Despite improvements in podcast advertising that have made it easier to buy ads through programmatic channels, buyers are slow to adopt true programmatic podcast buying through a demand-side platform, according to buyers who spoke with Digiday.\u00a0<\/p>\n
There are a variety of reasons for this: host-read ads are still king in the medium, not all podcast networks or shows have inventory available to buy programmatically, and buyers often feel the need to vet the content to ensure contextual alignment when targeting specific audience segments or category verticals across a number of podcast networks.<\/p>\n
However, while some buyers have little to no interest in buying ads through a DSP, others are planning to test out or put more money into buying ads programmatically this year, as the technology and targeting and measurement capabilities continue to improve and more inventory becomes available to buy programmatically, according to conversations with four buyers.<\/p>\n
The share of podcast ad dollars being spent programmatically remains a sliver of podcast ad spending. In 2021, programmatic represented 2% of total podcast spend<\/a>, per the Interactive Advertising Bureau. By 2024, it will account for just shy of 10% of U.S. podcast ad spending, predicted Insider Intelligence.<\/p>\n \u201cProgrammatic is still relatively in its infancy in the audio space compared to other channels in media,\u201d said Robyn Meyers, vp of programmatic for AdsWizz.<\/p>\n Why are some podcast ad buyers resistant to buying ads through a DSP? One of the reasons is certain inventory isn\u2019t yet available to buy programmatically, buyers said. Larger buys, sponsorships, host-read ads and custom formats are typically bought directly from a platform such as Spotify, Pandora or iHeartMedia, buyers told Digiday.<\/p>\n Maria Tullin, vp and managing director of advanced and digital audio at Horizon Media, said buying podcast ad inventory through a DSP is \u201cnot appealing to my team.\u201d<\/p>\n Kristen Coseo, director of podcast and digital audio strategy at Ocean Media, said her team prefers to work directly with networks due to the relationships they\u2019ve built. \u201cThe majority of the reps that we work with, we\u2019ve been working with them for a lot of years now. So the trust is there.\u201d<\/p>\n Buying podcast ads through a DSP would also, in some ways, mean more work for the agency, Coseo said. Her team would need to ensure everything is running efficiently and monitor results, she said. When working directly with a podcast network, the network \u201csets everything up based off the parameters we give them. By going direct, we are putting trust in our partner to make sure they are selecting the correct targeting parameters and setting up our campaign as we requested,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n It\u2019s also more difficult for brands with smaller budgets to bid for a \u201cpreferred placement\u201d \u2014 such as an ad placed in a top podcast show \u2014 on a DSP, said Mark Pappas, svp of innovation at CMI.<\/p>\n