This Week’s Influencer: Dan Misener on Fixing Podcast Measurement; The Download Dilemma; Spotify Knows You Too Well; Fangirls Get Healthy; and More…

If your phone is full of podcast episodes you’ve never actually played, you know a download isn’t the same as an impression. So how can marketers figure out who’s really tuning in, and who’s tuning out? This week’s Media Roundtable discussion has you covered.

Dan Granger (CEO & Founder, Oxford Road) and Giles Martin (EVP, Strategy, Oxford Road) welcome Dan Misener (co-founder, Bumper) to talk about the Bumper Score, a major new step toward shrinking the gap between a podcast’s reported listenership and its actual audience. It’s no secret we’re big advocates for better podcast measurement (check out today’s Forbes story, written by Frank Racioppi, about our work on the AMP Accords). The Bumper Score, like AMP, is aimed at helping the industry unlock its next billions through better data.

Join our panel of experts as they discuss how better information can not only lead to better measurement, but can also help prevent billions of dollars from being left on the sidelines.

“There is a gigantic gap between what buyers are paying for and what sellers are actually delivering.” – Dan Misener (co-founder, Bumper)

Minding the Gap – We measure downloads, views, and plays, which collectively adds up to what one panelist describes as “a mixed bag of garbage.” But what we actually care about is ad delivery. And as of now, the gap between what’s being measured and what’s being delivered can be huge. The big-picture takeaway? Bad decisions based on faulty metrics can create even worse decisions (which helps explain why a billion dollars’ worth of investment is being held back from the market, according to our count). TL;DR: When brands don’t trust what they’re buying, they buy less.

Keeping Score – Bumper has found a way to shrink the frustrating measurement gap. The company looks at episode delivery data and compares it to actual playback data from first-party sources. That intel is used to create the Bumper Score, a ranking that determines how effectively a program reaches a real audience when compared against other shows. Bumper Scores range from 0 (Bad) to 200 (Great), with 100 as an average.

Building A Better Yardstick – In practice, the Bumper Score can level the playing field between podcasters with quality audiences (but smaller traffic) and creators with big topline numbers (but weaker audiences). Much like our own ORBIT reports, the Bumper Score helps brands evaluate shows using metrics that actually matter, and allows them to decide if the true CPM is worth the effort (and the spend).

For more details on Bumper, and further insight into how the industry is coming together to fight for better measurement, check out the full episode of Media Roundtable below.

The Classifieds

Caleb Hearon Makes Every Episode an Event

Wave Sports / Monthly Downloads: 465k

Mr. Roy G. Biv is back for the first official week of Pride Month, and he’s brought two top-notch classifieds for you to consider. Our first is hosted by stand-up comedian and actor Caleb Hearon, who used his experiences as a Missouri middle school teacher to create one-of-a-kind sketches and characters that found him a huge following online.

Though he’s become a big-time star in recent years, with major roles in both TV (Overcompensating) and film (The Devil Wears Prada 2), Hearon hasn’t lost his deep connection to his fans, who tune in to So True with Caleb Hearon for NSFW conversations with high-profile guests. Every conversation feels like an event rather than a promotional-tour stop. And blue-chip and DR brands alike are taking notice of Hearon’s hilarious, heartfelt interview style. If you want the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, click below for more details.

Get The Deal

Pride With Purpose and Community

Network: Studio71 / Monthly Downloads: 57k

Like so many of us, Texas-born lesbian comic Mal Glowenke is a work in progress. Each week on Made It Out, she sits down with a member of the LGBTQIA+ community to talk about their tender beginnings, their journeys with self-discovery, and the moments that shaped their lives.

Though Made It Out features no shortage of heartbreak and humor, the show also focuses on self-improvement and community building. Even when the topic is rooted in a sense of grief or loss, Glowenke imbues every conversation with positivity and support. Made It Out’s largely female audience is interested in mental health, continuing education, the arts, and travel, all of which makes the show a desirable prospect for a variety of brands. Demonstrate your pride in podcasting by clicking below for more information.

Get The Deal

In Case You Missed It

Is the Download Past Its Prime?

Steve Goldstein of Amplifi Media led a London Podcast Show panel on whether downloads remain a viable core metric. While downloads standardized the industry, Goldstein notes, they often fail to capture true engagement or listener intent. And while the download helped podcasting grow, the medium has evolved faster than the metric. What the industry needs first, Goldstein argues, is more consistency in how audience delivery is measured across platforms, formats, and listening environments. That’s why the Alliance for Measurement in Podcasting (AMP) matters. Podcasting will never have perfect measurement, especially as audio, video, RSS, YouTube, Spotify, and social clips all blur together. But without clearer standards, marketers are left wondering what they’re actually getting from their investments.

Read More

Radio Measurement Is Getting an Overhaul

Nielsen is planning changes to its diary-based radio ratings service in response to declining survey participation, rising costs, and changing consumer habits. The proposed hybrid methodology would add a lower-burden digital survey, use outside research panels for some respondents, and apply modeling to estimate full-week listening patterns. Radio measurement isn’t perfect, but the industry has a consistent framework, using Portable People Meters in the largest markets and diary surveys in the rest. Nielsen’s latest changes demonstrate the importance of measurement evolving in step with consumer behavior, even in legacy channels. The move also reinforces the need for shared measurement within podcasting.

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 Spotify Knows You Better Than Your Therapist Does

Spotify’s global head of ad product, Katie English, discusses how the platform uses data from Spotify Wrapped and other personalized listening insights to create standardized, buyable audience segments for advertisers. Spotify Wrapped is one of the best marketing initiatives in digital media, and while it’s unclear whether Wrapped-based audience segments can become a meaningful buying tool, the company is clearly interested in finding a way to turn a beloved consumer experience into an advertising product. As any music fan can tell you, listening habits are deeply tied to identity, mood, and personal taste. Those kinds of deep connections can be useful for media buying if packaged in a way advertisers can use.

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#SaveTheLiveReads

These Fangirls Are Serious About Their Health

Sisters Lexi and Nicole of Fantasy Fangirls bring genuine enthusiasm to this week’s live read for Function Health. The hosts have a doctor in the family, so they know what they’re talking about, and their delivery is peppy but sincere, leaving them plenty of room to breathe between the details. And the specifics land because Function is personal to each user, not a one-size-fits-all panel of tests. The two hosts may obsess over worlds of fantasy, but they’re serious about their real-world health. Brands should take note: This is what authentic advocacy actually sounds like.

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OXFORd In The News

The AMP Accords Go Viral

Last week, The Hollywood Reporter broke the news on AMP (Alliance for Measurement in Podcasting), a coalition of 12 industry players working toward a shared podcast definition and new frameworks for ad measurement. We told you about it here first, and the story quickly rippled across Barrett Media, Podnews, Podcast Business Journal, Sounds Profitable, Podcast News Daily, Podcasting Today, TV News Check, and Roastbrief. All of those mentions land on the same point: Without common measurements and definitions, budgets get orphaned, and a billion dollars in ad spend stays on the sideline. Learn more about the AMP Accords HERE.