How many podcast listens is ‘good’

42. The answer to the meaning of life, the universe and everything. That‘s a Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy joke but it might not be far off according to the latest data from OmnyStudio. “How many downloads of your podcast episode is respectable or at least on par with other creators?” It's a question that we've all asked at some point as the audio sector makes space for more audio on-demand products such as podcasts or listen-again radio.?

Well, a brave brand called?OmnyStudio?has attempted to answer our question. OmnyStudio is an Australian-based enterprise-level audio platform used by the likes of NewsUK and Monocle. They have a reasonably sized clientele which can offer respectable data. I won't spend time justifying or disclaiming their?Benchmarking?methodology. You can read more at the link if you’re so inclined. Also, shout out to Neil Cowling from Fresh Air Production for posting about this in February.

As I discuss OmnyStudio’s latest data blog (their third data report), consider RAJAR - the UK radio industry's quarterly listenership report. There is only so much we can truly glean from content measurement systems based on sampling. These can be affected by anything from sample size and calibration to environmental variables, including the time of year or part of the country responses are recorded. Measuring things can always be tricky. It's the difference between recording something as?accurate or precise?or both - a lesson from my Six Sigma days. The data however can give us a direction of travel (trends) and some idea of what is behind movements and changes that are 'statistically significant'. Commercially, statistics are significant. Advertisers, sponsors, commissioners, and publishers are in the business of numbers as well as content. Big facts.

Before I lose the 'artistic, creative' types reading this piece, I remind us that we are all now in a commercial industry. Even the public service worthiness attached to BBC commissions come at a price - the licence fee paid by the listener. Think of it as pre-paid content for which the public service publisher has to deliver value through its networks, like BBC Sounds. Otherwise, listeners could opt to send their money elsewhere. We are all in the numbers game.

Statistics and data in the emerging audio industry are guarded closer than the Crown Jewels. There are reasons for this - commercial sensitivity, competitive analysis, perceived talent effectiveness and many more. As frustrating as it, this secrecy can serve a greater purpose - audio as a value proposition. Comparative analysis, e.g. number of listeners vs. number of views, is a bit like comparing apples with chocolate. Audio as a medium for?converting potential customers?is still as strong it has ever been and has an outstanding return on investment compared to TV, billboard, print or cinema advertising.

That said, these figures from OmnyStudio can help us understand something about the nature of the expanding audio industry, at least as they see it. These three insights stood out for me (full data slide follows):

1. PODCASTS ARE DYING SLOWLY. Now I have your attention; globally, podcast listenership in the first 30 days of release is declining slightly. It isn't a surprise. There are more podcasts available: more titles on more platforms. So there's a lot more to consume at once. Listeners must choose what to listen to first and when to listen to the others. According to the data, they are maybe taking longer to get round to listening to new episodes. It’s like that Netflix series you haven’t gotten round to watching yet before another one comes out. How can this help creators? Think about our release schedule and promotional strategies - perhaps a box-set approach might be more appropriate if your podcast is narrative rather than a weekly release. Once you've got your listeners, keep them there rather than expecting them to return in seven days. Also, consider how and where you promote your podcast. Is it for everyone, or can you work harder to target a specific audience?

1. IT DOESN'T TAKE MUCH TO BE IN THE TOP 50% IN BRITAIN. The UK's Top 1% listeners figure has doubled since the same report last year. Great news. The sector is growing, and the top shows attract more listeners. The previous time OmnyStudio published download data, just 28 downloads in the first 30 days got you in the top 50%. That was only one listener a day. Now it’s about three listeners a day. It could also mean local (UK) competition has become more aggressive. Bear in mind, these figures won’t include titles on BBC Sounds. So many more people may be listening to podcasts in the UK, but there are limited available listening hours and a finite number of ears in a day. Retention, keeping hold of the listeners you are getting, has become as important as attracting them in the first place. What else can you offer your loyal listeners? Community management is becoming more critical, and keeping an eye on the trends could be the difference between making it and not. Especially as the numbers are still manageable - in the 100s and 1000s. In business theory, you stay alive by both making a healthy profit AND efficiently managing your costs. Only so far can you get by doing one of those things. The same goes for podcasting: yes, reach new listeners and find effective ways of keeping hold of the ones you already have (Audience Retention - topic for a future blog).

1. THE MONEY IS IN AMERICA. The US is still a beast in the sector. As well as the numbers here, the projections for?revenues from podcast advertising?are in the Yanks' favour. We are optimistically looking at $67.5M in ad revenues compared to about $2.57B for the United States by the end of 2024. I've heard, 'it's because the US spends more money on podcasts' (true) or 'it's because there are fewer podcasts in the UK' (nearly true). Yes, the US spends more. I recently costed up a project with a US team, and it would have been equally as expensive to take a UK production team to Oklahoma for three weeks. That said, that's what they cost over there. Over here, our costs align with what the BBC deems reasonable for our roles and artificially suppress the market labour price (Economics 101). That's not the entire story, though. Despite the cost of production being almost two-thirds more of what you would pay elsewhere, US platforms dominate the market and have matured. Meaning they work hard at attracting an audience and retaining it. I've seen very few budgets without a significant marketing spend and nothing under $150K for an audio narrative or documentary format. Producers and IP owners also know that if you're going to get the best value out of your investment, you must make the most of your spending. That’s at the top end. To make top 50% is only about double that in the UK. The listener gap for the majority of creators is not that big on either side of the Atlantic.

You might have notice that all three points are labelled 1. That’s because depending on what’s important to you either of these could be YOUR priority. You’re welcome. It’s my sense of humour.

Despite OmnyStudio being a more bespoke player in the podcast space, they have used a savvy tactic to cut through. They are sharing data, something the rest of the industry has been relatively shy about. I don't doubt that some of us have already clicked on the link at the blog's beginning to see what they do. It's one tactic to help grow your business in a competitive space. The same applies to creators; how can we stand out in creating businesses? In May, we will discuss these things in AudioUK's?London Podcast Show?session. Join us for more.