2024 podcasting trends every podcaster should know about

As the podcasting industry continues to grow, it’s important for podcasters to stay ahead of the curve and keep up with the latest trends.

Let's take a closer look at what lies ahead in 2024 for podcasters.

Educational Content is in High Demand

You might think that genres like sports, news, politics, and tech are all chart-topping but interestingly, they're all surpassed by one unlikely genre: educational. And the reason for this cannot be far-fetched. In the US, 61% of podcast enthusiasts have a 4-year college degree, post-grad degree, or some advanced academic laurels.

Back in 2019, 74% of podcast listeners claimed they tuned in to pick up fresh knowledge. Fast forward to 2023, and that number's grown to 88%.

Even more interesting is that the educational genre is taking several forms. While some educational podcasts center around classic-style learning, some are a blend of education and entertainment. In fact, the most shared podcast episode of 2023 followed this pattern.

This pattern is also apparent in other educational podcasts like The Tim Ferriss Show, Freakonomics Radio, Stuffs You Should Know, etc.

Creators Tap Into Professional AI Tools

Like all industries, there's been a huge surge in AI tools for podcast content creation.

A survey of over 1,100 podcast creators found that 25% of creators are already using AI tools, 58% of them expressed their willingness to experiment with AI, while 16% plan to avoid AI citing concerns about authenticity, and 25% remain undecided.

As many podcast creators explore the potential of incorporating AI tools into their workflow, we can assume this trend will keep growing, especially considering the audience’s acceptance of AI tools in the workflow of content creators.

Although the level of acceptance varies depending on the application of AI, the majority of the public feels comfortable with the use of AI to help improve the production of the podcasts they listen to.

A survey conducted by Acast, showed that listeners are divided when it comes to using AI-generated voices to create realistic fictional content, such as celebrity interviews or debates, with only 53% acceptance.

However, listeners strongly support AI for improving production quality, such as sound, captions, and transcriptions. For example, 80% support AI for sound quality improvement and also agree (72%) on using AI tools such as Podsqueze, for writing transcripts and show notes.

Short Clips Continue To Streamline Podcast Marketing

Podcast promotion is on the rise but so is the level of competition. For example, there are over 5 million podcasts in 2024 compared to just 550k in 2018, and podcasters are exploring new channels of advertisement to make their content stand out from the crowd.

In a world where attention spans are getting shorter, short-form video content provides a solution to grab the audience's attention in a quick moment, and more podcasters are jumping on board by repurposing their podcasts for social media in this format.

Short form videos not only are engaging but they also offer the opportunity for long form podcasts to be repurposed into multiple content pieces that can be distributed in multiple platforms that are rising in popularity such as Tiktok, Youtube shorts and Instagram Reels.

For example, Tim Ferriss creates many audio clips from each episode and shares them across his social platforms (especially Twitter, now X), and those clips funnel traffic to his episode.

The fact is, short videos just seem to do the trick when it comes to a solid marketing strategy.

According to wyzowl, a whopping 90% of marketers using video noted a boost in brand awareness. Interestingly, 68% of marketers yet to dive into video content are gearing up to do so in 2024.

This marks a major shift in marketing strategies, as brands acknowledge the unmatched impact of short-form videos in grabbing audience attention and fostering engagement.

Regarding the ideal duration for these videos, marketers are pretty much on the same page. A solid 39% assert that the sweet spot falls within the 30-60 second range. It's concise enough to keep viewers interested in our fast-paced digital world yet long enough to convey a meaningful message.

Podcast Monetization Takes a Huge Leap

The podcast advertising market is expected to grow significantly in the coming years, with a projected revenue of $4.02 billion by 2024. This growth is attributed to the increasing number of users, which is expected to reach 668.1 million by 2028.

From a creator’s perspective, podcasts offer a plethora of opportunities for monetization. Businesses are increasingly recognizing the potential of podcast advertising and are investing more in this medium.

According to the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), podcast advertising is projected to be worth more than $4 billion by 2024, with more marketers, including behemoths like Amazon, Macy’s, and Capital One, pouring money into podcast advertising.

A report by HubSpot suggests that 82% of marketers were already planning to continue investing the same amount or increase their investment in podcasts or other audio content in 2022. And they project US market podcast revenues growth to increase in almost 100% for 2024.

On top of that, there are many monetization opportunities for podcasters behind traditional ads. For example, there is a further monetization opportunity in podcast live streaming where 15% of listeners say they would be willing to pay between $10 and $25 to attend a live-recorded podcast event.

If you're interested in delving into podcast monetization ideas, check out this free guide by Podsqueeze, which explores 20 different strategies to help you earn money with your podcast.

Live Podcasting Continues To Grow

Although podcast live streaming is a relatively unexplored area, the podcasting community has embraced it wholeheartedly, with 13% of audiences having attended a live podcasting event.

We just experienced this phenomenon firsthand at a conference we recently sponsored called Podfest, where podcast fans packed rooms to watch live recordings and personally meet their favorite podcasters.

This comes as no surprise, considering that 73% of podcast listeners on Spotify expressed a desire for more opportunities to interact with their favorite podcasters.

While podcast live streaming is not yet widely adopted in the podcasting landscape, it provides another way to engage audiences in real-time and generate revenue. In fact, Axios reported a staggering 2000% growth in podcast livestream sales over just six years (2013 to 2019).

Podcast Swaps will grow in popularity

As the podcasting universe continues to expand, and the competition for listener attention intensifies, small podcasters will need to devise effective strategies to self-promote and compete with well-funded branded podcasts.

Fortunately, as podcasting gains popularity, opportunities arise for the independent podcaster community to connect and collaborate. Whether through Facebook groups, Reddit forums, or in-person at podcasting conferences and meetups, podcasters have the chance to engage in each other's projects and mutually contribute to growth.

One promotional method we anticipate experiencing significant growth in 2024 is podcast swaps, where two podcast hosts can feature on each other's podcasts, co-host a show, or simply mutually promote themselves to their respective audiences.

Podcast Liftoff reported a 21% growth on a podcast in a very short period of time doing podcast swaps.

Also, a study by Mozilla found that cross-promotion is one of the best ways to increase listenership.

Video Podcast Sees Higher Episode Listenership And Retention

According to Spotify, video podcasts see higher episode listenership and retention.

Why?

Because listeners are not just listening to an episode but they're watching the interactions and facial expressions of the speakers too. Around one-third (32%) of American listeners prefer listening to podcasts with videos compared to 26% who prefer just audio.

According to Warc, 51% of listeners appreciated the hosts' and guests' physical expressions and reactions, making it a key factor. Additionally, 50% mentioned that it aids in maintaining focus.

With over 100 thousand video podcast episodes already on Spotify and millions on YouTube, video podcasts offer many promotional assets.

For example, video content can be repurposed into shorter clips for sharing on social media and reaching a wider audience. Also, video podcasts come with no-risk effects. If audiences don't prefer video podcasts, they can switch from video to audio and listen like they used to.

Conclusion

And there you go, taking a detailed peek at 7 podcasting trends to keep an eye on in 2024.

With AI tools making their way into the mainstream, video podcasts gaining momentum, and fresh opportunities for monetization and promotion, the podcasting scene just keeps getting more thrilling!

So, what lies ahead for podcasters? Only time will reveal, but one thing's certain: the podcasting industry is sticking around, and it's set to grow even more and improve as time goes on.