Why Audio Content Is This Years Biggest Battle Ground For Big Tech – Forbes

Listening to a podcast

In the last year there has been over $1 billion in M&A in the audio space, as companies from Amazon to Spotify made investments in the medium, placing bets that audiences would follow suit. And thats exactly whats happening right now. With the emergence of Clubhouse as a hot new social media platform, the likes of which we havent seen in a while, audio has piqued the interest of consumers as well.

On the heels of completing a sweeping Media Behaviors and Influence study that, in part, illustrates consumers obsession with audio, I connected with Amir Hirsh, founder and CEO of Audioburst, the audio search and discovery platform. We discussed why interest in audio is experiencing an explosion, and which tech companies are best positioned to take a leading role in this particular content war.

Gary Drenik: So Amir, how did we get here? Why the sudden interest from big tech in bulking up their audio offerings?

Amir Hirsh: 2021 is quickly becoming what I like to call The Year of the Ear. But the shift to audio should be seen as the culmination of a long process, not a sudden shift. You see, content has always been king, but now it has a new throne - voice assistants.

These assistants have come a long way - technology has matured and usage has spiked. Roughly one in four adults now owns a smart speaker and 56% of Americans ages 18 and older use voice assistants according to the Media Behaviors and Influence study from Prosper Insights & Analytics.

Prosper - Personal Assistance Usage

This has led to the emergence of what is essentially a new type of operating system a voice OS. Operating systems are strategic by nature remember the big battles over the computer and phone OS? Thats why Big Tech is now fighting over voice OS market share.

And this is where audio content comes into play. The first few years of voice assistants were about getting simple functionalities right understanding the intent behind a query and providing relevant information. What time is it? Will it snow tonight?

But with the maturity we discussed, simple functionalities have become commoditized. Thats where audio content becomes the differentiator. Most of the time spent interacting with a voice assistant revolves around content consumption. And audio content consumption is steadily increasing. So, the biggest companies understand that talk audio content is the way to win the heart of the consumer.

Drenik: Why are they doing this now? Why not earlier?

Hirsh: I think many were not sufficiently aware of the capabilities and popularity of voice assistants until recently.

More interestingly, though, theres a direct correlation between voice assistant adoption and Covid-19. Its been exactly a year since the first stay-at-home order and many of us have spent more time at home than ever before, close not only to our families but to our devices, too.

Were surrounded by screens as well, but I argue that most of us are screened out, as theres a limit to the number of back-to-back Zoom calls you can be on or how much Netflix binge watching you can do. And the data speaks to this too. But the smart speakers are fresh and novel, enabling us to consume informative and entertaining audio content while we go about our daily life. Its such a freeing experience.

In short, voice technology and audio content have converged into this perfect storm of usage. Thats why I believe that this year will be defined by a battle over who will become the primary voice-first audio content provider.

Drenik: Whats so challenging about making audio data usable?

Hirsh: There are three main challenges in the way of audio becoming mainstream.

First, Audio is usually long-form, with podcasts and radio shows lasting as much as an hour. But our attention span doesnt last an hour; it barely reaches a minute. We want to skim, sample, and taste bite-sized audio nuggets, but we cant do that today.

Second, audio is much more rigid than text. It is saved in a sound format that makes analyzing it quite difficult. Todays algorithms and machines simply cannot extract meaning from sound. And without meaning, audio content cannot be searched, personalized, or recommended.

Finally, theres no protocol home for audio it doesnt have an official place on the web. There are no permalinks in an agreed-upon internet structure. This makes audio quite unusable! Sure, you can consume it once, but try sharing it on social media or saving for later and youre in for a challenge.

What does all this mean for me as a media consumer? If Im driving and I come across a fascinating few minutes of talk audio, its impossible in some cases and very difficult in others to later resurface it and share it with a friend. With the rising popularity of audio content, its astonishing that this set of challenges still exists, and this is why we founded Audioburst to organize the worlds talk audio and make it universally accessible.

Drenik: What role do voice assistants play in the audio revolution?

Hirsh: As voice assistants and voice-first interfaces are introduced to so many devices and services, users are moving to eyes-free and hands-free experiences which will require audio to answer the needs that text, images, or video answered in the past. This is why Amazon acquired Wondery and Alexa is pushing podcasts on the one hand, and on the other, Spotify is introducing voice commands.

Drenik: Whats most important for marketers to know about the audio medium?

Hirsh: First, audio content consumption is skyrocketing. According to the Media Behaviors and Influence study from Prosper Insights & Analytics, 67.6% of millennials, and 50% of the adult population in the U.S. now listen to podcasts. If you include talk radio, the numbers are much higher, and both keep climbing. I believe that consumers want to be set free from screens and so 50% of all content consumed will be audio by 2025. Bottom line nows the time to get in the game!

Prosper - Listen To Podcasts

Second, theres something extremely effective about audio marketing. Because audio is visceral and our most primal mode of communication (we hear our mothers in utero, before we see anything), audio is the most effective way to communicate and connect with consumers. Audio ads drive 24% higher recall on average than display ads and are 28% more likely to be seen as informative than display ads. Study after study shows that podcast listeners are quite likely to go out and buy a product they hear about from their podcast host.

Another reason for this is that audio ads come without the emotional friction of interrupting what consumers are trying to do. Brands can use audio to build an immersive, natural experience, delivering their message directly to a consumer, without forcing an uncomfortable experience.

One more thing marketers should realize is that its a completely new and open playing field! With the recent emergence of social audio (Clubhouse, Twitter Spaces, and others) there are fascinating new ways to reach audiences. Brands continue to experiment with podcast creation, branded and sponsored audio content of all sorts, and theres so much more that can be done. If youre a CMO, I recommend increasing audio budgets and diversifying your efforts to create positive listening experiences that make a real impact. It is sure to pay off.

Thanks for taking the time to discuss why now is such an exciting time for Audio, Amir, as well as the emotional connection this channel creates.

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Why Audio Content Is This Years Biggest Battle Ground For Big Tech - Forbes