This is an archived page from 2022. Find out more
Acast has released details of new podcast listener research conducted with Nielsen. The study of 2,002 UK and Irish adults who consume podcasts at least monthly found that 45% of listeners started listening to podcasts in the past year.
Here are some of the highlights from the report: - 53% of 18-34-year-old podcast listeners only starting to do so in the past year. In comparison, 65% of over 55’s started listening more than 12 months ago.
- 37% of respondents said they listen to podcasts every day, while 70% engage with podcast content more than once a week. Listeners also said they expect to increase their podcast consumption in the next six months.
- 32% of those surveyed said they plan to listen to more podcasts in the next 6 months. That’s higher than the 25% who said they expect to increase the amount of music they stream, and the 27% who plan to spend more time streaming video content.
- 62% of respondents say they’ve taken direct action following an ad they heard in a podcast.
- 31% said they considered or purchased the brand/product mentioned, 26% advocated for (read/wrote/discussed positively) it, 24% followed it on social media, and 24% searched for more information.
- For episodes 30-45 minutes long, 41% of listeners say they listen to either “most” or “about half”, confirming pre-roll and mid-roll ad placements as great ways to reach listeners. For podcasts downloaded to a listener’s personal device, rather than streamed, 71% will listen to “all” or “most” of an episode.
- 36% trust what they hear from a podcast host when talking about a brand or company, compared to just 18% for radio.
- 29% of listeners say there are too many ads on podcasts, compared to 52% who say there are too many on YouTube, and 37% who say there are too many on Radio.
Here are some stats that relate to the types of podcasts the respondents in the survey enjoy: - 70% of listeners say they enjoy listening to guest interviews - 63% of listeners say they enjoy listening to panel discussions - 58% of listeners say they enjoy listening to host banter News, Music and Comedy content are most frequently consumed, with half of podcast listeners listening to Comedy shows every week.
“Podcasts are an increasingly important part of life and culture for listeners all around the world, and more people are discovering podcasts for the first time every year,” says Leo Goldingham, Director of Sales, UK at Acast. “We trust our favourite podcasters to entertain and inform us — just as much as we trust them to recommend brands and products we’ll enjoy.
“Podcasts have become an integral part of thousands of brands’ marketing strategies but, together with Nielsen, our research shows there are still huge opportunities for advertisers to reach untapped audiences.”