Apple. Spotify. iHeartRadio. YouTube. TV. Tablet. Phone. In your car. On your phone. At your desk. In the conversation around the lunch table at work – podcasts are everywhere. In a meeting with co-workers. In discussions with your conspiracy-theorist-loving uncle. When you bump into that old acquaintance from high school. And everywhere in between. Literally, everywhere.
In a world that eats, sleeps and breathes content 24 hours a day, seven days a week, podcasts are the IV feed directly providing us the essentials we need – digitally (of course). News, entertainment, a high range of emotions, insights, motivation, inspiration, education and much more. There’s something for everyone.
In 2024, podcast listening more than quadrupled, accounting for 11% of daily time with audio. 23% of podcast listeners spend 10 hours or more listening in one week. Emarketer reports that 32% of people who listen actively consider podcasts their number-one audio choice. Not only are more people listening, they are doing so loyally. According to Edison research, 46% of weekly listeners have purchased a product or service as a result of being exposed to ads on their favorite podcasts.
Podcast advertising spend is projected to hit the $3.9 billion mark by the year 2026, which is up almost 130% from the year 2020 and up 56% from 2024. Traditional AM/FM radio, which has been the darling for audio advertising for years, is seeing the opposite. Projections show decreases in spend expected over the next four years, making way for more dollars to spend on podcasts.
We’ve entered the prime years of podcasting. While turning on a microphone and capturing audio to release to the world is no new concept, the world of podcasts has really come into its own since 2020.
Due to COVID, podcasts became a new avenue for everyday folks like you and me to connect with the outside world. Whether it was learning a new hobby, catching up with our favorite celebrities, keeping up with the news or completely distracting ourselves from the outside world with true crime, we all leaned into the audio world.
That’s where I come in.
I’m a Digital Media Strategist who plans media for the likes of local, regional and national brands – including buying podcasts. What makes me more equipped to write about the world of podcasting is I also practice it as a hobby (and as a business owner).
When I’m not planning Digital Media campaigns, I moonlight as a Podcast Host and Network Director, covering the booming local sports scene in Louisville, Ky. – with five original shows. My podcasting days began in 2018, but 2020 is when things really took a turn. Much like other podcasters, I saw an opportunity to create specialized content that listeners were so desperate to consume while providing my business with a sustainable revenue stream.
As a planner and podcaster (Planner & The Podcaster is a great podcast name…), I’m here to take you through some of the big trends happening in the space.
No. 1 – Re-watch and Watch-along Podcasts
A growing trend in Hollywood podcasting has been the re-watch and watch-along podcasts. If you’re a big TV watcher, maybe you’re familiar with sitcom podcasts like The Office Ladies, Fake Doctors, Real Friends and others that have become insanely popular over the last five years.
Re-watch podcasts focus on hit shows that have been off the air for some time and are hosted by famous crew members of the programming. In most cases, the podcasts go show by show, reliving each episode by diving into the details of what happened on and off air that fans may not know. Jenna Fischer (Pam Beesley); Zach Braff (Dr. John “J.D.” Dorian); Brian Baumgartner (Kevin Malone); Zooey Deschanel; and Jim O’Heir (Jerry Gergich) are just a few names from the re-watch catalog who have brought back their famous shows to podcast audiences.
Rewatch shows bring fans closer to the characters they fell in love with while personalizing them in a real-life way the actual show couldn’t. As Jenny Romanchuk of Hubspot wrote, “Rewatch podcasts and all this nostalgia stuff are hot because they let us revisit happy memories.” Jenna Fischer giving direct insight into what Pam Beasley said or did during an iconic episode of “The Office” provides a level of context unmatched.
I love this trend and hope it’s here to stay.
No. 2 – Watching Podcasts via YouTube
Listening to a podcast is great, but watching a podcast is even better. Visual content complementing and highlighting a released audio podcast has helped connect new audiences to shows for the last several years.
I’m convinced more and more people consuming video correlates to more and more people consuming podcasts.
A study shared by Forbes found that one-third of the audience they deemed “weekly podcast listeners” indicated YouTube was where they started listening to a new podcast. That data point was nearly double the next closest competitor – Apple. The New York Times wrote that “16 of the top 30 podcasts in the final quarter of 2023 were available as filmed videos, compared with just seven of the top 30 from that same period two years earlier.”
Video is king, and podcasts won’t be around long if they don’t adapt to offer both visual and audio content. Look no further than The Joe Rogan Experience to hammer that home. Not only was the show rated the #1 comedy show on Spotify, its top 10 most-watched episodes (featuring the likes of Elon Musk, Aaron Rodgers and other controversial figures) accounted for almost 400 million views alone.
Seeing is believing – with the content and with advertising. Video offers the ability to capture that and share across highly visited platforms like YouTube, giving fans more exposure to podcasts and giving podcasters exposure to new, interested audiences.
No. 3 – Go Viral, Launch a Podcast
In my opinion, Hailey Welch is synonymous with the problems most people have with podcasts: 1) There’s too many, and EVERYONE has one. 2) You don’t actually have to be interesting to host a podcast.
If you’re not familiar with Hailey Welch, she’s a 21-year-old who went viral for giving a rather unique answer on a street-interview video segment. Since then, she’s generated over 18 million views and most recently signed a huge podcast deal with another famous influencer, Jake Paul, and launched “Talk Tuah.”
That deal, which pays her hundreds of thousands of dollars to record a weekly show, has launched her into another level of internet fame – with an opportunity to present “sticking power.” Unlike most people who rise to fame via a viral internet moment, she capitalized on her earning potential.
My problem doesn’t lie with capitalizing on the moment. Welch and plenty of others have every right to keep pushing the envelope to build their names – just like I do with my podcasts. I have a bigger problem with podcasts being a tool in the proverbial tool belt for helping viral sensations stay viral.
Sure, some people may find these shows and YouTube videos interesting and worth listening to, but they predominantly show podcasting can be done by anyone, anywhere. And that’s not always a good thing.
No. 4 – Host-Created Ads
How do podcasts make money? Putting back on my Podcast Producer hat, I’ll tell you – it’s really freaking hard. Advertising and revenue generation for the non-Hollywood-produced podcasts is hard to come by – only a select few ever make it. Thanks to technological updates and enhancements in the podcasting space, dynamic ad placements are giving small fish more opportunities than ever before to find cash flow. Even in 2024 with programmatic advertising and mass audio buying, the live read on podcasts is still king.
Before programmatic podcast advertising, podcasts were monetized by working with brands directly. In true broadcast form, inventory mostly was made up of live ad reads, naming rights and other in-show activations. Even today, data from Market.US shows the majority of advertising spend in this space is direct ad reads or supplied advertising across numerous digital channels.
Personalization of live reads and connecting the brand to the desired audience is what makes podcasts different. Native ads (ads placed within the content) and baked-in activations (live reads, segment sponsorship, logos on videos, product placement) seamlessly present brands in ways that make them feel like lifestyle choices – that correspond with the show’s values and beliefs.
Dynamic pre-roll, mid-roll and post-roll are the new shiny toys – with $320 million in spend expected by 2026. Programmatic brand buying offers an exciting way to reach podcast listeners en masse and should be explored within larger streaming audio buys. But live reads are the steady companion that separates the good from the great when it comes to brands standing out in a competitive landscape.
No. 5 – The Podcast Election
Never in a million years would I have thought a U.S presidential candidate would go on All the Smoke (we’ll get to this shortly), but in 2025, anything is possible.
During the 2024 election cycle, both Presidential nominees conducted interviews on notable podcasts – an interesting new trend in the world of politics. These generated millions of views and downloads, drove hundreds of thousands more views and engagement, and generated influence on the outcome of the election.
It wasn’t just political podcasts or even news-affiliated podcasts. As mentioned, Harris appeared on a popular basketball podcast hosted by former NBA athletes Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson, as well as popular shows like Call Her Daddy.
Trump made stops on Bussin with The Boys – a predominantly football-based podcast – Full Send and Six Feet Under, as well as the Lex Fridman Podcast, hosted by an MIT computer scientist known for controversial topics and guests. The former President went even further, appearing on a live stream with Adin Ross, as well as arguably the biggest podcast in America – The Joe Rogan Experience. That episode alone has been viewed over 53 million times on YouTube.
Over the course of just a few weeks leading up to the election, the candidates showed two different strategies. Donald Trump appeared on 14 podcasts that were viewed 124 million times on YouTube. Kamala Harris on the other hand went on five podcasts that accrued 4 million views. Is it a coincidence that Trump won the election based on that? It could be. But it also shows the power of podcasts. These were all booked and scheduled for two reasons. Influence and access to millions of people at one microphone. Podcasts have influence because the listeners are figuratively and literally in the palm of the hosts’ hands. Expect more politicians appearing on podcasts in 2025.
Bonus – Athlete-Generated Content
(College and Professional Sports)
Thanks to freakish athleticism and skill beyond measure, athletes are who they are thanks to their success on the court, field, etc. They are forever remembered for their accomplishments and feats. However, sports don’t define them. And major changes have occurred recently despite the media controlling player narratives for years. No longer does an athlete need to go on a local radio program or national talk show. They just need a few mics, a mixer and a camera to record their own content their own way, controlling their message from start to finish.
Gilbert Arenas, a 3x NBA All-Star who earned over $160 million on the court, was one of the pioneers in this space, along with current Los Angeles Lakers Head Coach JJ Redick. Gil’s Arena along with The Old Man & The Three (JJ Redick), All the Smoke (Matt Barnes/Stephen Jackson), Club Shay Shay (Shannon Sharpe) and New Heights (Jason and Travis Kelce) have paved the way for thousands of shows hosted by athletes.
Draymond Green (NBA), Paul George (NBA), Micah Parsons (NFL) and Angel Reese (WNBA) are just a handful of athletes who have successful recurring podcasts. All of them have been able to master the art of building a successful brand as athletes AND cultivating the masses. Whether they are talking about recent games or world events, these athletes are creating new vehicles for storytelling and access in a world that thrives on just that.
This has a trickle-down effect as well, with athlete-generated content being a new revenue source in the Wild Wild West that is Name, Image and Likeness in college athletics. N.I.L collectives and athletes are working together to create buzz and viral clips for social media while providing unfiltered access for fans.
With athletes now able to capitalize on their popularity and star power, we’re seeing new revenue streams and communication/content outlets being created. Mirroring the rest of the content and influencer industries, podcasts are another tool in the toolkit to grow a brand, communicate with a loyal audience and share first-person accounts of the world around them.
What are you waiting for?
Imagine reaching over 138 million potential customers while they’re deeply engaged in content they love. That’s the power of podcasts in 2025.
Whether you’re responsible for brand decisions or just a curious content explorer – dive in with us at Doe-Anderson. We’re experts when it comes to helping brands find their ways into the world of podcasting and podcast advertising to connect with listeners and potential customers.
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