments in the coming months.”
Manten said it isn’t only advertisers that benefit from the Spotify Audience Network, publishers do, too. Megaphone podcast publishers who opt in to the network have seen meaningful improvement in their ability to monetise. Opted-in podcast publishers have seen fill rates increase by over +10%, CPMs increase by over +40%, while the number of unique advertisers in their content is increasing, with some publishers seeing that number double.
See also: Spotify Australian podcast originals includes Generation Beetoota