Creating ad-free, subscription-based options for podcasts is the next “logical” step as the sector continues to explode, says Future Women founder Helen McCabe.
The female-focused subscription platform was launched in 2017 by Nine and produces a range of podcasts including Drive, made in partnership with Uber Eats and Next Generation Innovators, made in partnership with AusIndustry Entrepreneurs.
Speaking at Nine’s The Big Ideas Store, McCabe says the site has been partially “dragged” into the podcasting space by brands due to their increasing popularity among consumers. According to Nine research, Australians doubled the amount of time they listened to podcasts in 2020 compared to the year prior.
McCabe says turning to ad-free, subscriber-based podcasts is the logical next step for Future Women.
“It’s something I’m looking at and it is definitely on my list of things to do,” McCabe says.
“There are models in this country where, and I think Acast does it, you can get the ad version, a bit like Spotify, or you get the ad-free version for members. Obviously that would be a logical thing for me to start doing.
“There’s a lot of value in going ad-free, particularly for The Future Women leadership series, because that's a really good experience for the audience. You can do both and I think we should be doing both.”
Helen McCabe
McCabe says she believes creators have to put value around content, whether it is through ads or paywalls, and consumers will pay for what they value.
“People were prepared to pay for Vogue, Gourmet Traveller for fun and maybe Women’s Day for a read, so why wouldn't you also invest time and money in all sorts of different brands to fulfill whatever needs you have,” she says.
“So that's the thinking [for Future Women] and we're nearly three years old and I feel like we're starting to make sense to the audience and finding our spot.”
Also speaking on the panel, 3AW host Russel Howcroft warned media buyers to not overlook the younger audience across audio.
“It’s important to remember over 55, 65 year-olds are roughly 25% of the Australian population and own 50% of Australia’s wealth so for an advertiser wanting to extract wealth, it’s important to make sure you’re talking to them,” he says.
“I also feel compelled to say, if you have a look at 30+ in breakfast radio, breakfast radio 3AW is still number one with 30+.
“Traditionally, this market started listening to that station at around about 30, that still remains the case. It is true though that the majority of the buyers buy into an older demographic, but just check out the 30+ numbers you might be surprised.”
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