“Voice and audio have gotten an unexpected boost from the pandemic,” says Carat’s annual report on advertising trends. “In 2021 we expect there to be a significant increase in audio advertising as both brands and platforms realize its value and power… We are likely to see lots of fresh inventory coming to audio and lots of new ways to target. Speech will continue to gain popularity, and Amazon will incorporate Alexa into more and more devices and services.”

Over 30% of American households have a smart speaker, and Strategy Analytics data shows nearly 30 million smart speaker sales in Q1 2020, up almost 10%, Carat reports. 

As smart speaker usage increases, so does the potential for voice-activated advertising. “Digital audio is a growing area for advertising because of creativity like this, but also because it is getting easier to target more creatively. There is also so much more content now with the boom in podcasting,” said Carat. 

There’s never been a better time to investigate the opportunities audio advertising has to offer. To get on board with 2021’s hottest trend in advertising and hear your brand’s message on audio, contact SMI today.