Are you eager to grow your health and wellness podcast audience? If so, you might be considering paid advertising as a viable strategy. In this post, we’ll explore the results we saw from testing 5 popular paid podcast advertising platforms that can help you increase your subscriber count effectively, and you can decide which paid podcast ads platform is the best. Each has its unique strengths and weaknesses, and understanding these can significantly impact your podcast growth strategy!
Understanding the Importance of Paid Advertising
Paid advertising can be a powerful tool in your podcast growth arsenal. While organic growth is essential, sometimes you need to give your podcast a little push to reach a broader audience. Investing in paid ads can help you achieve that, especially in niche markets like health and wellness entrepreneurship.
The Results for Each Platform
In this experiment, we tested five offerings to see which paid podcast ads platform is the best: Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Spotify, and Buzzsprout.
Each platform has distinct features that cater to different advertising needs. Let’s dive into the specifics of each.
1. Overcast
Our first test was with Overcast, where we paid $370 for a month of advertising in the Health and Fitness category. This resulted in 1,770 taps and 26 new subscribers, equating to approximately $14.23 per subscriber.
What stood out was Overcast’s flexibility; you can choose categories that may not necessarily align with your podcast’s theme. This might seem counterintuitive, but we saw success: advertising in cheaper categories (such as Fiction) got our podcast more subscribers for less money when compared to the Health & Fitness category. Imagine that!
2. Podcast Addict
Next up was Podcast Addict, where we opted for the business category at a cost of $350. This campaign resulted in 715 clicks and 13 new subscribers, which translates to about $27 per subscriber.
Despite being less effective than Overcast, it provided valuable insights into the importance of category selection when targeting your ads.
3. Pocket Casts
Pocket Casts was a bit of a disappointment. We spent $146 for a week and received only 9 taps and zero new subscribers.
The lack of results here highlighted the importance of choosing the right platform for your audience. Although Pocket Casts claims a large user base, the engagement didn’t reflect that in our case.
4. Spotify
Spotify offered a different experience with audio ads that interrupted the podcast listening experience, whereas up until now, the other platforms offered image ads shown to listeners.
We set a budget of $200, resulting in 19,000 impressions, 35 clicks, and only 5 streams.
The complexity of the platform made it less straightforward than others, and the results were underwhelming considering the reach.
5. Buzzsprout
Finally, we explored Buzzsprout. We invested $200 for 10,000 impressions, but the results were challenging to track.
The platform offers the advantage of appearing in show notes, but the lack of conversion metrics made it hard to assess the effectiveness of the ads.
So which paid podcast ads platform is the best?
Key Takeaways from the Experiment
- Category Selection Matters: Choosing the right (or wrong) category can significantly influence your conversion rates. Testing ads in different categories may yield unexpected results and help you decide which paid podcast ads platform is the best for your show.
- Flexibility is Key: Platforms like Overcast allow you to advertise in multiple categories, potentially reaching a broader audience.
- Understand Your Audience: Knowing where your target audience spends their time can help you select the right platform for your ads.
- Content Quality First: Before investing in paid ads, ensure your podcast content is high quality. Poor audio or unengaging episodes will lead to high drop-off rates.
- Consider Your Goals: Align your advertising strategy with your broader business goals. Sometimes, building a mailing list or enhancing social media presence could be a better investment than paid ads.
Conclusion
Paid advertising can indeed accelerate the growth of your health and wellness podcast, but it’s essential to approach it with a strategic mindset.
Remember, quality content paired with the right advertising strategy is the recipe for success. You cannot advertise a subpar product and expect advertising to bring in permanent listeners.
Are you ready to let a team of professionals handle your entire podcast production workflow? East Coast Studio can help elevate your podcast to the higher-quality standards required for credibility in the health and wellness space. Plus, give you the guidance and support needed to podcast consistently – growing your impact and your sales. Click here to schedule your Podcast Vitality Call!
