Despite the rising interest in video podcasts, Cumulus Media and Signal Hill Insights’ latest Podcast Download survey reveals that only 9% of the podcast audience exclusively watches podcasts. This statistic has remained consistent over the past two years.
For the twelfth edition of the Podcast Download series, Cumulus Media and Signal Hill Insights engaged MARU/Matchbox to perform an in-depth study of 603 weekly podcast consumers from April 19-24, 2024.
The Spring 2024 Report biannually highlights trends from previous studies and delves into platform preferences, content trends, perceptions of brand safety, and content appropriateness, among other topics.
A recent MARU/Matchbox survey of 603 weekly podcast consumers shows that 36% prefer audio-only podcasts, 33% enjoy actively watching, and 31% like listening while the video plays in the background.
Newer podcast listeners tend to favour video, while long-time listeners prefer audio. Additionally, podcast watchers skew younger and more male than audio-only listeners.
The survey also highlights several reasons why listeners opt for audio, including convenience while driving (18%) and multitasking during activities (17%). Notably, 6% of respondents avoid YouTube due to ads.
However, the survey indicates a challenge for video ads, with less than half (47%) of viewers watching ads all or most of the time. In comparison, TV ads are missed by 61% of viewers, suggesting that while podcast video ads face challenges, they still perform better than traditional TV ads.
True Crime is a standout genre among audio listeners, but overall, genre preferences show few differences between audio and video podcast consumers.
