Jeff Umbro’s Post

Whatever you do this week, do not miss the interview with James Cridland and Dan Misener of Bumper on Podnews Weekly Review. They will be talking about Bumper's new Listen Time dashboard which combines first party data from Apple, Spotify and YouTube. We all know podcast downloads are the 'Emporers New Clothes'. Downloads tried to convince advertisers that they were a good proxy metric for popularity and equalled listenership. And for many years nobody questioned download numbers until Apple revealed the truth when they updated iOS 17 and stopped auto-downloading older episodes. The industry lost its shit, as millions were wiped off companies profits. Previously companies happily charged advertisers for downloads that nobody listened to. And with iOS18 due out soon, who is to say Apple won't turn off auto downloads altogether? Personally I think it's time for the podcast industry to use better metrics and so do Bumper who are big advocates of a new more accurate podcast metric called Listen Time. "Of the many things podcasters can measure, Listen Time might be the most important. Listen Time is the total amount of time your audience spends with your episodes, aggregated across every podcast platform. The idea is simple: Audiences vote with their time and attention. Podcasters should pay attention to that." - Dan Misener 14th May 2024 Read: https://lnkd.in/eghf5-Ez My own platform TrueFans wants to take this even further and not only measure Listen Time but Percent Completed and Value Paid. This interview will be both enlightening and revealing and will show the podcast industry where we are heading next and how we can build trust with the numbers we present to advertisers. Let's start measuring what matters. The download is dead long live Listen Time!!!

Homes England CEO Peter Denton joins me for a highly personal and impassioned episode reflecting on is 4yr tenure as boss. Listen on Apple: https://lnkd.in/ejeS3zxf or Spotify: https://lnkd.in/eZxSzBBq or Soundcloud https://lnkd.in/gNKmK5A Coming as he and Peter Freeman announce their departure from the agency, Peter Denton talks about how his difficult background has shaped his desire to make impact and fuelled a desire for public service that has, somewhat ironically, seen him land back in Canary Wharf (where he worked as a banker) following the Government's decision to occupy the former Barclays building. I’ve always felt there was a softer side to Peter that hadn’t quite come through, and I was keen to bring out some balance in this unscripted discussion where nothing was off the table (except politics, obviously – he’s a civil servant, after all). The beauty of the long-form podcast format is the chance to delve deeply and uncover nuance in a way that’s rarely possible in print. After seven years of hosting and producing PropCast, it’s great to see podcasts now a mainstay of people’s media consumption. I’ve had the pleasure of hosting numerous CEOs over the years, and the advice is simple: be authentic. Without exception, people appreciate being freed from the constraints of investor presentations and corporate speak, and the feedback (from investors, colleagues, and partners) is invariably that hearing executives speak in plain English in an informal setting resonates far better than more staged formats. If you’d like to join me in 2025 for an episode, get in touch. If you think someone in your team should join, or if you’re a PR professional representing someone with a story to tell, please message me here. All suggestions are very welcome – especially from guests with unique and diverse backgrounds.

Ever worried your podcast is going to get old? Take a lesson from Podcraft. Podcraft, with hosts, Colin Gray and Matthew McLean from The Podcast Host has been in the game for 20 seasons. And they never stop upping their game to keep content fresh. I love to see podcasts try new formats and ways of telling a story. You never know how well it's going to go until you take the leap and try it. With this latest season Podcraft leveled up by moving from a straight up interview format to a narrative style. They feature a ton of guests each episode who are not only experienced podcasters, but also their ideal listener demographic. This gets them more earned mentions to increase reach, and makes super relevant content for that listener profile. With each episode, 10 engaged guests join the show, giving 10 authentic promoters who have a shared audience. It's a lot of work but a win-win strategy: Listeners get relevant, valuable insights they can apply to their work today. The show reaches new ears through authentic word-of-mouth. Everyone feels invested in the community. Brilliant work, Podcraft! Check the new season out, search "Podcraft" wherever you listen.

🌟 Exciting News Alert: The first Women in Podcasting Awards have been announced! Sponsored by Supporting Cast, this is a major win for diversity and representation in the podcasting industry. {POSITIVE}, {POSITIVE} 🔮 Prediction: With the inception of the Women in Podcasting Awards, we can anticipate a significant rise in female-led podcasts gaining recognition and breaking barriers. {INSIGHTFUL}, {COMPELLING} 💪 Supported by podcasts like Dateline, Radiolab, and Planet Money, Supporting Cast is proving to be a game-changer in selling podcast subscriptions. {IMPRESSIVE}, {FACTUAL} 🎙️ If you're curious about the success stories behind these award-winning podcasts and their collaboration with Supporting Cast, be sure to check out the full story links. {ENGAGING}, {PROVOCATIVE} 📩 Want to stay updated daily on the latest news and trends in the podcasting world? Visit the link provided to sign up for our newsletter and never miss out on the action! {INFORMATIVE}, {ENGAGING} Command Your Brand 🚀

Wow! Exciting research on co-listening from CUMULUS MEDIA and Signal Hill Insights! In the kids' podcast community, we've long known that our audience is undercounted due to high rates of co-listening not being captured in the metrics - and not being corrected by an estimate of how many people are actually listening. This report shows that not only are rates of co-listening high in Kids & Family podcasts, those who listen to Kids & Family podcasts are more likely to co-listen to podcasts overall. The data is clear - Kids & Family podcasts are the top podcasts for co-listening behavior. So how should co-listening be counted? The report mentions that family streaming apps like Disney+ have 1.8 viewers. With joint listening behavior being so much higher than joint viewing behavior (think about how many kids watch on screens alone), I would estimate that podcast rates are even higher. Of course, we'd need our own study to confirm that! This point in the press release underlines what kids podcasters have been saying for years: "Podcast selling estimates never contemplated ad exposures by multiple people to the same show. The podcast industry is leaving 'ears on the table.'" (Okay, so maybe that's not the most appealing metaphor. But you get the point 🤣 ) Press release: https://lnkd.in/e8SfVgdi

Last year was a disaster for the podcast industry following a period of seemingly unstoppable growth. Investors, sensing a gold rush, poured in money recklessly. Spotify led the spree, spending over a billion dollars, including $200 million on Joe Rogan and buying Gimlet and The Ringer for $230 million and $200 million, respectively. Amazon bought Wondery for $300 million, and Sirius XM acquired Stitcher for $325 million, while commentators predicted the bubble would eventually burst. #Podcasting #MediaTrends #PodcastIndustry #Streaming #DigitalMedia #Podcasts #TechNews #EntertainmentIndustry #PodcastBusiness #MediaInsights

"Cautiously optimistic." That was the temperature of the room at the kickoff of last week's Hot Pod Summit, when Ariel Shapiro asked attendees how they were feeling about the business of podcasting. That lines up with some of the things I learned from the conversations on stage. One big takeaway is that everyone – not just the "business" folks – benefits from keeping an eye on the books. Discussing worker-owned media, Eric Silver from Multitude observed that creatives are discouraged from understanding the financials and business part of podcasting, but noted that this is a source of power. Defector Media LLC's Jasper Wong then told us that everyone in the company can check in on those financials with access to monthly P&Ls. We heard this sentiment echoed at the end of the day, when This American Life's Ira Glass told us that he's been all about the business side of things since the very beginning, reporting that the operation has been profitable every year for the past 20 years. A lot of that revenue comes from advertising. Tomas Rodriguez from the The Trade Desk said he wants to see podcasting get bigger, and that programmatic buying will help scale to the next 10 million new consumers. To help get there he hopes we'll be able to better compare podcasts "apples to apples with other channels." In the same conversation, Kelli Hurley of SiriusXM noted that podcasts stand out especially because there aren't many other places where brands can integrate into long-form content. I think that's something for every producer and publisher to keep in mind this year. Big thanks go to the teams at work x work and The Verge for programming another enlightening day. #podcasting #podcastadvertising

"𝗪𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗳𝘂𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻." Check out this incredible second part to my two part interview with Fred Destin, Founder at Stride.VC on Nothing Ventured - out today 🔥 Here are just a few of the things Fred had to say in this episode, I cannot recommend listening to it enough 💥 One of the most human, thoughtful conversations I've had with a VC in a long time :) Here are just some of the truth bombs Fred had to share... 💡 "You can be a generalist, but you can't be generic." 🙈 "You drop the worst fucking advice on the planet." 🙌🏾 "I really want to be seen to be helpful by my founders." 🦸🏻 "I do not want to be your legend." ❤️ "It is the love of the craft that drives you rather than necessarily just the outcome." 🐞 "Real-time for me is a bug, not a feature." 🤷♂️ "The algorithm will do whatever the fuck the algorithm is going to do ultimately." 🚪 "Check your biases at the door, confirmation biases, pattern recognition, super dangerous, your past experience is not always a good guide." 💭 "The art of listening, the art of thinking about what you're saying rather than saying what you want to say." 🥱 "So all this labeling and simplification, so all of it's lazy thinking." 🤯 "Venture's fucking hard. People forget how hard it is to build value sustainably." Catch it wherever you get your podcasts ✨ YouTube: https://lnkd.in/d9Gq-u6x Spotify: https://lnkd.in/dZK_pKka Apple: https://lnkd.in/d2urvRFC

UPDATE: For those of you asking about what's next with Designing Tomorrow, I've got a quick update for ya. Season 2 is well under way and new episodes will be dropping shortly. There's going to be some exciting changes in our next season (You may notice a second mic in this photo...hint hint...formal announcement coming soon). But we're staying true to the premise of the show, by exploring the question: Why do some social impact brands thrive, while so many others fail to get traction, build support for their cause, and make meaningful progress towards their mission? Really excited to get new episodes out into the world. P.S. — If you haven't listened to Season 1 yet, what are you waiting for. Check it out wherever you find you favorite podcasts and/or Youtube.

Are You Building or Growing an App? Here’s a Podcast Pick for You 🎧 If you’re considering what it takes to scale or even exit successfully, then Episode 19 of the Mass Appeal Podcast is a must-listen. This episode we have Josh Peleg, Head of Development and M&A at BlueThrone , a company known for acquiring and scaling high-potential consumer apps, sharing his insights on: ✅ How to present your app to attract investors and acquirers ✅ Strategies for tackling retention issues and scaling LTVs ✅ Key trends in app acquisitions, including niche vs. broad market opportunities 🎧 Tune in now to learn the right moves: https://lnkd.in/eASZi74W #MassAppeal #Podcast #MobileGrowth