This Week’s Influencer: Podcast Marketing Isn’t for the Meek; Measuring Video Is (Almost) a Reality; We’re Fairing Well with Wayfair; and More

One CMO, six experts, and more than a dozen different marketing headaches. Throw them all together, and what do you get? A fiery edition of Media Roundtable, that’s what.

Straight from Cannes, Dan Granger (CEO & Founder, Oxford Road) joins a panel of experts to solve every marketing challenge that Kim Storin (CMO, Zoom) throws their way. Hear insights from:

• Dani Feore (VP, Industry Sales, The Weather Company)

• Don Sklenka (SVP, AI Optimization, Claritas)

• Grace Briscoe (EVP, Client Development, Basis)

• Elizabeth Dobbs (AVP, Marketing Technology, Data & Growth, Databricks)

• Michael Bayston (Global VP, Adtech Solutions, Acast)

The team talks about the best way to spend $500,000; the creative courage needed in the age of AI slop; and the one thing you need to make podcasting your strongest channel. Let’s dive in.

“If you just try to make [podcasting] a box you check because you feel like it needs to be a part of a balanced portfolio, don’t bother. Either go big, or go home.” – Dan Granger (CEO & Founder, Oxford Road)

Take the $500,000 Challenge – You have $500,000 to spend on a test. What do you do with it? The group’s advice: 1) establish a baseline; 2) stop Facebook and Google from grading their own homework; 3) set up a strict control; and 4) make sure you actually stick to your recommendations. Without follow-through, that $500,000 will be wasted. For marketers who want to get the most from their money, their best bet is to have alignment on what that money should be doing before the spending begins.

“Get Serious or Get Out” – Marketers who get the most out of podcasting are the ones who put the most into it. Some marketers look at podcasting as 10% of their marketing spend, and therefore, only put in 10% (or even less) of the effort. That’s a shame, because they’re missing out. Brands like Shopify and BetterHelp didn’t scale podcasting by checking a box. They went all in, treating podcasting, and podcasting’s biggest fans, as worthy of outsized effort for outsized results. If you’re looking for a role model to inspire your podcasting campaigns, you’d do well to follow their lead.

Show Some Creative Courage – Marketers have two choices: They can play it safe by using AI slop, or by relying on ads that sound like every other ad. Or they can take big swings that could either fail or succeed spectacularly. Zoom had huge success with a killer influencer program that all started with a one-sentence brief. Good creative doesn’t need two pages of copy and brand guidelines. You just need solid measurement, and the courage to go where others don’t.

Want more answers to growth marketing’s hardest questions? Check out the full episode below.

The Classifieds

This Familial Duo is Serious About Mental Health

Network: Voicing Change Media / Episodic Downloads: 61k

If you hurt yourself and can’t walk, you might think it’s time to visit a physician. But we tend to be much less proactive when it comes to treating our mental health. Dr. Rick Hanson has been a practicing therapist for more than 45 years, having authored multiple books about happiness, self-fulfillment, and positive thinking. He teams up with his son, writer Forrest Hanson, on Being Well with Forrest Hanson and Dr. Rick Hanson, a show that aims to change the way we think about mental wellness and our health overall.

Whether they’re interviewing experts or talking amongst themselves, the two hosts discuss crucial health subjects, from the best ways to work through healthy conflict to the importance of dealing with avoidance issues. What sets Being Well apart from similar shows is its consistent focus on therapeutic practices that can build life-long habits. This is highly recommended for advertisers seeking a strong, well-informed female audience. If your podcast testing strategy needs an expert diagnosis, click below for more details.

Get The Deal

Press Start on Your New Favorite Podcast

Network: Maximum Fun / Episodic Downloads: 64k

Curiosity is a central tenet in Maximum Fun’s network programming, so it makes sense that the long-time podcast company has found a way to dissect the intricacies of video games in an academic manner. The Besties podcast combines friendly conversation amongst its hosts (Russ Frushtick, Chris Plante, Griffin McElroy, Justin McElroy) with deep-dive discussions of gaming mechanisms, storylines, and industry news. Now in their 14th year together, the hosts are still lobbing jokes as readily as plasma bombs, and their conversations are just as thoughtful and nuanced as ever.

The show’s fanbase remains extremely engaged week over week, and every ad spot is host-read for solely direct-response brands. The Besties has been a true hit with many male-skewing advertisers, especially those who are looking for tech-focused young professionals and lovers of nerdy conversations. If you’re ready to add this show to your testing library, click the link below.

Get The Deal

In Case You Missed It

Have You Reached Every Single Person in the World? Apparently MNN Has

Money News Network claims it’s surpassed 10 billion in combined reach across podcasts, newsletters, and social media. The creator-led financial media company reports 110 million podcast downloads, 1.3 million newsletter subscribers, and 105% year-over-year revenue growth to profitability. MNN, which launched in 2023 and remains bootstrapped, has also expanded through a partnership with Entrepreneur that adds two shows to its network. Reach typically represents unique people. When a company claims greater reach than the world’s population, its numbers should best be viewed with skepticism. Ten billion may be cumulative impressions, but it doesn’t qualify as unique reach. Credible numbers matter, which is why we’re fighting for consistency and transparency through our AMP initiative.

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Contextual Targeting Gets Even More Contextualized

Sounder has added sentiment analysis to its contextual targeting tools, categorizing podcast discussions as positive, negative, neutral, or mixed. Publishers can use the data to create inventory packages based on both topic and tone. Sounder has not disclosed accuracy rates, validation methods or potential pricing implications as of yet. We know context matters, and matching an ad to both topic and tone could be a meaningful development for contextual targeting. For publishers, the commercial value will likely come from packaging this inventory at a premium. Advertisers should only pay more if the sentiment model is accurate and the targeting proves it truly is added value.

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Video’s Measurement Gap Is Closing

Signal Hill Insights analyzed brand-lift results from nearly 40,000 podcast listeners and viewers. Audio and video ads performed similarly overall, with video showing only small advantages in brand rating, consideration, and purchase intent. Don’t get too caught up in the audio-versus-video debate. The bigger development is that the walled garden in which video exists has been difficult to measure, though Signal Hill at least gives marketers a clearer view of the medium’s impact on brands.

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#SaveTheLiveReads

You’re Going to be So Pumped About This Wayfair Find

Scheana Shay and Kiki Monique deliver this week’s #STLR on Scheananigans with Scheana Shay, with a Wayfair read that captures the excitement of finding the perfect piece when you weren’t even looking. Scheana’s admission that some of her favorite home additions, like artwork for her bathroom, came from simply browsing Wayfair’s catalog makes the platform feel less like a shopping destination, and more like a never-ending source of inspiration.

Whether they’re discussing summer patio upgrades or everyday home essentials, Kiki and Scheana’s conversation highlights the many ways Wayfair makes elevating your space approachable, affordable, and surprisingly easy. This read turns “I need to decorate my home” into “I wonder what I’ll discover next.” If you’re ready to find your next favorite find, listen via the link below.

Listen Here

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OXFORd In The News

Podnews Hypes AMPs Next Major Release

Podnews flagged Oxford Road founder & CEO Dan Granger’s LinkedIn preview of the forthcoming AMP measurement paper, due to be unveiled at Oxford Road’s CAO Summit later this month. Dan’s framing was direct: The AMP document is the product of compromise across a coalition that includes competing platforms and publishers, and he acknowledged it won’t satisfy everyone (including himself). The full framework drops next week. Learn more about AMP HERE.

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