IAB Australia Audio Summit: Why advertisers are turning to digital audio

Audio may be the most “on sale” channel as listenership outpaces ad spend, but Australian marketers are increasingly tuning in to the opportunity and expanding their audio budgets this year.

That was the theme of the IAB Australia Audio Summit last week in Sydney, where industry leaders took to the stage to discuss strategies for advertising alongside podcasts and music.

IAB Australia’s latest Audio Advertising State of the Nation report teed up those talks. A survey of agencies and brands in the country found that the majority plan to increase their spend on digital audio advertising in the year ahead, with 79% planning to increase their investment in advertising alongside podcasts and 65% planning to increase their investment in advertising alongside music.

So what’s driving digital audio advertising? IAB Australia’s Director of Research Natalie Stanbury noted its ability to complement the media mix, adding incremental reach alongside media channels like streaming TV. High audience engagement, quality content and targeting efficiencies are also propelling advertiser interest.

Digital audio revenue reached AU$313 million ($196.8 million USD) in 2024, according to another IAB report. Stanbury said podcasts in particular will drive that number up, given 79% of advertisers plan to spend more on them.

Increasingly programmatic

The appetite for programmatic digital audio buying is also rising, with 78% of the agencies surveyed in the State of the Nation report indicating they intend to buy digital audio programmatically in 2025 — up from 72% of those surveyed in 2024 and 63% in 2023.

“There’s a combination of elements that are driving programmatic, including data and targeting, which continues to be the number one reason, but we’re also seeing increases in usage for cross-channel frequency management and also [the ability] to be able to use client data,” Stanbury said.

Essential to driving growth in digital audio advertising would be measurement and evidence of effectiveness, she added.

Brands’ sonic opportunity

Onstage, Sandra Smoljo, client group director at WPP Open Door, predicted sonic branding will become a priority for brands as their audio appetite grows.

“As we’re seeing more brands tap into the audio space and do it more often, I think the importance of sonic branding is going to come through a lot more…Now that audio has proliferated into all these different channels, I think it’s really important to have that one consistent brand,” she said.

Speaking on the growing trend of podcasts releasing episodes on YouTube and social media channels, Daniel O’Callaghan, ANZ head of out-of-home and audio at Publicis, highlighted the need for advertisers in this space to see such videos as an extension of the podcast rather than equal in impact to the podcast in its audio form.

“[Video] is a secondary concern…The podcast is where the value is. When you introduce something social, it’s there and gone in a second, but the podcast stays with the talent. You can be confident of the reach and frequency you’re going to get off the [audio] episode, because you have that data,” he said.