Internet Radio advertising

Two weeks ago a press release announcing the results of a buried the lead. While its headline indicated a 45% jump in Ad Agency interest in digital video, the interest in “streaming/online radio saw a 53% increase.” There is no doubt that interest in video advertising is growing, but we can also see that Internet Radio is emerging from the novelty stage. It is becoming an important tool for reaching consumers.

At XAPP, we are interested in why agencies and advertisers are increasingly turning their attention and budgets toward Internet radio. The data paints a story with a few items that casual observers often find surprising.

Earbud and Headphone Proliferation: 100 Million Consumers

Data from suggests that over 124 million consumers are listening to Internet Radio each month and 100 million on mobile devices. These listeners also tend to listen for long periods of time and with high frequency due to the convenience of mobile.

In the past, radio listening would be interrupted when a consumer left the home or arrived at their destination and parked the car. Today, consumers are taking that audio content from the car into the workplace without a break. They also are consuming audio on public transportation, on the street, in the gym and while doing housework. Mobile devices have made audio an always-available content medium. This fact is a key reason why Edison also cited in the 2014 Infinite Dial Report that online radio listening now averages over 13 hours per week.

The key takeaway here: agencies and advertisers are turning to Internet radio because it now commands a large audience that devotes a lot of time each week to the medium. Advertising spend tends to be a lagging indicator, but it eventually shifts to the channels where consumers spend time. According to eMarketer estimates, Internet radio ad spending increased 26.3% in 2013. This appears to reinforce the STRATA findings.

Radio Ads are Spotlighted and Not Abandoned

A long-standing benefit of radio ads is what many refer to as the Spotlight. You only hear one radio ad at a time. Unlike visual display advertising, radio ads do not compete for consumer attention with three other simultaneous offers on the screen. Nor do radio ads compete for attention with the core content since they are served between audio content segments. That spotlight means consumer attention is not distracted and the ad commands center stage.