Holiday gift shoppers are 38 percent more likely to discover brands via podcasts

Here's the thing:

Surveying 172,000 North American consumers in the fourth quarter of 2022, GWI found holiday shoppers are 38 percent more likely than the average American shopper to discover brands via audio platforms. The staggering amount of money consumers shelled out in online purchases during last month’s Cyber Monday suggests that meeting audiences where they are spending time has never been more important. With so many factors competing for people’s attention, cutting through the noise is vital to boosting brand awareness this holiday season and it appears audio may be one effective lever for brands.

Data debrief:

In addition to audio, perhaps signaling a post-pandemic turnaround for out-of-home, the research also finds holiday gift givers surveyed are 30 percent more likely than the average American shopper to discover brands through billboards or posters. This aligns with a new report from The Trade Desk Intelligence gauging Americans’ time on the open internet, revealing that time spent on digital audio platforms will surpass time spent with traditional radio for the first time in 2023. Meanwhile, Insider Intelligence forecasts double-digit growth in annual ad spend for digital out-of-home through 2027. These upward trends point to the value both areas can offer in helping brands make meaningful connections across their full-funnel campaigns.

Additionally, the GWI survey found that ads on retail websites also earn gift buyers' attention, with holiday shoppers being 25 percent more likely than the average American shopper to discover brands within retailers’ own properties. The benefits of retail data can offer advertisers the ability to optimize campaigns in the moment, a critical lever during retail’s most crucial time of the year.

These shoppers surveyed are also 22 percent more likely to find inspiration for gift ideas through online video or TV pre-roll spots, where there is strong potential to reach last-minute shoppers.

Why it matters:

This year’s Cyber Week — the five-day period between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday — raked in a record $38 billion in online U.S. sales, up nearly 8 percent from 2022, Adobe Analytics shows. Moreover, the National Retail Federation reports about 44 million people took to their desktops or laptops to do their Cyber Monday shopping, while another 40 million clicked their way through purchases on their mobile devices.

The Current is owned and operated by The Trade Desk, Inc.