And the winner is: Audio!

The current hype about the CLUBHOUSE social app is only the preliminary result of a steady development: audio content is the new “big thing” on the Internet.

You could have guessed it: The podcast boom last year was only a harbinger of a significant innovation in the digital media sector. Previously only produced for a small niche audience, podcasts suddenly hit the big stage: They are the winning medium of 2020. Almost 24 million Germans over the age of 14 use podcasts, over 10 million of them regularly. Even if the majority of the audience is between 14 and 29 years old, most podcast formats have a colorful audience – the audio contributions are popular with all age groups.

This has intensified again, not least during the corona pandemic. At the latest with the weekly NDR podcast “The Coronavirus Update”, in which the renowned virologists Christian Drosten and Sandra Ciesek provide information on the virological aspects of the pandemic, the trend hit German households en masse. Not only information and news podcasts are popular, but also “lighter topics” relating to comedy, leisure and lifestyle. The flexibility in use is unbeatable and very much in vogue: No rigid radio program, but content on demand with easy and quick access, even when strolling along the river due to lockdown. The content is consistently based on the increasingly widespread devices with integrated voice control. Smart speaker systems are among the favorite gadgets of Germans: about every second person goes “to bed with Alexa”. Amazon has now sold well over 100 million pieces of its gadget worldwide. Google is on the heels of the market leader with a current market share of around 20 percent. The best prerequisites for finding out about new trends and developments before falling asleep or over breakfast coffee, or simply catching up on world events by simply using the audio formats from SPIEGEL or TAGESSCHAU.

CLUBHOUSE is fueling the trend

And now CLUBHOUSE: The social app to participate – again audio-based, i.e. exclusively with content recorded by the user. At the moment, of course, it remains to be seen how the new platform will develop after the first marketing push. Very questionable data protection is currently making CLUBHOUSE an absolute no-go in the business sector. Who wants to upload their entire address book with business accounts contrary to the requirements of the GDPR in order to be able to use the app completely? The current restriction on users of Apple’s iPhone also makes CLUBHOUSE too unattractive in the business environment. Because contrary to the perceived prevalence, at least in Germany only about 20 percent of people use the Apple version of a smartphone. But of course the creators of CLUBHOUSE know that the first large social audio platform can only be successful if it captivates hundreds of millions, if not billions of users. There may still be one or the other technical challenge to be solved in order to deal with the significantly larger amount of data compared to texts and images – but in the end this will be just as solvable as a version of the app that at least in principle complies with European data protection guidelines goes. In any case, there is already no shortage of prominent users from politics and lifestyle.

We will look for content differently

One thing is already certain: the future belongs to audio content, and this development will also radically change the way we deal with search engines. “Alexa, find a PR agency in Munich” will soon trigger fights over the two or three answers that the audio gadget then even throws out for reasons of clarity. And you shouldn’t be mistaken: of course, voice-controlled handling of IT in a business environment is much more practical than scrolling through search results. So it remains exciting to see where the brave new audio world will lead us in the years to come. The Corona crisis has already shown one thing for sure: More digitization is right at the top of the agenda in most companies. Of course, WORDUP PR is carefully monitoring developments from the point of view of press and PR work: We are already showing our customers implementation examples and providing impetus for successful public relations in the audio sector.

New podcast on game theory and behavioral economics

By the way, our customer TWS Partners AG – the leading consultancy for game theory in Europe – launched its own regular podcast at the end of last year. With the “Game Changer”, TWS would like to share its enthusiasm and passion for game theory, behavioral economics and their areas of application, and about current trends and Inform about possible applications of these economics. Are you curious? You can find the podcast HERE. Have fun while listening!