The power of audio advertising has been on an upward trajectory in recent years. Data coming out of the industry indicates that digital audio advertising revenue now tops $3 billion, with double-digit growth numbers every year.
But why are brands across every industry piling dollars into audio marketing?
The answer is in how consumers react. Studies show that 58% of people find these ads less intrusive, and 52% find them more engaging than other types of ads. Programmatic audio advertising offers a tremendous opportunity for industries ranging from education to television.
What is Audio Advertising?
Audio marketing is an opportunity for brands to expand their awareness campaigns. Advertising through audio enables you to insert a message programmatically in locations like music, podcasts, and news.
Radio stations have long used this form of marketing. Playing two or three songs consecutively with a branded message before or after each block is a method of sending a message to the station’s listeners.
That same concept can be applied today to professional podcasters or breaks during live streams and videos. Some news stations already use audio to advertise themselves and their partners, including CNN and the BBC.
There is no industry that cannot benefit from streaming audio advertising. Early adopters stand to gain the most from exploring audio and how it can benefit their businesses.
How Digital Audio Advertising Can Enhance Your Business
How can different industries utilize programmatic radio to get a positive ROI (return on investment)? Let’s examine the general benefits.
- Advanced Targeting – Radio stations may use advanced targeting to send branded advertisements to their target demographic based on their music tastes.
- Brand Consistency – With targeting comes consistency. One example is DJ Andy Chanley, a familiar voice on Southern California public radio. His voice has been preserved after his retirement to maintain brand consistency using artificial intelligence voice solutions.
- Cost-Effective – Branding via audio is one of the most affordable advertisement methods available. Something as simple as a smart text-to-speech platform can create new audio ads in real-time.
- Maintain the Spell – 70% of podcast listeners do nothing else while listening. Professional podcasts in business and education can advertise without breaking the spell by staying on message and keeping ads short, which is nearly impossible with native formats like video.
Audio ads have been proven time and time again to be emotionally engaging. Such an innate advantage puts this marketing tool within a league of its own.
Types of Audio Advertising
Different audio ads are simple enough to understand. Selecting the correct form of digital audio advertising for your brand may prove problematic. Getting the right ad for the right audience is critical to obtaining your desired results.
Advertising is all about achieving a positive ROI. Let’s look at the three primary audio ad types.
Audio Ads
These are the most commonly used audio marketing options. Like video advertisements, you can choose pre-roll, mid-roll, and post-roll ads.
These terms simply denote whether you place your ads at the beginning, middle, or end of your streaming session. Most audio ads range from 15 seconds to 60 seconds. The correct duration depends on your audience and what you have to say.
Experiment with durations to see which one makes the most significant impact.
Ad Sequencing
Ad sequencing is the audio equivalent of a TV series. You want to tell a story that keeps people listening. A simple story that takes place over multiple ads is more likely to encourage people to listen closely.
Most businesses use ad sequencing to supercharge their brand awareness campaigns. What’s critical about an ad sequence is that most brands won’t place the call-to-action until the end of the very final ad in the series.
Think story, not marketing blitz.
Skippable Ads
Most audio ads don’t have an option to skip in the same way as video. With the average podcast or radio production, the listener has to listen to your ads, so why would you give them the option to skip through those ads?
Skippable ads most commonly appear in pre-roll or mid-roll form. Advertisers may use a skippable ad to gauge listener reaction.
Observing listener behavior and interests allows you to hone in on what people like the most.
For example, if you’ve released a new form of ad and 95% of people click the “Skip” button, then chances are you need to go back to the drawing board.
Tastes and trends change all the time. Businesses need to constantly keep their fingers on the pulse of their target markets or risk being left behind.
Programmatic Audio Advertising Trends
Programmatic radio has exploded and shows no signs of losing momentum. Like any innovation, trends appear and disappear. You need to ensure you’re aware of the industry’s trends now and react accordingly.
Here’s what you need to know about the latest trends in audio advertising.
Screen Fatigue
The most significant trend driving the industry forward is screen fatigue. For one thing, people spend more time looking at screens than ever before. The COVID-19 pandemic and the move to remote working for the vast majority have only exacerbated the problem.
For advertisers, it’s made their jobs more difficult. The only way out of the screen fatigue problem is through audio ads. It’s the only non-visual form of marketing within mainstream channels.
Audio Ad Automation
How do you know where to put your ad on popular platforms and get the best price?
Most audio ads on platforms like Spotify and Pandora operate a bidding process. The brand that wins the bid gets its audio ad shown on its chosen station. No longer does it require marketing teams to manage this process manually.
The trend is running firmly in the direction of automation.
Real-Time Audio Ad Creation
Platforms like WellSaid Labs make it easier than ever before to create audio ads. You don’t need to employ a professional voice actor or rent out a studio with high-tech equipment. Now you can use text-to-speech software and artificial intelligence to generate ads.
All you have to do is type what you want to say, and a natural-sounding voice will read it back to you. Our text-to-speech technology allows you to insert natural pauses and ensure that your words are said your way.
Renewed Focus on Data
Data-driven audio marketing is so powerful for brands that do it well. No ad will have the same impact on everybody.
Using vast amounts of data to figure out how to connect with your audience emotionally is the key to successful advertising. Clearly, tapping into the listener’s feelings is how you can make your ads more impactful.
The driving force of audio is its ability to tug at people’s emotions. Use the hard data available to you to increase your chances of nailing your next ad.
Conclusion
There’s no doubt that audio ads are the next frontier of marketing. With the number of podcasts, streaming, and online radio listeners increasing, audio ads present an opportunity for businesses in every sector.
Tools like WellSaid Labs enable you to generate real-time audio, whether you’re a journalist, an educator, or a corporate marketer. Further, we streamline the process of audio creation while also offering naturally sounding audio that communicates your brand’s message and makes an impact.
To learn more about the world’s most powerful AI text-to-speech platform, contact WellSaid and try it for free now.
