The podcast hosting platform RedCircle has launched a new automated ad insertion platform. The company says the platform allows brands and agencies to easily access host-read ads on thousands of vetted, independent podcast creators that use its hosting service and in doing so scale up their campaigns and reach target audiences more quickly.
“With RedCircle, advertisers have the opportunity to partner with hundreds of podcasters through one, scalable platform because we don’t follow the traditional radio model that’s replicated throughout the podcasting space,” said CEO Michael Kadin. “We’ve simplified the buying experience in what has traditionally been a very fractured market, helping brands buy on one podcast, a hundred, or more.”
Red Circle said its platform allows advertisers to tailor their buy on a variety of what have become standard metrics such as podcast genre, audience size, listener demographics and ad rates. It says they will also be able to “provide feedback” to podcast hosts about the live ads as well as track their ad’s performance in real-time and make adjustments as necessary. Red Circle is also offering them the option of using different creative tests by using different ad formats, messages, and show placement.
“The ability for brands to quickly and easily manage ad campaigns targeting key demographics, including the coveted 18-34-year-old category which make up half of the podcast listening audience, can be a critical piece of the marketing mix for brands ranging from CPG to DTC to subscription services,” said Kadin in the announcement. “With more than half the US population turning to podcasts for information or entertainment, the medium shows no hint of slowing down,” he said.
San Francisco-based RedCircle launched in February 2019, the creation of Kadin and Jeremy Lermitte, who previously headed up Uber’s marketing technology team. They’ve been joined by several ex-Uber engineers and colleagues. The company has so far raised $1.5 million in funding led by Roy Bahat at Bloomberg Beta. It is also backed by MathCapital, S28 Capital, and a collection of angel investors that includes nine of the best operators from Uber.
To date, the company said more than 40 brands have bought advertising on Red Circle shows.