Study: Consumers Are Quite Positive About Podcasts

Sounds Profitable has released its largest study of podcasting to date, The Podcast Landscape in America. This study, released in partnership with audio research firm Signal Hill Insights, is a landmark new study of the barriers and opportunities related to growth in podcast consumption, conducted with a nationally representative online survey of over 2400 Americans 18+.

The key findings of this study include the following:

• "The Persuadables," a segment comprising nearly 10% of Americans 18+, are the biggest opportunity for growing new audience in podcasting. Persuadables over-index as female, 55+, and are very receptive to spoken word audio.

• Americans are overwhelmingly positive about podcasts as a medium, and the podcasters who create them. An equal percentage of Americans 18+ (44%) found podcasts to be "Entertaining," "Interesting," or "Informative," compared to 14% who indicated that podcasts were "Not for people like me." Additionally, 19% of all respondents agreed that making a podcast was "something I'd like to do."
• The leading cause for lapsed listening and churn with podcast audiences is perceived time constraints due to changes in work, lifestyle, or a return to pre-pandemic behavior. However, one of the main benefits offered by podcasts is time-shifted listening, which represents a real opportunity for the industry to reframe the medium as a time-saver, and not a time-consumer.

According to Sounds Profitable Partner Tom Webster, "Identifying 'The Persuadables' and the behavioral and demographic traits they share is one of the most satisfying pieces of research I've done in 18 years of looking at the space. The Podcast Landscape in America represents the first serious effort to segment non-listeners and flesh out the reasons why people do or do not spend more time with podcasting."

Signal Hill Insights Chief Insights Officer and Partner Paul Riismandel noted, "This is critical research for the podcast industry, and something I've wanted to see done for quite some time. It offers a guide for welcoming new audiences and enticing listeners to stay engaged with this dynamic medium."

The Podcast Landscape in America is based on an online survey of 2405 Americans, ages 18 and older. The data is weighted to the most recent US Census data demographics. The study was produced by Sounds Profitable and research partners Signal Hill Insights. The Podcast Landscape in America was made possible with the support of Audiohook, Barometer, BetterHelp, CoHost, ESPN Podcasts, Libsyn, Magellan AI,Paramount, PRX, and SXM Media.