TL;DR
- Steve Raizes, executive vice president of podcasting and audio at Paramount Global, says while the podcasting industry has been on a rollercoaster, but in the end it’s an industry still on the rise.
- “Creatively, podcasting remains incredibly robust,” he says, but the industry needs to push for better discovery and, simultaneously, continue to both engage and educate the advertising community of the value of podcast advertising in terms of both top and bottom of the funnel.
Steve Raizes, executive vice president of podcasting and audio at Paramount Global, says the podcasting industry has been on a rollercoaster, but in the end it’s an industry still on the rise.
From big Hollywood studios still leaning on audio as a place to grow their fans and IP, to established platforms evolving what podcasting can mean in the future, there are companies seeing success and getting back to basics on what it means to be an on-demand digital content creator in the audio space.
At Paramount Global, Raizes and his team produce award-winning podcasts such as The Daily Show: Ears Edition, MTV’s Official Challenge Podcast, On Fire with Jeff Probst, 48 Hours, and more.
“We had an incredibly frothy period and the market is now stabilizing (which has unfortunately had real impacts on people and businesses),” Raizes says of the buzz circulating through the podcasting community about the industry’s untimely demise.
“However, the overall trendlines remain extremely positive. We’re now beginning to see an adjustment — including deals based on known metrics along with an investment in shows that have a proven business model behind them.”
There are , however, steps that can be taken to overcome this inaccurate perception. “On the optics front we need to continue to plant the flag for what makes this industry so great,” he urges.
“First and foremost — creatively, podcasting remains incredibly robust. And with that, we continue to pull in new audiences who care deeply about the medium. We need to push for better discovery to help aid those pods and, simultaneously, continue to both engage and educate the advertising community of the value of podcast advertising in terms of both top and bottom of the funnel.”
Podcasting has become a staple in our digital diet, thanks to platforms that make it easier than ever for anyone to broadcast their ideas. This boom has brought a wealth of stories, insights, and discoveries to listeners worldwide, proving that the medium is far from fading into the background.
Yet, this ease of access leads some to oversimplify what it takes to create a podcast that truly resonates. It’s not just about having the right equipment or a novel idea.
Raizes puts it succinctly: “There is no ‘make podcast’ button that you can press to magically produce premium audio content.” He emphasizes that behind every podcast that captures and keeps our attention, there’s a blend of dedication, creativity, and a unique perspective.
“Every successful pod takes time, patience, artistry, and a strongly differentiated POV.”
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