Welcome to the 200th edition of the Fresh Air Recommends newsletter. If you’ve been here from Edition 1 in May 2020 and you’re still reading it, you deserve more praise than I do for writing it.
I worked it out to be 270,000 words. That’s three novels’ worth, of which approximately 135,000 words have been informative, insightful recommendations and audio related news, which leaves another 135,000 which have been a load of nonsense. 400 recommendations, a full poetry edition, two guest writers, only three complaints that I can remember and one joke that was so good that it was mentioned at Prime Minister’s Questions.
That last bit isn’t true, but it’s something to aim for in the next 100 newsletters. I posted on Linkedin about the 200th edition and confidently suggested that we should compile the Fresh Air Recommends back catalogue into some sort of book – something to buy at Christmas and then read occasionally on the toilet. This suggestion got a grand total of 9 likes at the last count, which probably isn’t enough for a publishing deal.
Fun Fact: the man who designed Fresh Air’s logo is Steve Wildish, who has written some of the finest toilet books in recent years, including ‘How to Swear’, ‘How to Adult’, ‘How to Hangover’, and ‘Is your Cat a Psychopath?’. Buy them now to delight your relatives on Christmas morning and brighten up their lavatory trips.
Anyway, congratulations to all of us for sticking with this fine newsletter and I look forward to cranking out more of these beauties in 2025 and beyond.
Best Practice in Podcast Advertising
As you may know, Fresh Air is as much about podcast media and advertising as we are about production. You didn’t know that? Well, it’s true. We have over twenty years of experience creating short form promotional campaigns, and now we have our own mini-agency – Fresh Air Media – to plan and buy campaigns for brands in the podcast space, whether or not they want their own show.
A huge part of this is the creative side. There are audio ads to be made, and host reads to be co-created with the presenters and production teams of the shows who run our campaigns. Podcasting is a trusted and intimate space, so getting the messaging right in the listener’s precious headphones-on opt-in special place is crucial. It requires us and our clients to tread a careful line where effective messaging meets creative credibility.
So, the IAB has put together its own selection of examples to help advertisers understand the creative options available when they enter the podcast sphere. There are some great host read examples, including Conan O’Brien doing a very entertaining promotion for bidets, and excerpts from podcasts who have created whole branded episodes and segments for their advertisers. The range of possibilities is pretty endless when you have the buy-in of an enthusiastic podcaster.
Inspired? Hey it’s nearly Christmas. Put podcasting on your media plan for 2025 and we’ll make something great with you.
Watch out for Ken at the Darts
Nik is Fresh Air’s Head of Darts, and so today is the absolute highlight of his year. Along with his best friends, he’s off to Alexandra Palace – the mecca of the arrows world – for their annual pilgrimage. Last year they went as 23 Robin Hoods and one Friar Tuck, the previous year they were 23 Chickens and one Colonel Sanders, and this year they are 23 Kens and one Barbie. Sadly, Nik is a Ken rather than a Barbie but it’s still going to be well worth a big chunk of today to try and spot him on the telly. Photos and screenshots will be shared in future newsletters, I promise.
European podcast tastes
Podcast app Podimo has released a Global Trend report looking into how tastes in podcasts differ across the world. Did I say the world? Actually they’re only bothered about the countries Podimo operates in – Germany, Spain, Denmark, Finland, Norway and The Netherlands – but it still tells you something. I think. In other less socially aware newsletters, this would be an excuse to employ lazy national stereotypes. Indeed, we used to do exactly that until receiving one of our few aforementioned complaints about a reference to ****** people and their ******** ******* habits.
The survey is illuminating – Finland has seen a 194% increase in comedy consumption in 2024, which clearly goes to show that joining NATO gives you more time to laugh at stuff. Spanish people listened to 408% more true crime, which shows that robbing England in the final of the Euros makes you partial to more wrongdoing. Norway’s interest in history grew by 400% which shows that winning gold in the Olympic women’s handball gives you a taste for finding out about other epoch-defining events.
2024/5
Alright Neil, you cynical old sausage. Where is your review of podcasting in 2024? What global trends have you spotted that will help our readers get to grips with audio in 2025?
Video – This is news to precisely nobody, but video has become an assumed part of podcasting. Whether you release your full episodes as YouTube films is entirely dependent on the target audience, but if you have the budget you should definitely film your podcast and use the footage for promo clips. No argument about it.
Brand Safety – there’s been an increasing amount of comment around brand safety and a sense that the podcast world is a ‘wild west’ when it comes to unregulated content. So advertisers will be far more sensitive to this in 2025, and we’ve already seen this just in the last month with our own clients. There’s a risk, when accessing huge loyal audiences to a third party podcast, that you accidentally sit alongside cranky content you otherwise wouldn’t go near. Will producers become more aware of their journalistic responsibilities when brands start to question their spend? Will commercial pressure slow down the race to reach Joe Rogan’s level of podcasting? I hope so.
Models – I’ve said for a number of years that there will be models for funding podcasts – whether branded or unbranded- that we haven’t thought of yet. There have to be ways that talent can create successful shows and make big money without taking big risks or overloading their ad spots. We’re starting to see some of those models emerge. What are they Neil? I can’t tell you as it’s commercially sensitive. Give us a hint? No, you’ll find out soon enough.
Always On – We’ve started to see branded diving in a little more head-first to the podcasting space. Yes in terms of creative executions and budgets but also, perhaps more fundamentally, by adopting an always-on approach. Creating a series of 6-12 episodes and then having a break makes sense from a budgetary point of view and allows you to take stock before you commit further, but the real benefits of podcasting come when you go always-on. You really see that habit forming among your listeners and a community building around your content. Embedding podcasting in a year-round strategy and adopting it as a permanent channel is the most powerful way to use audio. We’ve seen more brands do it in 2024, and I have a feeling 2025 will be the year of the always-on never-off podcasting brands.
You don’t need any more reflections or predictions from me. Go and enjoy Christmas for goodness’s sake.
Martin Poyntz-Roberts is soothed by Robert Smith…
I’m a wee bit too old to be the target audience of Annie Mac and Nick Grimshaw when they were in their prime on Radio 1, but, dear readers, we all get old, and it catches up with you. And so when I saw that this episode was a special one, where they’d be joined by Robert Smith, it became a must listen. What an aural treat. To hear Robert Smith talking about the likes of Charli XCX and her peers, who have repeatedly claimed that they were influenced by The Cure is a joy, and whilst he may not be fully versed in the whole Brat summer, he appreciates it and endorses what they’re doing. To be honest, I could happily listen to Robert Smith read the instructions of a washing machine as he has such a lovely voice, and manner. He feels almost self-deprecating when discussing the influence he’s had on other artists and this, I was amazed to hear, was his first ever podcast appearance.
The message from this show, if there has to be one, is that whilst Oasis are charging the GDP of a small nation to go and see them wheel out the same old hits, the frontman of the Cure is a massive advocate for fairness when it comes to ticket pricing. The Cure routinely play gigs that are 3 hours long and have an incredible back catalogue. Oasis have two decent albums. So, in a world dominated by people spiring to match the success of Oasis with all the swagger and BS that goes with it, break the mould. Be more like the Cure and give a shit. Thank you, Mr Smith for being on the planet.
Nik Gandhi looks back at the start…
I’ve always been interested in design, and while great at it (my GCSE in Graphic Design can attest to that), it still is an area that intrigues me.
This podcast goes into extreme detail in so many different topics, but at the heart of each episode is design in the world around us that we walk by without thinking twice.
99% Invisible satisfies an itch in my brain, but also was the start of podcasting for me. It’s the first podcast I ever listened to and looking back sums up everything I enjoy about the format. Where else would you find long form content on the advent of toilet paper and it’s evolution through the years, and in the same place find the history of the architecture of Hollywood?
What we’ve been listening to this week
Last Christmas.
If you like having songs dissected by people who really know what they’re talking about I’d encourage you to watch Wham! Last Christmas Unwrapped on iPlayer. I’m a bit of a George Michael obsessive but this show explores the beautiful mans’ effort to get a Christmas Number 1 and examines it in minute detail. You get to hear his solus voice track, the instrumental parts and how the whole thing came together. There’s a bit too much stringing out of the video itself which was, let’s face it, some people on a skiing holiday, but you still come away remembering the artistry behind a song that we all take for granted.
And he gave all the royalties to Band Aid. What a guy he was.
What we’ve been doing this week
Making Christmassy things.
Sometimes in Fresh Air, we like to create stuff purely for our own amusement, just to work the creative muscles in silly and unusual ways. So we’ve been making trailers for Christmas podcasts that don’t exist, featuring the stars of Christmas and the voices for the team. And hey it’s the season of sharing, so why not put the unpolished work in progress on the newsletter?
There’s Oli – Head of Looking too Young to be Served in an Off-Licence – as the Elf, Eva – Head of Cinnamon Buns – as a bemused true crime witness and Clara – Head of Gossip – as ‘mum who stepped on some lego’. A special mention also goes to Michaela’s youngest daughter Isla who put in a superb sweary performance, but it’s important to note that she didn’t actually say the naughty words herself. Yes, this is how we keep ourselves entertained at Fresh Air Towers when we’re not super-serving our wonderful clients.
Merry Christmas, you gorgeous newsletter reader. Have an extra sprout on us – your Fresh Air friends.
