Did Podcasting Lose Its Hype? What To Expect In 2023
It's safe to say that podcasting became the modern generation's version of radio broadcasting. Its popularity increased tremendously since the mid-2010s to the point where it went from being a fad to having its own award show circuit. However, the honeymoon stage that many consumers had with podcasting may just be over.
In a Jan 4, 2023, Bloomberg article by Ashley Carman and Lucas Shaw, they covered how some of the industry giants are now pulling back on spending due to the possibility of weakening audio sales and the economy. Some of the media giants in that sector such as Amazon Music, Spotify, and Sirus XM are having their individual reasons as to why they're showing less investment in podcasting.
The chief content officer of Sirus MX, Scott Greenstein, told Bloomberg that the company still feels "very good" about the podcast realm and plans to grow it even further next year with the launch of several shows.
With so many shows out and so many good shows out there, it can get tougher and tougher for shows to break through the oversaturated field like every other aspect of content creation.
Here are some harsh predictions and some pros that can come out of this possible plateau in the podcast realm.
The Bad
Creators will get even less of the dollars advertisers are spending as the big companies try to make back some of the money they poured into what they consider their more significant celebrity-led acquisitions.
Not only will upfronts be smaller, but so will the revenue shares.
Professional podcasters will need to learn how to effectively spend marketing money on their shows as networks spend less and less on the shows they don't consider high priority (their big celebrity-led shows).
The branded podcast market will slow down due to the over-saturation of companies making them and fewer budget dollars for brands to create them. Brands will also want more accountability and stats on how their shows are doing.
THE GOOD (What podcasters would hope to see)
More brands spending money directly with established shows on cross-platform campaigns.
More money coming from YouTube.
Shows leaving the bigger platforms for smaller networks who will spend time with them and give them the attention they deserve.
Less attention is given to the shiny new podcasts and more to the solid professional podcasts out there.
Feel free to let us know what you think by tweeting me or @theMSQshop on Twitter.
Written by: Jay Guevara. @justinhispriem on all social media.
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