Radio’s enormous reach can serve as the foundation ad medium to pair with social media and podcasts to maximize penetration of the Gen Z and Millennial consumer markets. Young adults’ engagement with social media is well documented but, according to Edison Research/Triton Digital’s The Infinite Dial 2021, 56% of persons 12–34 listened to one podcast during the last month.
Podcast listening presents a bonus to advertisers, allowing them to reach those younger than 18. A spring 2020 survey published by Statista reported 48% of teens 13–17 said they were listening to podcasts. They certainly spend many hours daily on social media. Although there has been some erosion of their radio listening, Nielsen stated radio reached 17.8 million teens (71%) during 2020.
To optimize their ROI, advertisers want the heavy listeners of radio and other ad media they may use to cross-target prime audiences. Five representative 2021 consumer/market surveys conducted by The Media Audit reveal why radio combined with social media and podcast listening first delivers the reach and second, the highly accurate niche targeting of social media and podcasts.
Both Gen Zers and Millennials who are heavily exposed to radio daily (180+ minutes during the typical day) over-index for heavy exposure to social media (180+ minutes during a typical day). Plus, this combination reaches many Gen Xers too.
“Teens may be streaming music throughout their days, but the 2020 TeenMark study from MRI-Simmons reported 40% of teens said broadcast radio is where they learn about new music,” said Annette Malave, Senior Vice President, Insights, Radio Advertising Bureau. “Teens are attracted to audio content in any form, which is why substantial numbers are podcast listeners. Podcasts offer them a huge menu of topics to supplement their education, expand their understanding of the world and be wiser consumers.”
Unsurprisingly, Gen Zers and Millennials over-index even more when correlating those with heavy exposure to radio and heavy exposure to social media (the combination of radio and social media is 180+ minutes during a typical day).
In both of these ad-media mixes, radio continues to give advertisers the best platform to promote their brand and create an emotional connection with consumers. Cross-targeting the broad audiences of Gen Zers and Millennials with social media and podcasts strengthens brand awareness and engagement. Secondly, however, it allows advertisers to personalize their ad messages to those consumers who are the prime of prime buyers.
Read more about this topic from Annette Malave, Senior Vice President, Insights, Radio Advertising Bureau HERE.