Four in ten Spanish-language audiences are regular podcast listeners, nearly on par with the 44% of English-language media consumers. That is according to a just-released survey from Harker Bos Research and Crowd React Media examining the state of Hispanic media.
“Listener dedication is evident, with 77% of Spanish-language podcast audiences turning in to most of the episode, with 32% listening to the entire content,” the port says. Harker says that indicates a “strong commitment” to the medium by Hispanic audiences. “Of note is the sheer amount of podcast content Spanish-language audiences are consuming,” the report says. Harker says 72% of the Hispanics it surveyed report they consume at least an hour a day worth of podcasts, and as much as 37% say they listen to at least two hours. It concludes that it means 6% of Spanish-language media audiences are consuming at least four hours of podcast content each day.
Harker also finds that the optimal length for an episode is around 30 minutes for this demographic. Yet Harker says Spanish speakers are “flexible” with 15% preferring podcasts under 15 minutes, 30% favoring episodes that run 15 to 30 minutes, 40% preferring a half hour, and 14% just fine with episodes that surpass the one-hour mark.
“Podcasts are becoming an increasingly integral part of audiences’ daily routines, with specific preferences shaping their listening experiences,” the report says. “A significant 69% of podcast audiences emphasize the importance of including relevant links and show notes in each episode, underlining the need for podcast producers to cater to this demand. These audiences are eager for additional information, making show notes a critical component.
Like other research, Harker’s survey finds that Hispanic podcast consumers are more video-centric with 72% of those surveyed telling them that they at least occasionally glance at the speakers or screen – or watch a podcast video outright.
The survey finds that News/Politics and Comedy are the most listened to genre among Spanish speakers, with nearly two thirds (64%) listening to podcasts in those two genres. Society & Culture (63%) and Interviews (63%) are not far behind. Harker says the numbers are comparable to English-language podcast listenership.
Asked how they find a new show, two-thirds of those surveyed by Harker said they discover shows via popular podcast lists, while more than half (54%) find shows from in-app recommendations. Another 28% say they search for a specific topic, host or personality in an app’s search bar.
Harker says of the 17% of those using a search engine like Google to find their next podcast, 81% searches for a specific topic while 57% look for a specific host or personality.
The high engagement with podcasts among Spanish speakers is translating into results for marketers according to the research. One in three (35%) of listeners said it makes a big difference in their purchase consideration if the host reads the ad copy. And one in four (24%) said they would skip the ad if the host didn’t read the copy. Speaking of skipping, 73% of Spanish-language podcast audience said they do not automatically skip ads, provided the commercials they hear are good quality.
But language matters. The survey finds 40% of Hispanics are more likely to buy a product they hear advertised on a podcast if the commercial is in Spanish. They would also punish a brand that drops an English ad into the show – 17% say they would ignore the commercial and 13% would turn off the podcast.
“By this measure, we would definitely advise Spanish-language podcast producers to feature exclusively Spanish-language advertisements in a podcast, when possible,” the report says.
Harker’s “The State of Spanish-Language Media” is based on a survey of more than 500 adults aged 18 and older that are consumers of Spanish-language media in April and May.
Download the report HERE.
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