Spotify is a leading music streaming service that has seen a lot of growth throughout the pandemic. With more people working from home and forced to stay indoors, they turned to music and podcasts for their entertainment. Spotify has recently released its Q3 results and within these, we found some interesting statistics in relation to podcasts. We look at what this means for affiliates below.
A Strong Q3
According to an article posted on The Drum, year-on-year growth of subscribers to premium grew by 27% to 144 million on Spotify. The Premium churn rate also fell below 4% for the first time in Q3. Reports are suggesting that this growth is down to a new launch in Russia and some promotions including one that gained a lot of traction by offering a free Google Nest Mini.
Growth for Spotify is also reported to have come from a 13% increase in new music releases from both huge artists and individual musicians who were unable to play live gigs. The total revenue for Spotify in Q3 was reported at €200-€220b and premium revenue grew to €1,790m, according to The Drum.
How did podcasts do?
While many people believe that Spotify is mostly used for streaming music, podcasts also prove popular with Spotify customers. The podcast section of the app is filled with podcasts focusing on everything from business pointers to entertainment shows. This has led to an increase in the number of people engaging with this kind of content.
According to The Drum, ad-supported revenue rebounded after the pandemic ad slump growing by 9% year-on-year. This is said to have been led by ad studio channels and podcasts which both offered double-digit growth. The gross margin for revenue finished at 24.8%.
Some of the top podcasts on Spotify right now include Times New Briefing, The Joe Rogan Experience and talkSPORT Hit.
Spotify for affiliate marketing
It is clear that with the number of people now using Spotify for listening to podcasts that this is a channel that we cannot ignore. Podcasting businesses can be highly profitable and with the right content, they can help to boost engagement for a brand.
There are tons of opportunities for affiliates to incorporate podcast into their strategies. The broadcast consumption model that we are used to has changed for the better and we must listen to what consumers want. Not only should affiliates be listening to podcasts in order to stay up to date on industry news but they can also use a Spotify podcast to build their brand.
As long as you have something to talk about, you can create a podcast. Affiliate marketing is popular with podcasters and many have joined affiliate programs in order to monetise their channels.
It is clear that Spotify is a channel worth using when it comes to podcasts in 2020. There are plenty of podcast apps available but Spotify continues to grow year on year.
If you haven’t yet tuned in to Affiliate Marketing Podcast, this might be a good place to start. We cover a variety of hot topics and discuss how you can implement them into your marketing strategy. You might even pick up some tips to start your own podcast series.
