To welcome back our Lunch & Learn sessions in 2024, our team had the pleasure of hosting Etienne Roy, Director of Digital Content and Platforms at Quebecor Media's Qub Radio. We had a great time discussing an engaging topic: "Podcasts as a means of advertising". Etienne shared loads of insights about this emerging approach.
So, in short, what did we learn?
First, we learned that the podcast became what it is now because of Steve Jobs in 2005! His idea of podcasting as the next generation of radio was already clear, as evidenced by the fact that in 2023 alone, over 21 million years of streaming were listened to in the US.
We've also realized that podcasts have become a fertile environment for advertisements, and this trend is only going to grow. They can be added either before or during the podcast, and each platform controls distribution based on the goals of the campaign while offering incredibly thorough reports on listener engagement.
And, guess what? Podcast advertising is less likely to be disregarded than radio or television commercials because they are brief and nicely incorporated into the content. The most effective advertisements are those that feel completely natural in the podcast, with a calm, informative tone, as if they are simply part of the broadcast. It's even better when the host discusses it!
In addition, we discovered that podcasts are popular in Quebec. A third of francophones are hooked, particularly those aged 18 to 44. These people are often well-educated and make a good living. They spend an average of four hours every week listening to their favorite podcasts.
Oh, and Spotify? The indisputable king of podcasting! They're the champions in terms of listening and distribution.
In conclusion, this Lunch & Learn was quite beneficial and provided us with numerous ideas for our future advertising initiatives.
Illustration & infographic - Gregg Dellarocca, Propoint Designer
