First Ever Media Roundtable INDUSTRY EDITION; New Podcast is The Mayne Event; Crash Diets Exposed; Podcast Host Shows Importance of the Whoa Up

In what could be described as a midsummer daydream, The Influencer presents our first ever Media Roundtable “Industry Edition” where industry insiders discuss recent industry news in true “roundtable” fashion.

This week, host Dan Granger is joined by fellow Oxford Road team members Jennifer Laine Vanbeek (Head of Marketing), Stew Redwine (VP Creative Services), and Kyle Jelinek (Senior Account Lead Director).

Together, these four “Roadies” discuss the hottest topics of the day and provide insights into what they mean for your business.

For readers short on time, a recap of each topic is shared below, but to hear the team’s whole hot take, listen to the entire episode by clicking the link below.

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The Classifieds

This Newest Podcast is Truly the Mayne Event

The universally beloved sports contributor, Kenny Mayne, is back from his ESPN departure to bring you the newest podcast from Audacy. While Mayne previously worked on shows like SportsCenter, his segments always had a comedic bent that produced some of the best satire to air on network television during his 27 years with the network. Instead of the short pieces he’s known for, Mayne’s newest venture will feature interviews with anyone and everyone he personally wants to talk to. The recently launched podcast is a mix of sports, society & culture, and comedy. This is the first production from 2400Sports, which also just announced an exclusive deal with the MLB. His first few episodes contained interviews with ESPN OG Chris Berman, comedian Ben Schwartz, and Jamal Crawford and proved to be as insightful and humorous as we’re used to. Be the most popular player in all of the land by clicking below.

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Attack of the Killer Crash Diet

Diets are so ubiquitous we barely bat an eye when their influence pops up on our social media feeds. Terms such as detox tea, #thinspiration, and fitspo litter influencers’ Instagram captions, yet their followers rarely look for the hidden consequences behind those enticing photos. The victims of the F-Factor Diet know this all too well, as they have accused the diet company’s products of causing mass nausea, rashes, bloating, and even heavy metal poisoning. In light of the Daily Harvest scandal, this slated July 26th release from Wondery is incredibly topical and eerily delves into our assumptions about health, wellness, and influencer culture. Hosted by comedian and podcaster Casey Wilson, this investigative limited series is highly recommended for clients that perform well on health and wellness and true crime podcasts. If you’d rather count your money than count calories, see the link below for more information.

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In Case You Missed It

Do Brand Values Still Matter?

A warning to all well-meaning brands: according to an article from Insider Intelligence, purpose-driven ads are not received well during economic downturns. Consumers are de-emphasizing social values when it comes to spending habits and focusing on switching to brands with lower prices. As players across the advertising industry experience setbacks and cut ad sales jobs in the uncertain economy, it’s vital for brands to always showcase a product’s value proposition in their messaging.

Brands are Shifting Towards Influencers

Springboarding off of our first article, while consumers are becoming less brand-loyal, they’re still following the people they love, says a recent Marketing Brew article. In order to stay in front of the trend, brands should consider shifting their spend to trusted influencers. Podcast hosts are the ultimate influencers and also lay solidly within the most intimate channel (audio). In fact, Podcast listeners actually like the ads more than on any other medium and trust what their hosts say–2x more than radio. So if you want to stay present and relevant, consider Podcast.

Audio Ads Hitting Gaming

Global, the international media & entertainment group, has announced that it has invested in Odeeo, a tech start-up that delivers non-intrusive audio ads in mobile games. We’re not talking console-type games, but the puzzle and word games you’d see on your smartphone. Audio ads in games are said to be immersive, non-intrusive marketing, so your message can be delivered without leaving the game itself. Is this a viable marketing channel that has yet to be tapped, or just another flash in the pan?

Ban TikTok Now?

TikTok is all over the news lately about privacy concerns, both stateside and internationally. China has access to all of the world’s TikTok data and while they’ve banned the use of the app in their own country, the rest of the world is giving it away. We recommend that advertisers who are serious about sponsoring TikTok take a step back. Hit pause now, and wait for the promised fix on privacy concerns to be properly addressed before moving forward. Additionally, and perhaps more importantly during our discussion on the subject, Dan cited a recent Prof G podcast episode that suggests despite this threat to personal and national security, at least this is one problem both sides of the aisle can agree on.

Cowboys and Rifles

The Dallas Cowboys announced a partnership with Black Rifle Coffee a day after a mass shooting left seven dead. “Set it and forget it” is great for a coffee maker – but not for your ad campaign. Here’s the real question, who owns each campaign? Was this just poor timing, or was someone asleep at the wheel? The team dissects the intent and backlash of this incredibly ill-timed promotion. In this dynamic newscycle, do you have someone looking over your entire MarCom who dissects every word, every image, every single customer, and every promotion, to craft the best, most relevant advertising for your company? If not, give us a call.

Misinformation Added to GARM

GARM (Global Alliance for Responsible Media) just added “misinformation” as a brand safety element in their reporting. GARM’s brand safety framework has already changed how brands set strategies, how media agencies build media schedules, and how platforms and ad tech partners structure their tools. Historically called the evil 11, GARM expanded the brand safety list to include misinformation alongside topics like illegal drugs, explicit sexual content, arms & ammunition, and terrorism. If you’re concerned about ensuring your advertisements align with your company values, Oxford Road’s partnered with brand safety leaders like Barometer and AdFontes to help.

Voice for Radio, Taste for Moink

Slowww it down some! That note goes out to all those hosts who turn into speed readers when it comes to ad reads. Nothing can make an ad read sound more like an ad than a host racing through copy points at a breakneck pace to reach the end. Such delivery might have a long tradition in radio, but as we’ve learned, these traditions don’t always translate to the more intimate format of podcasting. Even an old radio pro like Jeff Fisher, on his podcast Chewing the Fat, knows the importance of using effective pacing in his reads. In his recent spot for Moink, he slows down to savor the Value Prop, just like he does that tasty Moink bacon he loves so much. This is the guy you want plugging your brand if you’re looking for a trusted voice who knows just what it means to embody your messaging.

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If you’ve read this far, thank you!

The Influencer is a production from the team at Oxford Road.
If you like our sometimes sassy, mostly informed POVs on the wonderful world of audio advertising, you should see what we do for our clients.

Interested in seeing how we could help your business?
Contact us at influencer@oxfordroad.com!