IAB Australia today released the 3rd wave of its Audio Advertising State of the Nation Report. The Report, which covers broadcast radio, streaming digital audio, DAB+ and podcasts, is a truly collaborative industry project with support from 13 different media and technology companies as well as industry body Commercial Radio Australia.
The headline finding for the report was 87% of agencies used streaming audio advertising in 2018 and that brand advertisers embraced podcast advertising in 2018 in Australia. Additionally, the report found that there is a strong appetite in market to try dynamic audio creative development to make the most of the data and targeting capability of streaming and programmatic audio and provide more relevant and better ad experiences for consumers. The industry’s understanding of voice marketing was also found to be improving, though the report found that it’s still currently at a low level of adoption.
Other headlines include:
The experience and understanding of digital audio advertising in the Australian market is continuing to grow. Streaming audio was regularly bought by more than six out of 10 media buyers through 2018, while more than eight out of ten media buyers bought streaming audio;
Podcast and DAB+ advertising had the greatest traction in 2018;
20% of media buyers regularly bought podcast advertising in 2018 – up from 14% in 2017; a further in 4 in 10 buyers experimented with podcast ads in 2018 and an additional 28% are looking to try for the first time in 2019;
The introduction of new ad placements and creative formats have continued to gain traction with media buyers. Dynamic audio creative is of particular in interest, nearly a quarter of buyers have used this so far but a further 57% are looking to recommend dynamic audio creative development for clients in 2019;
The number of agencies using programmatic buying for audio has increased slightly in the last 12 months however major growth is expected for programmatic guaranteed arrangements with expectations that this will grow from 37% to 47% in 2019;
50% of podcast ad investors have used the format to meet brand awareness goals versus just 12% of buyers using it for direct response campaigns. This differs considerably with the US experience where direct response is the primary goal;
Voice marketing hit the radar for the first time in 2018 with 9% of buyers already active in this space and it is emerging as a strategy for consideration through 2019;
70% of media buyers intend to invest in cross platform (broadcast and digital) opportunities from radio networks;
Although 75% of agencies are either planning &/or buying their radio and streaming audio inventory through a joint team, the 25% of agencies that still have separate functions for this has remained the same since the last wave of research 12 months ago; and
While brand safety is less of a concern for most audio formats compared to other media options, agencies are aware that this needs to be on their radar more with podcasts due to the variety of content in market.
The Report notes four key areas the industry should focus on over the next twelve months as highlighted by respondents. These are:
1. Cross platform and cross media measurement
2. Demonstrating effectiveness
3. Education on programmatic audio
4. Showcasing creativity.
Gai Le Roy, IAB CEO commented “Streaming audio is now cemented as part of the commercial media market and we are pleased to release the third wave of this important industry audio research to help the audio market thrive in 2019. IAB will continue to invest in research projects such as this to provide the market with objective market wide data.”
Richard Palmer, co-chair of the IAB Audio Council and Director of Market Development at Triton Digital said: “With 13.8m Australians streaming audio content on their digital devices in December 2018, the media community is continuing to increase their investment in streaming ad opportunities as well as starting to embrace the commercial opportunities that podcasting is bringing to the market.”
Thirteen organisations participated in this project including ABC, ARN, Commercial Radio Australia, Eardrum, Macquarie Media Limited, Nova Entertainment, Omny Studio, Rubicon Project, Southern Cross Austereo, Spotify, The Trade Desk, Acast, Triton Digital and Whooshkaa.
The research was conducted by Hoop Group in December 2018.
The full report will be available at www.iabaustralia.com.au
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About the Interactive Advertising Bureau
The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) Limited www.iabaustralia.com.au is the peak trade association for online advertising in Australia. As one of over 43 IAB offices globally and with a rapidly growing membership, the role of the IAB is to support sustainable and diverse investment in digital advertising across all platforms in Australia.
The IAB Industry Charter, which was announced in October 2018, details the organisation’s focus on helping marketers and agencies understand how digital advertising can deliver on their business objectives. Foundation elements of the IAB Industry Charter include a renewed focus on standards that promote trust, steps to reduce friction in the ad supply chain; and ultimately improve ad experiences for consumers, advertisers and publishers.
Beyond the IAB’s continued focus on content and ad measurement, the Charter outlines four additional areas of activity: digital ad effectiveness, data and data privacy; standards and guidelines; and improving the digital value chain.