So the five senses, right? Taste, touch, smell, sight, and hearing.

Four of those have one thing in common; they’re much easier to suppress. Don’t want to taste something? Easy, don’t eat it. You can close your eyes, you can plug your nose when your partner is preparing broccoli, and you can keep your hands glued to yourself.

But you can’t shut off your ears. This, in the advertising world, is known as an intrusive quality. It’s also known as one of the most valuable traits of any copy or campaign, and a core reason audio marketing has been so dominant - and will continue to be.

To truly grasp why, let’s delve into intrusiveness and how it permeates audio mediums. Additionally, we’ll explore the respective techniques, power, and how a small-to-medium business can best harness them.

Audio: Immense Popularity from Convenience.

Driving, doing squats, cooking dinner, doing dishes, walking the dog, studying, mowing the lawn. These form merely the tip of the iceberg of the things people commonly do while listening.

You can’t really perform these activities while watching, or scrolling, or reading. They simply are not as portable or convenient. And that is the exclusive & intrusive power audio possesses, making its advertisements the most gluey of any medium.

So, by audio in 2023, what exactly do we mean? What are the types of audio that advertisers can thrive in?

Radio Advertising

Ah yes, the century-plus old, most effective medium for top-of-mind awareness and loyal listenership.

it’s almost en vogue to dismiss radio as a dying format. To suggest that, though, is to also dismiss data like this - 95% of Americans listen to terrestrial radio in a week! 95%! We’re in the most expansive ocean of content availability in human history. And 95% listenership signifies a dying platform?!

Likely the biggest anchor of radio’s popularity is its local feel, something very few podcasts really pull off (more on those coming up). And while people cherish their podcast hosts, it’s to a lesser extent than the radio hosts who actually live in and support the same exact community. They’re practically friends by proxy, instead of a more indirect host-to-listener relationship.

In case you’re still doubtful, don’t take our word on radio’s ability, take a look at these studies:

• At $69.64 billion presently, it’s anticipated that the global radio station market will reach $81.93 billion in 2026.

• Baby boomers love radio, as the medium reaches 41.2 million of their demographic.

• 55% of Gen Z (ages 13-24) listens to radio. And we were told it’s nothing but TikTok for them!

Podcasts

Remember when people had to question what a podcast was?! How the times have changed.

According to the Infinite Dial 2021 report by Edison Research and Triton Digital, an estimated 80 million Americans listen to podcasts on a weekly basis. This is an increase from 75 million in 2020 and 62 million in 2019. In terms of gender, podcast listenership is split almost evenly between men and women, making it a balanced safe haven for advertisers.

Podcasts also boast a quality that television or print advertising lack: a host/spokesperson people love and trust. This adds such value to a testimonial, compared to almost all others and their lack personal connection and vouching.

Testimonials exist elsewhere though, and with a much greater history as well - that would be radio.

Streaming

Streaming is the convergence of the aforementioned mediums of radio and podcasts. To say it has exploded is an understatement.

According to a report by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), in 2020, streaming was responsible for 83% of the music industry's revenue in the United States, up from 80% in 2019. So much for that epic vinyl comeback, huh?

Within the convenience of audio, is the absurd convenience of streaming, only enhanced by annual advancements in technology like 5G. As this sort of progress should only continue, so should advertisers’ ambition to be heard on not just the airwaves or podcatchers, but the streaming hubs to boot.

Audio Marketing for Your Small Business.

Audio realms can be massive, and maybe your payroll isn’t able to support advertising on a podcast with 5 million listeners spanning a baker’s dozen time zones. Of course, there’s simply not a better alternative than passionate, original, local radio, which just happens to be Iliad Media Group’s signature skill. No, really, just ask Nielsen.

We have the most engaged listeners around, with the best stations to boot. It’s that simple, and know what’s even simpler? Having a chat with us to learn how to reach the audience that’s perfect for your business or service.