of Your Brand

Posted by Maddie Shaw
Senior Account Executive

We’re listening to more digital audio than ever, posing a key question to marketers: “What does my brand sound like?”

The explosion of smart speakers, along with the growing popularity and accessibility of podcasts and audio streaming apps such as Spotify and iHeartRadio, are pushing brands to think harder about audio.

There’s no doubt that audio is trending right now. We’re living in a moment that Pandora is calling the audio renaissance, listening to more content on our smart devices more often than ever, presenting brands with new opportunities to focus on their audio strategy and consider, “What does my brand sound like?” 

Last year, Forbes named podcasts and audio content among its ‘Top 15 Social Media Trends to Try Out in 2019″. They cited this content’s ability to engage users at a more profound level, with listeners becoming increasingly involved in what they’re consuming and leaning deeper into this content. 

However, many people consider 2019 just a warm-up, predicting that in 2020 there will be a proliferation of even more audio content, fuelled by technology and the emergence of the 5G connectivity network. According to the Infinite Dial Survey, weekly listening to online audio streaming services such as Spotify saw an eight percent increase in weekly listening between 2018 and 2019, with an average user consuming 2.6 hours of Spotify content per day. 

But we aren’t changing our daily routines to make room for audio. 

A huge amount of audio is consumed when we’re doing other things, from cooking to commuting. The flexibility of streaming audio as we move is what enables us, as consumers, to match the feel of each moment to a personalized soundtrack, allowing brands to tap into the current mood of their consumers as they work, travel, exercise or eat.

Not only do we search for soundtracks to align with our emotions, we expect Spotify to know us well enough to predict what we want at every moment, based on previous our listening habits. Naturally, streamers are more receptive and open to discovery in these moments, as we search for artists and playlists to match our current vibe. Studies show that audio ads can drive up to 68% lift in ad recall, and 18% increase in purchase intent. However, it’s the role of the brand to strike the perfect balance between impact and relevance.

Digital audio platforms are fast reaching maturity, and are building more human connection with their consumers than ever before. Streaming platforms aren’t just continuing to grow; they’re becoming more diversified and engrained in our daily lives, further proving that digital audio isn’t just “on trend”, but is now, in fact, fundamental to the modern marketing mix.