Report:The Podcast Audience Is Maturing

This week, Westwood One examines the role of new technologies in the audio experience with the release of the Westwood One 2019 Audioscape Report. The report examines the podcast and smart speaker consumer, listener and user trends, podcast consumption among smart speaker users, and marketer and agency sentiment for advertising in podcasts and smart speaker environments.

Here are a few of the key findings on podcasting and smart speakers:

• The podcast audience is maturing: median age advances from 29 in 2017 to 35 in 2018. According to Edison Research’s “Share of Ear” report, the podcasting median age has aged by six years from 29 in Q4 2017 to 35 in Q4 2018, still younger than AM/FM radio (46) and broadcast television networks (56).
• Podcast listeners are far more engaged and 1.5X more attentive than social media audiences. According to a study from the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), listeners report higher levels of concentration while listening to podcasts than for most other online activities including social media use.
• Podcasting is the only media where learning and entertainment coexist. The attractive podcasting environment represents a unique opportunity for brands to get their message heard by a receptive and engaged audience.
• Smart speaker ownership has tripled in 2 years. According to The Infinite Dial 2019 report, 23% of Americans own a smart speaker.
• Smart speakers are being adopted across generations: 35-54 is the largest ownership group. While Millennials are slightly more likely than the U.S. population to own a smart speaker, Gen Xers (adults between the ages of 35 and 54) represent the largest segment of smart speaker owners (38%).
• AM/FM radio use is strong among smart speaker owners. Smart speaker owners spend the same amount of time each day with AM/FM radio as total 18+ U.S. consumers. AM/FM radio delivers a higher than average daily reach among smart speaker owners.