Thought Leadership: In Podcasts we Trust

Trust in podcast content also has a halo effect on the adverts themselves – and therefore on a brand’s bottom line, writes Sophie Harding

Podcasts have been around for well over a decade now, but it’s only in the last few years that they’ve really entered the mainstream. And now that they’ve found their groove, growth is sky-rocketing; in the UK alone, a staggering nine million people now listen to a podcast every week, up from approximately 6 million just last summer.

So, what does the ascendancy of podcasts mean for the wider media landscape? Could it pose a credible threat to more established broadcast channels, including TV, radio, Out-of-Home and print?

Answering this question requires a deeper understanding of why podcasts have been able to capture the public’s attention, what the future of the medium could hold and, crucially, what role brands will play in charting its course.

The trust trick – why do podcasts resonate?

Recent research we conducted into the popularity of podcasts found that they were particularly appealing to a younger demographic. Amongst 18-34 year olds, for example, there was an reported uptake of 61%.

Crucially, this audience isn’t just engaging with the medium – they trust it too. Over half of this segment stated that they trust podcast hosts more than traditional TV or radio presenters, and 47% say this means that they trust the information they hear on podcasts too.

There could be several reasons for this, although the primary driver is likely to be that – by their very nature – podcasts deliver more intimate engagement than other broadcast mediums. With an absence of visual elements, the listener can focus exclusively on what is being said.

Podcast users also typically listen alone, making it seem as though they are being spoken to personally by the host(s) or party to a private discussion. In this way, the information is more likely to resonate with the listener on a personal level.

Sophie Harding is Futures Director, Mindshare UK

Read the full report in Mediatel