For anyone wanting a sneak peek into just how big the global podcasting industry is, then the Podcast Show 2023 was most definitely a good place to start.
Held over two gloriously sunny days in the UK capital and touted by the organisers as “the largest international event for the business of podcasting’ the event certainly didn’t disappoint.
Taking place at the Business Design Centre, Islington, the venue with its enormous single-span glass roof proved to be an eye-catching backdrop for the event, which brought together a heady mix of podcasters, listeners, industry professionals, brands and advertisers.
And there’s no doubt The Podcast Show attracted big crowds together with plenty of industry partners. Initial reports from the organisers had over 3,000 people attending on Day 1 and interestingly nearly 30% of those were attending from overseas. The crowds were helped by the rockstar podcasters scattered across the two-day schedule. Among the big names attending were Katherine Ryan, Katie Price, Russell Tovey, Sam & Billie Faiers, Luisa Zissman, Sam Thompson, Pete Wicks and Roman Kemp.
The other contributing factor was the ticket price.
An admission fee of between £49-75 for one day and £87-135 for both days, depending on how early you booked, was an insightful move and no doubt helped attract both the indie podcasters all the way through to the major players.
Meanwhile, it was almost the battle of the brands in the exhibition hall. Taking into consideration session branding and floor space, Amazon Music together with Wondery and Audible seemed to be the brand winner. But it was a close-run thing though with other brands and big industry players cutting through, including BBC Sounds, Sky News, Acast, Shure and Fresh Air all having a significant presence.
Too many sessions…too little time.
Overall the Podcast Show 2023 was a remarkable celebration of the power of audio storytelling and all things ‘podcast’. However, it's also worth noting the sheer number of sessions on offer was somewhat overwhelming. Thankfully the Podcast Show app proved to be an invaluable tool in sorting through the huge amount of information available.
And with so many sessions to choose from, it was impossible to attend everything. But for those who were lazer focussed on what they wanted to see, there were certainly some great takeaways.
For fans of true crime podcasts, the BBC’s ‘True Crime, In Its Prime’ proved to be a standout session. Hosted by BBC Sounds commissioning editor, Dylan Haskins the panel session saw some of the genres top talents including share their experiences and insights. Special mention for Jamie Bartlett (The Missing Crypto Queen, Believe in Magic) whose passion for podcasts and overall honesty was nothing but contagious.
Meanwhile, the ‘How To Align Your Brand With Your Branded Podcast’ session offered some great nuggets of wisdom from the panel, not least being the challenge for brands to brave and not simply make a podcast about themselves and/or their products!
On a similar theme, in the Spotify led session, ‘The Future of Podcasting with Spotify’, Rhys Davies from EE (one of the UK’s mobile network operators and part of British Telecom) spoke about how bigger brands are catching on to the fact that the level of attention and engagement is massive in podcasting and completely unmatched by any other medium. Clearly, big brands are seeing proven stats that help them understand what an incredibly powerful advertising medium podcasting is. Encouraging news for podcast producers looking to sponsorship.
Elsewhere the ‘Rockonteurs: The Story of Making a No.1 Music Podcast’ session proved an interesting insight into how authenticity remains at the heart of great podcast production - and how an address book with some of the greatest names in the music business helps a little too!
In conclusion, the above summaries don’t even begin to scratch the surface of what was on offer. It would have been physically impossible to attend all the sessions. But hopefully they do give a taste for some of the insights shared. And finally, if you are in the podcast business and only attend one industry event a year, then make sure it’s this one.
