A growing trend in advertising is to tap into the thousands of people listening to online radio streams with Streaming Radio ads. Almost every traditional radio station now offers listeners an online “stream” option of their broadcast via computer or mobile device. Traditional radio advertising does not offer the audience targeting options available through streaming radio ad platforms. Most streaming listeners opt for the ad-support models, meaning they can stream for free – this is where we come in! Statistics show that online listeners stay tuned to the same station for longer periods of time, which means you have a captive audience, so your ad will not only be listened to, but it will be heard!
There are several options for streaming radio ad services, offering a variety of benefits and features. For today, we are going to focus primarily on two of our favorite platforms, Spotify and Pandora. Most of the ads within these two platforms are not skippable, and the number of ads played are limited, which increases engagement.
Spotify
Spotify offers the best all-around service for users, with both ad-supported and subscription-based ad-free versions available. As the most popular music streaming app, with over 70 million tracks, it also boasts over 2 million podcast titles and has over 345 million users worldwide every month, with approximately half of them using the ad-supported (free) version. With this many listeners, you can use content targeting to reach listeners based on their habits, activities, interests, and even narrow it down to a single zip code. Spotify users are logged in – with all day connectivity across multiple devices, which gives you confidence your message will be delivered at the right time on the right platform. Some of the targeting capabilities Spotify offers are listed below:
- Country, city, or Designated Market Area (DMA) – based on the users’ IP address
- Age, gender, language, genre, playlist, behavioral segments
- Sponsored Session – allows the user 30-minutes of ad-free listening on mobile or tablet after your ad in played at 100%.
- Audio Ad – a 30-second ad is played every 15 minutes
- Display Ad – 30-second clickable ads. 100% visible and will not play if Spotify is minimized
- Video Takeover – (Companion Display Unit) Served only on Desktops during commercial breaks. 100% viewable and 100% share of voice
Pandora
Pandora offers a cross-platform dynamic with audio, video, and display availability for advertising. With over 115 million unique listeners each month, Pandora is also integrated into over 200 auto models and over 2,000 connected home devices. With the diversity of ad options offered, your creative is woven seamlessly into the listener’s experience. Pandora also offers several options for targeting your desired audience with over 2,000 categories to choose from including genre, ethnicity, household income, education level, lifestyle, shopping habits, and marital/parental status – just to name a few! Ads can also be personalized based on genre of music, weather, or location. So your ads will display or be heard by someone in your target audience at the right time, on the right platform, and it will be relevant to their interests and activities. Pandora targeting options are listed below:
- State, Designated Market Area (DMA), or Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) targeting
- Targeting based on age and gender (demographics)
- For display and audio, targeting for county, zip code, music genre, or audience segment
- Display banners are offered for web/mobile/tablet standard web and mobile banners. These ads are served on user interaction with high viewability and 100% share of the screen until the next interaction
- For increased engagement, audio ads stream concurrently on web, mobile, tablet, connected home, and connected car devices.
- Video ads offer a full-screen experience and stream on web, mobile, and tablet devices during a station change or a song skip – while listeners are anticipating the next song
As you can see, Spotify and Pandora each offer features and options to help you reach your target audience and achieve marketing goals with streaming radio ads. These two platforms are just a few of the many options available!
Whether you are in the market for streaming radio ad platforms, or any other form of advertising, we are here to help you reach your goals! Our professional team can help you sort through the many options and platforms available to you. To speak with an expert, give us a call at 713-309-6380 or send us a message on our website.
For more information about Streaming Radio ads, see our Blog, “How to Make Streaming Radio Ads Work for Your Business”.