Technology is evolving the way we listen to music and audio programs, from streaming on Pandora, Spotify, and SoundCloud, to listening to our favorite podcasts. Not only can these services be used on computers, but we can take them everywhere with us via our smartphones and other connected devices; staying in our own world with headphones, plugging into our cars, linking to a Bluetooth speaker to share with friends, or even playing music through our refrigerator doors. Now, as a business, you have the ability to target your customers on these platforms with programmatic audio advertising.

Digital audio is growing quickly, proving that programmatic audio is a smart decision to add to an advertising buy. Just within the first half of 2017, usage of these streaming services grew 42% over the previous year. While there are many ways to reach customers within the digital realm – from video to banner advertising – the value of programmatic audio is understanding it is more than simply reaching customers. The biggest value is knowing that when your ad is playing, it is yours alone, and it can’t be skipped to listen to something else. In video, users may be provided with a “skip ad” option, and a banner ad has to typically share the page with numerous other ads, all vying for valuable attention.

Although other forms of digital advertising are still dominating, like online video, getting your message onto audio-streaming platforms now gets your business ahead of the game. It is easy to draw the comparison between traditional radio advertising and digital audio, but the two have their differences. Typical FM radio stations can be useful for reaching a broader audience, perhaps with some slight targeting based on the type of music or shows on the station. However, digital audio opens up your campaign to many more possibilities. Advertising to audio-streaming customers works just like typical programmatic display campaigns, targeting towards the specific audience you want based on chosen demographics. The most successful campaigns will be based off of what you already know about your current customers, but you can also utilize the targeting to grow your business’ brand with a new demographic. You know your message is being played to those you want to hear it, bringing more value to your spend than simply casting a wide net to everyone hoping to catch the attention of a few listeners.

The ability to use programmatic audio advertising is a fairly new opportunity, but it is the perfect time to get involved as more and more users make streaming services their go-to music and podcast players. If you are ready to add this new piece to you digital advertising campaigns, or have more questions about programmatic audio advertising, contact us today!

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