Advertisers and brands are leaving a significant amount of super impactful reach and brand awareness on the table. You’ve guessed it, I’m talking about audio advertising. Remember the early days of Facebook, when you could reach thousands of audiences for ridiculously low costs? Now are the days of the audio momentum.
According to WARC (World Advertising Research Center), there is a big gap between time spent with audio and its ad spend, as only a fraction of the overall marketing budget is spent compared to other media. Audio is an under-utilized opportunity, and that’s going to change.
In 2021, digital audio advertising captured the highest YoY growth with an increase of 57.9% to the tune of $4.9 billion in the U.S. alone. No other digital advertising channel grew faster. What’s more, gains were twice that of display advertising. Globally, the entire segment is projected to reach $6.78 billion by the end of the year.
Why audio?
Audio advertising works amazingly well due to its inherently intimate and immersive nature. It easily leverages storytelling so people don’t feel like they are being bombarded with promotional messages as is the case with other media.
Data shows that audio is the most immersive media that triggers memorability, trust and connection (yes, ahead of video). It’s also widely considered trustworthy across the spectrum — trusted more than other media sources.
Digital audio ads generate more engagement and emotional activation than other forms of media. A study by Spotify and Neuro-Insight found that digital audio was more likely to engage long-term memory for both details and memories, as well as increase emotional intensity — more than radio, TV, social media or digital video.
A recent study discovered that ad engagement climbs with each audio exposure across industry categories, platforms and genres. Even after 10 or more exposures within a week, the immersive experience grew without erosion, making every audio impression count.
So, exposing audiences to audio messages consistently offers major benefits in brand equity and sales. As immersion increases with additional ad exposures, so do purchase consideration and positive brand opinion. This is more proof that audio is a very effective tool when it comes to driving people through the funnel and pulling them closer to the point of purchase. Furthermore, the strong emotional impact and drive to take action have a universal appeal, too, when it comes to different platforms and devices.
For example, around half of smart speaker owners are likely to respond positively to advertising through these devices, according to the 2022 Smart Audio Report from NPR and Edison Research. Of those who have heard ads on a smart speaker, 53% said they would respond, while 48% said they respond better to smart speaker ads compared to hearing an ad in another place and would likely consider the brand in question.