4 Reasons Podcasting is Superior for Advertising (Just Ask Ira Glass)

"It's crazy; it's amazing. It's unbelievable. It's boom time."

These are just some of the terms podcast host and producer, Ira Glass, used to describe podcast advertising at South by Southwest Interactive in Austin, Texas. As AdWeek reported, Glass revealed that the podcast of his hit show, This American Life, earns more advertising dollars than the original radio show.

Why is podcasting becoming such a hot medium for advertising? In a recent report by the Tow Center for Digital Journalism titled Guide to Podcasting, Vanessa Quirk argues that podcasting may in fact be the ideal medium for advertising in the digital age: "At a time when consumers have become increasingly immune to display ads...podcasts offer a potentially interesting vehicle for digital advertising."

There are four primary explanations for podcasting's superiority as an advertising channel:

1. Podcasting is a mobile-first medium, which makes it an ideal platform for advertisers to reach the growing portable audience.
   
   
2. Podcasts inspire engagement from their audiences, making podcast ads stickier than others.
   
   
3. Podcast listeners are loyal, providing advertisers a consistent audience that is guaranteed to connect with the content for a prolonged period.
   
   
4. Podcast advertisements are often read by the host, which makes them not only more credible, but also a native part of the content that is more engaging and beneficial to the listener. Therefore, listeners are less likely to skip over the ads.

Have questions about podcasting or digital audio advertising in general? Get in touch with a Triton Digital expert.