Over the past three years, the world has seen an explosion of influencers all over the internet. It’s like they have become celebrities in their little genre. Now, it seems like we have the new kid on the block. Audio Influencers! Yeah, audio influencers are gaining in popularity.

But, let’s not forget, audio influencers aren’t new. Remember radio jockeys? They were the first audio influencers. So, why are these new-age audio influencers exploding in popularity

Before we talk about why audio influencers are rising, let’s first understand what is an Audio Influencer? 

An audio influencer is someone with an established audience in a specific industry. They have the power to persuade others to act based on their recommendations and expertise. 

But the only difference between an audio influencer and a regular influencer is the medium of content. Audio influencers primarily deal with audio-only platforms and content. E.g., podcasts and Breakout. 

According to Jeremiah Owyang, audio social media is the Goldilocks medium for the 2020s. He says” text is not enough, video is too much and audio is just right”

Audio represents the opportunity to connect with others and create more authentic connections without dealing with the downsides that come with video platforms. 

Moreover, 3 in 4 marketers use influencers as a part of their marketing strategy. So, if you are planning to partner with influencers, don’t dismiss the audio one.

Audio is not a new medium. People have been listening to radios for a long time. So, why are audio influencers growing now? 

Here are a few reasons why we think audio influencers are gaining momentum:

Over the past ten years, we have seen an exponential rise in visual content. All thanks to Instagram and YouTube.

All these video content creators do a great job—both in terms of video editing, writing scripts, or how they present themselves. 

But the truth is, these content creators leveraging visual platforms rely heavily on their appearances to get brand sponsorships and capture audience attention. 

But, do you think only these people are talented? No, right? Many other talented people were left out of opportunities simply because they did not have a celebrity-like appearance or were camera shy. 

That’s when audio social media gave them the voice.

Finally, 20 years after the invention of the internet, these talented but camera-shy people had a platform to showcase their talent. These talented people can now bring their expertise, skills, and a new perspective on topics affecting the world, regardless of how they look.

Just 20 years ago, who would have thought you could get the chance to interact with influential figures in real-time? 

No one, right? 

But audio social media is helping to turn this into reality. 

Audio social media has provided people with a platform to express their thoughts and opinions freely without being watched by millions of eyes. It’s spontaneous, it’s real. 

Audio social platforms have a layer of authenticity that many visual social media like Instagram lack. It’s been too long that the world is deprived of authentic content. Everything we see on Instagram and YouTube has a dark reality. 

Now, audio influencers with audio social media are the pioneers of creating raw, authentic content that can touch the deepest emotion of the audience.

If you have seen the influencers gaining popularity in the past, you might understand how frustrating it can be to watch them giving absolutely wrong advice to their followers. Most of these Insta-influencers, not all, have no real knowledge or expertise of the field. 

Moreover, early adopters of technology and social platforms have high BS detectors. It means most users won’t tolerate the endless blabbering of any influencer out there, even if they have a following of 20 million above. 

That’s where audio influencers are gaining momentum. While the influencers on social media platforms like YouTube and Instagram can use visuals to make people understand complex topics, audio influencers do not. They are reliant only on voice. 

Thus, if you see an audio influencer with a large following, they have a quality called ‘The Gift of Gab’. A gift of gab is an ability to influence or persuade other people. It’s about being able to articulate a complex topic into easy to understand language. Some people call it storytelling, but it’s just a small part of it. 

You know an influencer is a real deal when they are able to help their audience understand even a complex topic without visual presentation. Top examples would be Espree Devora, also named as Top 10 podcaster by Harper’s Bazaar. Sarah Perez, editor of top technology magazine TechCrunch and many others. 

Businesses looking to expand their services will have little to no luck with the general audience. It’s just too broad and too risky. 

Instead, the key growth opportunity lies in unlocking a specific, niche audience that is most likely to purchase from you and remains loyal to your brand. This is when audience segmentation becomes critical.

Every business wants to understand its audience better. And that’s where audio is transforming business. With over 2 million live podcasts, audio influencers have managed to create their own unique set of audiences who are actually interested in the content they listen to and thus more likely to become a paying customer. 

Brands can form meaningful relationships with those listeners by showing support for hosts and thus allowing them to be a part of the community.

A large number of users believe audio content is more calming. Study highlights that 87% of millennials and 77% percent of Genz are using audio content to reduce stress levels. 

A large number of millennials and Genz also agreed that podcasters sometimes ‘feels like friend’. As a result, brands have unobstructed access to the millennial and Genz generations like never before.

According to Nielson’s report, 54% of savvy adult consumers between 18-35 consider audio ads trustworthy. So, when you need your audience to take that first step towards trying the product, a personal endorsement from the audio hosts goes a long way. Almost 77% of listeners would try on a product recommended by their favorite personality. 

Research shows that podcast ads outperform any other type of ads across a number of KPIs. The results are astounding, with a 67% lift in brand affinity, 60% lift in intent to learn more, and 50% lift in the purchase and recommendation intent. 

Audio content is also helping brands track influencer marketing data. Thanks to dynamic-ad insertion, brands can now capture more insights on whether the ads were heard or the listener took action.

As audio networking apps grow in popularity, new platforms will crop up. With increased competition among platforms, the companies will have to come up with innovative business models to monetize audio content. 

Brands will collaborate with audio influencers to create far-reaching marketing campaigns and access the new audience. Success won’t happen overnight. But, given the rising interest of people in audio, audio-only content will soon become an integral part of marketing campaigns in the future. 

Audio content creators are still a novelty. But we at Breakout think audio influencers will play a special role in the coming future. Already, podcasts and live rooms are becoming hotspots for audiences who are keen on listening to new topics every day. 

Be a part of the audio revolution with our audio networking app Breakout. Breakout is your ultimate go-to platform if you want to create a tight-knit community of like-minded individuals. 

Get started today!