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I had a client ask me about this Anchor article, How People Listen to Podcasts. Instead of keeping them private, I wanted to share them here as well.
First, either search the article “How People Listen to Podcasts” on Anchor’s medium page.
The article features a chart front and center that represents consumption across Anchor’s entire catalog for the month of September 2018.
First, I want to suggest you take the data with a grain of salt- as one data point from many. Each podcasting media host is geared towards a particular target market and the data found on Anchor doesn’t necessarily represent the data found on Libsyn, Simplecast, or Megaphone.
Some Noteworthy Points
- Apple Podcast (iTunes) represents 52% of the listenership. I’m not surprised. They have been the longtime dominant player in the market for pretty much the existence of podcasting.
- Spotify is gaining stream, and rightfully so. It was just revealed at the time of my recording this that Spotify is acquiring podcast production agency Gimlet Media and media host Anchor.fm. That’s crazy. Basically, they are going all in our podcasting. I will include more links in the show notes.
- Google Podcasts is tiny but has great potential. Google has finally started making (overdue) strides in the podcast space and it focused on the Android-user space. Only time will tell if Google Podcasts will be successful or the next Google Plus.
So what should you, the podcaster, think of this?
- Podcasting is not going anywhere. The space has seen positive year-to-year growth since 2013 yet the market saturation is still small compared to radio and other mediums.
- Pay attention to your own analytics and what your target audience is doing and saying. They are your lifeblood. Give them priority.
- Focus on making the best show you can. On one hand, don’t be afraid to start your show. You need to begin somewhere. However, make sure you’re producing the best possible show for your existing skill level. Podcasts continue to improve as the industry grows and as a result, many will not stand out compared to the ones being professionally produced.
Additional Links about Spotify