Podcast ads are a powerful tool to sell your products and services, so here’s how to make yours even more effective

Podcast listeners are engaged with the content they are consuming in an intimate and isolated environment. Podnews reports that advertising that’s delivered through listener’s headphones is less likely to be skipped than a TV ad, meaning that it is just as effective in getting your message across. 

Podcast ads are also amazingly effective because they are a frequent reminder of your product and messaging. This can help you build stronger relationships with your listener, give you more chances of reaching the right people with your ad, give you more marketing touchpoints and bring together associations between your brand and the message you are evoking with advertising. Audacy also reports that people listening to audio ads are more likely to go on to purchase your product – so really, what are you waiting for!? 

Really, the biggest difference between a good podcast ad and a great one however is in the execution. With only 30 seconds to play around with, every second counts. Your podcast ad needs to do three crucial things:

  1. Make the listener pause and pay attention 
  2. Clearly communicate the value of your product 
  3. Immediately drive action from the listener 

Here are some of our tips and tricks that you can use to make the most out of your ad:

Engage Your Listener Within the First 5 Seconds

Forget the 30 seconds of the entire ad, your first 5 seconds are perhaps the most important. If you don’t capture someone at the very start, by the time they start to pay attention again – your ad will already be over! You need a powerful hook to get your audience to listen and tune in to the rest of the ad. Some examples (of very imaginary businesses) are:

  • What if every vacation was designed for you by your personal assistant at no extra cost? 
  • The only thing between you today and your dream life is a good night’s sleep. 
  • You wouldn’t eat fast food every day – so why are you feeding your cat processed cat food? 

The hook you write should make someone feel curious about what you have to say next. Usually, it helps if you start with a pain point or a claim that is universally seen as true and to do that you need to…

Define The Solution for the Problem You Are Solving 

Once you’ve got the attention of your listeners, now is the time to present the problem and the solution that you have already laid out for them with your product. Make sure to keep this simple and clear, with a relatable angle. For our three examples above, this could sound like: 

  • Your FREE holiday PA is just one click away at HolidayAway.co.uk. 
  • Snooze Mattresses give you a restful night’s sleep every day so you can be the best version of yourself. 
  • Swap your supermarket brand of pouches for home-cooked cat food today. 

Add a Sprinkle of Trust Factor Where You Can

Now, it is time to add some more proof of why your products are as good as you say they are. Social proof of your Unique Selling Point (USP) could make the difference between someone simply listening or actively engaging with your brand. For example:

  • Rated as ‘Outstanding’ holiday provider on Tripadvisor 
  • This is a mattress trusted by an XYZ chain of luxury hotels in the country. 
  • Over 97% of cats feel more energised after just one week of switching. 

Finish with a Call to Action (CTA)

Don’t leave your listeners with nothing to do at the end of your ad. You need to give them a clear path forward on how they might be able to get involved. This next step could be visiting your website, using a discount code or getting a trial for your product. Be extremely clear about the offer so they are more likely to convert:

  • Visit us at HolidayAway.co.uk today and get 30% off your next trip with a code PODAWAY 
  • Book your mattress delivery today at SnoozeMattress.com and get a 90-day satisfaction guarantee at no extra cost
  • Download the PurrfectCatCan app and get a free one week trial of cat food so good, you’ll want to eat it, too

And Finally, Refine, Refine, Refine!

Kicking off your campaign with one ad might be a good idea, but what you really want to do is to make sure you have a few spot ads that you can then A/B test and tailor to your audience. You might find that some messaging might work better than others, so having a couple of options for different audiences is a great way to ensure success. 

Booking podcast ads for a business isn’t difficult – but getting that ad right, is. Our team charges NO AGENCY FEES for managing your ads and we can help you with the strategy, execution and podcast ad production.