

Sounds Profitable
Bryan Barletta
The pace of change the podcast industry is undergoing is staggering. The implications for podcasters, hosting providers, podcast listening app developers, and advertisers and agencies are enormous. And so is the growth potential. Presented as a companion to the weekly newsletter of the same name, our podcast provides you with direct access to our narrated articles, interviews with industry experts, bleeding-edge research, and can't miss industry news recaps. That Sounds Profitable, right? Assumptions and conventional wisdom will be challenged. Easy answers with no proof of efficacy will be exposed. Because the thinking that got podcast advertising close to a billion dollars annually will need to be drastically overhauled to bring in the tens or hundreds of billions of dollars podcast advertising deserves.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Nov 9, 2023 • 4min
SiriusXM Revamp Revealed, Niche Beats Scale, Spotify's Fan Study, & More
Here's what you need to know for today in the business of podcasting: SiriusXM Lowers Price, Reboots to Take on Streaming Music Rivals With “Human-Curated” Focus by Alex WeprinMedia Briefing: In 2024, publishers and buyers say events and niche media will win ad dollars over scale by Kayleigh BarberPodcasters Can Better Connect to Their Audiences With the Insights From Our Latest Fan Study…as for the rest of the news: Veritone has posted their Q3 results, and Insider breaks down the difference between brand safety and brand suitability.

Nov 8, 2023 • 6min
Bigger 2024 Ad Budgets, Podcasting's Branding Boom, Spotify's Growing Library
Here's what you need to know for today in the business of podcasting: 200,000+ Audiobooks Are Now Available to Spotify Premium Listeners in the U.S.Branding Investment in Podcasting Doubles, Magnifying Focus on Brand LiftSixty percent of major brands plan to increase their ad budgets in 2024, new research showsTwilight of the brands by Brian Morrissey

Nov 8, 2023 • 12min
Making the Case for Podcasting
Tom Webster tackles the ever-present problem of making an appealing pitch for podcasts to non-listeners.Written by Tom WebsterEdited by Bryan BarlettaAudio edited by Gavin GaddisHosted by ART19Sounds Profitable: Narrated Articles is a production of Sounds Profitable. For more information, visit soundsprofitable.com.Summary

Nov 7, 2023 • 5min
Acast's Sales Growth, Podcast Listener Consumer Verticals, AdWeek's Podcast Awards, & More
Here's what you need to know for today in the business of podcasting: What types of podcast listeners are which types of consumers? By Brad HillAcast’s US bet pays off with 55% net sales growth in North America by Reem MakariConsumer attention and ad spend are mismatched. Where does that leave advertisers? By Sara LebowThe Top 50 Podcasts in the U.S. Q3 2023 from Edison Podcast MetricsBrands Still Test Interactive Voice Ads Years After Launch by Stephen Lepitak…as for the rest of the news: BBC Studios grows its audio unit, The Hollywood Reporter covers a big investment in athlete-hosted video podcasts, and Succession takes home top podcast at the AdWeek Podcast Awards.

Nov 6, 2023 • 4min
Super Bowl Ad Sellout, New BBC Podcast Tool, NYT Covers LeVar, & More
Here's what you need to know for today in the business of podcasting: CBS is ‘virtually sold out’ of ad slots for Super Bowl 58 by Alyssa MeyersAdaptive Podcasting - open source release from BBC Research & Development?LeVar Burton Wants to Be Heard by Laurel Graeber…as for the rest of the news: Attention vendors are trying to bring measurement tools currently available in other fields (like podcasting) to YouTube, and continuing the theme of major news sources covering podcasts: a recent Washington Post article on Julia Louis-Dreyfus heavily sources her Lemonada podcast Wiser Than Me.

Nov 3, 2023 • 6min
Interactive Audio Ads, Jolly Holiday Spending, Spotify's Audiobook Revamp, & More
Here's what you need to know from this week in the business of podcasting:Amazon launches interactive audio adsConsumer Shopping Habits Forecast 2019 NumbersMarketers to spend holiday budgets (mostly) in NovemberThe Implications of Spotify’s Audiobook RevampQuick HitsSounds Profitable launches branded podcast directory in partnership with Lower Street by Reem Makari. As announced in Bryan Barletta’s article on Wednesday, Sounds Profitable has partnered with branded podcast production company Lower Street to create Brands in Podcasts, a public directory for branded audio.Are my podcast downloads declining because of iOS 17? by Dan Misener. A breakdown of how to answer three important questions about the health of one’s Apple Podcasts audience and how to track it as wider iOS17 adoption changes auto-download behaviors.The Jar Audio Podcast Landscape featuring Sounds Profitable Research. JAR Audio breaks down key findings from the Sounds Profitable study The Podcast Landscape, which took a look at how listener perceptions of podcasting. The JAR breakdown looks at the study from the perspective of a marketer working with branded podcasts. Digiday Programmatic Selling Strategies: Navigating identity, deals and making the most of CTV and video. Thursday, November 16th, Digiday Editor-in-Chief Jim Cooper will host a virtual forum with marketing experts to discuss programmatic campaign strategies for 2024. The forum is produced in partnership with U of Digital and registration is free.Startup Series: Introduction to Podcast Advertising by Ossa Collective. On Wednesday, November 8th at 2:00 p.m. CST OSSA will host a live virtual event kicking off their ten-part series demystifying the world of podcast advertising.

Nov 2, 2023 • 4min
A Billion for Audioboom, Branded Podcast Directory, Marketers' Big November
Here's what you need to know for today in the business of podcasting: Sounds Profitable launches branded podcast directory in partnership with Lower Street by Reem MakariMarketers to spend most of holiday budgets in November: report by Alyssa MeyersIP addresses may not be the post-cookie data solution adtech wanted by Ryan Barwick …as for the rest of the news: Forrester Research finds CMOs are far less dour about Q4 than they were last year, Audioboom celebrates breaking one billion advertising impressions, and Tenderfoot TV acquires production company Resonate, the company behind the hit podcast Up and Vanished.

Nov 1, 2023 • 5min
Top September Podcast Advertisers, BBC Podcast Growth, Keeping Your Feed Fresh
Here's what you need to know for today in the business of podcasting: BetterHelp And Amazon Lead Monthly Ranking Of Top Podcast Advertisers. [Source]Radio beats TV: Audacy describes an audio blueprint for advertisers by Brad Hill [Source]BBC Sounds Quarter 3 2023 [Source]How podcast networks use existing feeds to improve engagement and discoverability for new shows by Sara Guaglione [Source]…as for the rest of the news: AdvertiseCast has published their average cost-per-thousand impressions for a sixty second podcast ad in October, and MarketingBrew covers the various Halloweeny activities advertisers got up to last month.

Nov 1, 2023 • 7min
Brands in Audio - A New Platform for Branded Podcasts
How big is the branded audio space? What’s the best way to find the top production companies, the brands they represent, and what categories are gaining the most traction in the branded podcast space? Brands in Audio.Written by Bryan BarlettaEdited by Tom WebsterAudio edited by Gavin GaddisHosted by ART19Sounds Profitable: Narrated Articles is a production of Sounds Profitable. For more information, visit soundsprofitable.com.

Oct 31, 2023 • 6min
GenZ Brand Recognition, Monitoring Apple Podcast Analytics, Spotify's Audiobook Evolution
Here's what you need to know for today in the business of podcasting: Gen Zers can recognize brands based solely on ‘sonic memes,’ report says by Alyssa MeyersAre my podcast downloads declining because of iOS 17? by Dan MisenerThe Smartest Decision Spotify Has Made In Years by Eric NuzumFor all its gains, podcasting still in early catch-up (IAB part 2) by Brad HillAs for the rest of the news… Digiday covers why Cirque du Soleil is leaning into influencer marketing (including a branded podcast from JAR Audio), a new forecast predicts TV ad viewership could fall 24% by 2027, and The New York Times’ Joy Robins appears on the Digiday podcast to discuss ad business, including the NYT returning to programmatic now that the industry has matured and given the company renewed confidence in the tools.