Podcast Advertising Basics for Ecommerce Brands

Selective podcast promoting combines the facility of affect and model recognition. It could assist ecommerce firms, together with direct-to-consumer retailers, create demand for brand new merchandise or the model itself.

Manufacturers reminiscent of Athletic Greens, 4 Sigmatic, Helix Sleep, and Magic Spoon are examples of rising DTC and client manufacturers which can be common podcast advertisers in 2022.

These firms and myriad others have realized that podcast promoting is a type of influencer marketing since many patrons interpret these advertisements as an endorsement from a favourite host.

Not Programmatic

I’m not referring to programmatic advertisements that place commercials on podcasts mechanically however, as an alternative, host-read spots that join the advertiser to the podcast.

The advertisements these manufacturers are utilizing are known as curated or chosen placement — meant to advertise the model’s merchandise thoughtfully.

This influencer-like strategy to podcast promoting is a type of contextual placement and may generate higher outcomes than programmatic advertisements.

Contextual

Contextual targeting has lengthy been a staple of the promoting trade. It’s based mostly on a tried and true idea: Place your advert subsequent to related content material.

For instance, Athletic Greens locations advertisements on “The Tim Ferriss Present” podcast. Tim Ferriss is the creator of books like “The 4-Hour Work Week” and “The 4-Hour Physique.”

Whereas the podcast’s material differs from one episode to the subsequent, the viewers is usually fascinated about self-improvement and private achievement. So contextually, the podcast is a match for Athletic Greens’ dietary merchandise.

“The Tim Ferris Present” typically focuses on self-improvement, promoting match for Athletic Greens, which sells dietary merchandise.

Placement

High quality podcast promoting is usually bought at a flat fee or cost-per-thousand (CPM) downloads.

Within the former, the sponsor pays an agreed-upon fee when putting the commercial. The speed is usually based mostly on the common variety of downloads per episode.

For the advertiser, a flat fee presents the advantage of realizing what will likely be paid.

However for CPM advertisements, the sponsor pays a recognized fee per 1,000 downloads over a given interval, maybe a month, after the episode airs.

Lastly, whereas well-known podcasters reminiscent of Tim Ferriss or Jordan Harbinger (“The Jordan Harbinger Present”) promote spots on to sponsors, many podcasts use a placement company to promote sponsorships.

True Native Media, for instance, is a podcast sponsorship-selling company based mostly in Florida that represents practically 100 podcasts. Sponsors will usually purchase a number of podcasts inside a given context.

Copywriting

Since these podcast advertisements are basically influencer advertising sponsorships, the ad copy is usually a collaboration between the sponsor and the host or the host’s company.

In lots of instances, the sponsor will full a “temporary” explaining the product or marketing campaign, and the host’s personal copywriters will compose the preliminary draft of the advert. A number of iterations of the copy will cross forwards and backwards between sponsor and host.

Assuming the sponsor is putting advertisements in a number of episodes, the copy could evolve because the copywriters optimize it.

Measurement

Curated podcast placements are measurable, however it can be crucial for sponsors to acknowledge that these advertisements could also be extra akin to top-of-the-funnel model placements than direct-response efficiency advertisements on Meta or Google.

This actuality implies that sponsors ought to have clear targets associated to the podcast placements and outline measurement methods forward of working these sponsorships. Listed here are some examples.

Measure web site visitors. Listeners who hear an advert in a podcast could be aware the model after which search Google for it or sort the model’s URL straight into an internet browser.

Dozens or a whole lot of those listeners who go to an advertiser’s web site might create a detectable spike in natural search visitors or direct visitors.

Measure particular presents. A standard tactic with podcast promoting is to incorporate a particular provide or coupon code distinctive to the podcast. For instance, if a furnishings enterprise have been promoting on the “Adorning Ideas and Methods” podcast, it might provide a code for a free pair of accent pillows with any sofa buy. The enterprise might then attribute the usage of the code to the podcast.

Measure vainness URLs. Self-importance URLs are just like particular presents and coupon codes. These URLs may embody the podcast host’s identify, i.e., somesponsor.com/hostname.

Typically the host is clear in regards to the vainness URL’s goal, explaining to listeners that utilizing the URL will give the podcast credit score.

Use checkout surveys. Some podcast advertisers ask clients on the checkout how they found the model, successfully attributing the sale to the podcast promotion.

These surveys ought to be used as a directional indicator and never a definitive depend of each sale the podcast advert inspired.

Conduct model carry surveys. If a enterprise invests in a number of types of model promoting, together with podcasts, it might probably make sense to run complete model carry and advert recall surveys. These easy surveys will assist determine how brand advertising is contributing to the corporate’s total success.