2023 is an extremely lively year for the Chinese podcast circle. In this year, whether it is a "big coffee" or a "small coffee", OG or a newcomer in the podcast circle, they can find their place in the colorful podcast activities. Some people in the industry sighed that "there are so many events this year that I can't participate", the number of activities is a major manifestation of the liveliness of the podcast industry, and its essence is that podcasts are gradually penetrating into the whole scene of life and becoming people's lifestyle.
As a leading player in the online audio field, Ximalaya has reached 345 million average monthly active users in all scenarios in the third quarter of 2023, and has become the only certified podcast hosting platform of Apple Podcasts in Chinese mainland, and its influence as the head platform of Chinese podcasts has been recognized by Apple Podcasts.
Recently, Himalaya released the "2023 Himalaya Chinese Podcast Ecology Report" (hereinafter referred to as the "Report"), which shows the latest data and trends in the development of Chinese podcasts: the Himalaya platform has more than 240,000 podcast programs with commercial value, and podcasts have become a new blue ocean for content creation; the number of listeners of Chinese podcasts will also exceed 220 million in 2023, and young people in first- and second-tier cities are the main group of podcast listeners, which has the characteristics of high education and high income. At the same time, 50.2% of podcast listeners have paid for podcast content, and the commercialization of podcasts is becoming more and more diverse. In 2023, with the support and assistance of platforms such as Himalaya, Chinese podcasts are no longer confined to niche circles, but are gradually expanding to the general public.
1. 220 million podcast listeners: The number of Chinese podcast users reached a new high
If you search for the keyword "podcast" on social media, you'll find that there are a lot more people listening to and sharing podcasts than in previous years. "Podcasts made me hear voices outside the 'stratosphere'", "Listening to podcasts made me come alive", "Today's jokes are all given by podcasts", "Podcasts make me feel like I have more friends around me", "I can only fall asleep after listening to podcasts at night", "The methods I learned in podcasts have made me see through PUA in the workplace".
In 2023, when "Citywalk" will become popular among young people, "Podcast" will also capture a large number of young people in first- and second-tier cities with its unique slow pace, emotional companionship and high sense of acquisition. According to the "2023 Himalayan Chinese Podcast Ecology Report", the number of Chinese podcast listeners on its platform in 2023 has exceeded 220 million, much higher than the prediction of industry institutions. Among the podcast listeners, young people in first- and second-tier cities are the main listening group, accounting for more than 65.12%, this group has the characteristics of high education and high income, and they are also the backbone of society in their early years.
According to the 52nd Statistical Report on the Development of China's Internet released by the China Internet Network Information Center, as of June 2023, the number of Internet users in mainland China has reached 1.079 billion. With 220 million Chinese podcast listeners, at least 2 out of every 10 Internet users in mainland China are listening to podcasts. What is the magic of podcasts that makes everyone start to spend time watching short videos and lingering in slow-paced long audio?
From the intuitive feelings of a large number of podcast users on social media, we can see that the practical value of podcasts permeates all aspects of our lives, whether it is to break the information gap, or to break through the emotional dilemma, or to resolve the workplace crisis, or to save the boring commute, or simply expand the cognition in different fields to improve our ability value in all aspects, etc. It can also be seen from this report of Himalaya that "fun and practical" is a major feature of podcasts, and without the overstimulation of visuals, the "sense of acquisition" and "companionship" brought by podcasts are capturing more new users.
The ability of podcasts to capture more new users is inseparable from the fact that "listening" is becoming a healthy trendy lifestyle. According to the "2023 National Listening Trend White Paper" released by Xinhua News Agency and Ximalaya in December 2023, from "electronic mustard" to "electronic bird's nest", the spiritual food represented by Himalaya promotes the upgrading of content consumption, and audio content plays an important role in the happiness of users.
At the same time, podcasts also meet the differentiated listening needs of users because of their rich and diverse content, matching the interests and hobbies of different age groups. For example, after analysis, it is found that the post-60s listeners prefer healthy podcast content in the Himalayas, the post-70s pay more attention to investment and financial management, the post-80s prefer to listen to business technology, the post-90s pay more attention to entertainment stories, and the post-00s like to chase suspense stories through podcasts.
The surge in the number of Chinese podcast listeners is inseparable from the value trend of users pursuing more content consumption, and it also directly promotes the transformation of content creation forms.
2. 240,000 podcasts: opening up a new space for content creation
In the Internet era, from graphics to live broadcasts, from short videos to audio podcasts, content creation has been following the flow of media: because communication technology, social environment and public sentiment are constantly changing. The popularity of podcasts is in line with current social trends such as pragmatism, rational consumption, and slow pace.
According to the "2023 Himalayan Chinese Podcast Ecology Report", its platform has more than 240,000 podcast programs with commercial value in 2023, with new podcasts accounting for 20.36%, more than 5.19 million new podcast episodes, and video podcasts are also developing rapidly, reaching 9,377. Podcasts have become a new blue ocean for content creation, opening up new spaces for audio.
In Himalaya, more and more people from different fields and industries are fascinated by podcasts and become creators, and video and graphic creators have also begun to choose to join the blue ocean of podcasts and try new content creation. For example, Lao Jiang and Lao Li, the anchors of the podcast "No Jiang Dao Li", were once well-known video UP hosts, and in September 2023, they cooperated to switch to audio and partnered to open a podcast talk show in the Himalayas, which gained more than 200,000 listens in just a few months, and was selected as the "2023 Himalayan Top 100 Podcasts", which is sought after by many young people on the platform.
"When recording the podcast, Lao Jiang and I both have a desire for expression that is not released on the video side, and this desire to express gives us more opportunities to look at the same issue from the perspective of others. Lao Li said. Podcasts that don't have time constraints and let them feel the coolness of expression. From video to audio, Lao Jiang and Lao Li are keenly aware that in the field of content production, podcasts are becoming the next new outlet and an important channel for anchors' personal IP.
When short video platforms are caught in the "red sea battle" of traffic, podcasts are becoming a new field for creators to deepen their content.
The report shows that the average episode length of Himalaya podcasts is 17.65 minutes, and the average episode length of new podcasts in 2023 is 14.9 minutes. From the data, it can be seen that in the process of Chinese podcasts flocking to the general public, short- and medium-length podcast content such as information interpretation, opinion commentary, and story sharing are popular among users in Himalaya, which is different from the traditional perception of podcast content from one hour to the public.
3. "Planting grass" and "planting trees": The commercial value of podcasts is highlighted
Because of its own unique attributes, podcasts have the ability to "plant grass" and "plant trees" that media such as graphics and short videos do not have.
In terms of content form, unlike the fast pace and impact of short videos and live broadcasts, podcasts are more like a slow-paced "spiritual SPA". It is the norm for a program to be more than ten or twenty minutes long, half an hour and an hour, and the completion rate of high-quality content can reach more than 50%. Therefore, in addition to being able to carry out short-term sales and grass drainage, the podcast's ability to "plant trees" is reflected in its long-term construction of brand mentality: podcasts can plant the target brand like a tree and firmly root it in the minds of users.
Podcasts are a unique mental marketing attribute that has been keenly captured by major brands. According to the "2023 Himalayan Chinese Podcast Ecology Report", the layout of podcasts by major brands has become a trend, and in the eyes of many brands, podcasts have become a way to build brand image, rather than an advertising channel in the traditional sense. For example, the famous sports brand Nike's first Chinese podcast "Nai Ting" was launched on Himalaya. According to a statistic from the podcast journal, there are currently at least 165 branded podcasts in active updates. For example, Tesla, which claims to be non-advertising, has established its own brand podcast "Tesla GIGA Radio" in Himalayas, focusing on sharing owner stories and Tesla's design concepts.
Therefore, with the expansion of the influence of podcasts, some industry insiders believe that when major brands lay out their new media matrix, they must have "one broadcast" after "two micro, one shake, one fast and one book". "Onecast" is a podcast.
The continuous prosperity of the content ecosystem is inseparable from the construction and improvement of the commercialization system. It is reported that Himalaya has created a "one-stop solution" around podcast marketing: from cooperation matchmaking, content production, to expanding communication potential, optimizing conversion links, to effect tracking, and opening up the podcast marketing link with platform advantages.
It is this marketing ability that can move between "planting grass" and "planting trees" that allows podcast creators to realize the commercial value of their content with the support of the Himalayan platform. According to the "report", in 2023, more than 22,000 podcasters will earn a total revenue of more than 70 million in Himalaya only in the form of paid content and XIMI anchor membership, and more than 60 well-known brands have reached cooperation with Himalayan podcasters, with the brand's advertising on podcasts increasing by 74%, and the order acceptance rate of Himalayan podcasters increasing by 172% year-on-year. The marketing value of podcast content is increasingly recognized by brands.
Himalaya has been deeply involved in the audio field for more than 10 years, and has established a "sound universe" with a rich category and a mature and diversified audio business model. As a rising audio UGC content, podcasts have become an important part of the Himalayan content ecosystem, and have also injected new vitality into the entire audio track.
Fourth, the head platform leads the podcast to the public
Behind the lively 2023 Chinese podcast circle, whether it is a record high of 220 million podcast listeners, more than 240,000 podcast programs, and the bright prospects of podcast commercialization, it is inseparable from the joint efforts of creators, brands and major platforms.
After the beginning of 2023, as the head audio platform, Ximalaya launched its podcast strategy with a "2023 Creator Conference", and continued to launch a series of podcast support policies and podcast activities after that. From "Thousands of Stars" and "New Voices", to support programs such as "Advertising Sharing Incentive" and "Story Catcher", from broadcasting objective film conferences, podcast all-stars, podcast roaming in space, to human story museums, podcast development conferences and other industry activities...... Through the power of the platform, Himalaya has promoted the prosperity and development of the podcast ecosystem step by step.
In addition to policy and content and activity support, Himalaya also uses the power of science and technology to empower podcast creation tools with AI: cloud editing. Ximalaya converts audio to text through its self-developed ASR technology, making podcast editing from "listening and cutting" to "watching and cutting", and AI also provides podcasters with intelligent and convenient creation services of "recording-editing-packaging". Podcast host Xiaoxiao (podcast "Dead Procrastination") said after using the "audio to text editing" function: "The 100-minute audio that is super difficult to edit took less than 10 minutes to process, and all the places in our mouths were deleted, happy." ”
"Find a partner" is another unique podcast feature designed by Himalaya for podcast creators, "guests and anchors on the platform of podcast programs" is the norm in the podcast circle, this function can greatly facilitate podcast owners to visit the stage and invite guests to co-create podcast content. It is reported that in the two weeks since this feature was launched, there have been more than 1,200 requests for podcasters not to find a partner, and the number of registrations has exceeded 6,000.
Ximalaya has also launched the "Copyright Protection Plan" to provide copyright registration for podcasters' original content, as well as to provide monitoring and rights protection for their works, thereby guiding the healthy development of the podcast creation ecosystem.
Ximalaya's influence as the head platform of Chinese podcasts has also been recognized by Apple Podcasts: on June 25, 2023, Ximalaya became an Apple Podcasts certified hosting platform, and it is also the only certified podcast hosting platform of Apple Podcasts in Chinese mainland so far.
"Daily commuting, fishing at work, and sleeping before bed" are the high-frequency listening scenarios of Himalayan podcast listeners, and podcasts are becoming an inseparable part of people's lives. With the emergence of more listeners, more creators entering the game, and a more mature business model, the Chinese podcast ecosystem may usher in a new outbreak and prosperity.
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