Media's Youth Marketing Summit: What Does Gen Z Like and Dislike About Social Audio?

quotI39m fascinated by the authenticity that audio platforms allow forquot Nadya Okamoto a podcaster Harvard University student and Generation Z digital marketer said on a panel at the recent Youth Marketing Summit quotPeople are craving more community on social mediaquot she noted adding that audio in particular promotes community and the exchanging of ideasWhen the COVID19 pandemic forced Americans to stick close to home Generation Zers began looking for new ways to connect Clubhouse and others allow users to create live audioonly content and gather likeminded groups It is a forum to share passions gather and learn without the pressure or production demands associated with videoquotWithout conferences lunch and learns and more casual meetups young professionals were missing out on an opportunity to hear and interact with thought leaders industry experts and entrepreneursquot explained Sarah van Mosel Chief Revenue Officer for Stitcher a top podcast platform owned by SXM Media who moderated the discussion quotSocial audio gave them a means to network in real time while still in their sweatpantsquotSocial Audio Experiences Growing PainsBut it is still early innings and Gen Z influencers said social audio still has a lot of growing ahead Clubhouse started the boom last year sending media industry execs and social influencers clamoring to get access to the inviteonly app At first Clubhouse quotroomsquot or live streaming channels were intimate gatherings of likeminded individuals and the app earned rave reviews from hosts and usersLast year Jake Hunter an actor producer and mental health influencer embraced Clubhouse as a space to discuss spirituality and mental health For several months he hosted rooms for two hours a dayquotIt was a place where people would come and spill their hearts outquot he said quotIt was super heavy and it was great It was a place where we could look at this in a notmaterialistic levelquotSimilarly when Okamoto first started using Clubhouse she was impressed by the community element and intimacy of the discussions quotI39ve never seen such passionate fandom of a social media appquot she saidBut as the app gained a following Okamoto and Hunter said the atmosphere started to change Hosts weren39t as willing to invite users to speak and complaints arose about bullying Hunter said he started to feel burned out and left the network quotAfter a while it turned into too muchquot he explained quotPeople would end up getting upset with me if I had to miss a dayquotClubhouse also ran into practical limitations Hunter said the crowds were usually too small for content to go viral Because Clubhouse is inviteonly and potential users might not have accounts Okamoto would have to post on other social networks like Instagram or Twitter to promote her discussions Brands wanted to promote hosts but struggled to find ways to integrate and measure their effortsAnother shortcoming Okamoto said is that Clubhouse doesn39t allow users to share snippets of the audio a must for Gen Zers quotShareability is hugequot she asserted quotThat39s something that the next generation of audio apps needs to be able to doquotPodcasting Offers Creative Freedom Brand OpportunitiesAs social audio is evolving podcasting is also booming with Gen Zers Podcasting has a low barrier to entry allowing eager hosts to grab a microphone and start recording quotIn podcasts production is relatively inexpensive and accessiblequot noted Stitcher39s van Mosel quotUntil the rise of consolidation most podcasts were distributed widely and accessible to anyone who cared to look for themquotMeghan Rienks an actress podcaster and lifestyle influencer hosts a podcast as well as a series of YouTube videos In true Gen Z form she multitasks her podcast shooting video as she records the audio quotWe get a lot of people saying they were listening on an audio app and 39the second I heard the call I switched over to the video to see your faces39quot Rienks saidWhen a new sponsor comes on board she said they often want her to stick to their script As they get comfortable and understand how Rienks engages with her audience they give her more latitudeShe believes listeners can sense when a podcaster has creative freedom to discuss a brand or service and they appreciate the authenticity quotWhen they39ve heard us talk about a topic and they39re familiar with our voices and the podcast they say go for itquot she said quotIf you know the podcasters are able to have that free reign in how they speak you want to listen inquotVan Mosel agreed that podcasting39s creative freedom is a boon for content creators and advertisersquotPodcasting broke free from the clock so creators could be free to create their content on their own timelinequot she explained quotEven with ads they appear where the content breaks naturally Ads are beholden to the creator39s timeline and podcasts are beholden to the listener39s timelinequotClick the social buttons to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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Media's Youth Marketing Summit: What Does Gen Z Like and Dislike About Social Audio?

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Alli Romano

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Media's Youth Marketing Summit: What Does Gen Z Like and Dislike About Social Audio?

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