“What does the U.S. know that we don’t?” With this provocative question, Chloe Straw, CEO of AudioUK, opened the organization’s inaugural “Power of Podcasting” showcase in April 2025.
The event was designed to solve one of the podcast industry’s most perplexing puzzles: despite compelling evidence of effectiveness, UK advertisers spend dramatically less on podcast advertising than their American counterparts.
“The podcast ad spend in the UK is £83 million a year, but in the U.S., it’s $2.38 billion,” explains Chloe. “If you distill it down to the ad spend per person, the UK ad spend is $1.6 per person, and the U.S. ad spend is $7 per person. That’s a huge difference.”
She believes this disparity is particularly baffling given the medium’s proven effectiveness. “The audiences in podcasting are engaged. They’ll often be listening for up to 40 minutes, single attention to one podcast, which is incredible,” Chloe points out. “They are wealthy. Numerous statistics suggest that podcast audiences have a large amount of disposable income. They trust the presenters.”
As the industry body representing approximately 130 independent podcast businesses in the UK, AudioUK is uniquely positioned to address this gap. The “Power of Podcasting” event brought together the UK’s top podcast production houses and networks directly with the brands and agencies that control advertising budgets, demystifying the medium and driving commercial growth.
The event itself emerged from AudioUK’s “podcast leaders lunches”—regular gatherings of CEOs from major podcast companies to discuss industry challenges and opportunities.
“The companies that we work with are incredible,” Chloe enthuses. “They’re all in competition with each other, but they all are so happy to come together and to share learnings and insights. It’s important to be competitive, of course, but they’re all very supportive of each other and the overall growth of the industry.”
The event’s development also highlighted the role of key industry leaders, such as Meera Kumar, a producer who partnered with Chloe to bring the concept to life.
“At AudioUK, our key aim is to grow the industry as a whole,” Chloe emphasizes. “We grow it both on behalf of our member companies, but we also do a lot of work around growing the industry in the UK both nationally and internationally. And as a result of that, bringing more money and more business into the industry.”
Inside the Event: Industry Leaders Share Insights
The showcase featured presentations from leading UK podcast companies, including Rusty Quill, Goalhanger, Granny Eats Wolf, Podmasters, DMG, and Edison Research. Each session was designed to address specific aspects of podcast advertising that often perplex newcomers to the medium.
“We tried to have a wide variety of different people who could talk about it,” explains Chloe. “Josh Akers and Charlotte Robbins from Goalhanger did ‘The Reality of Cross-Platform Partnerships,’ but they brought Bulldog Skincare with whom they work, so they could talk about how it worked. People often want proof of concept.”
Other sessions included Martin Bojtos from Podmasters (who was instrumental in the ideation and delivery of the event) explaining “Metrics 101,” Tom Billington from Granny Eats Wolf demonstrating “Using Sound to Tell a Story,” and Jamie East, head of podcasts at DMG, addressing “Brand Safety and True Crime.”
The lineup reflected the diverse approaches to podcast monetization beyond simple advertising spots. As Chloe notes, “With many of the businesses we work with, it’s not just about advertising. It’s also very much around sponsorships and brand partnerships over the entire series.”
Rusty Quill’s presentation highlighted another aspect of the UK industry’s unique position—many UK-produced podcasts have massive international audiences, particularly in the U.S. “They specialize in horror audio drama. They’re an incredible network and are incredibly commercially successful, particularly in the U.S.,” Chloe says.
The Revelation: Basic Questions Reveal Market Opportunity
Chloe shares that the most illuminating aspect of the event came from the questions submitted by attendees. Despite being media professionals, many had surprisingly fundamental questions about podcast advertising.
“We asked the attendees for questions in advance, which was great. And actually a lot of those questions were around like, ‘How do you buy a podcast advert?'” Chloe recalls. This revelation provided a key insight for AudioUK and the participating podcast companies: the knowledge gap was even wider in some cases than anticipated.
“I think that was super interesting because we take a lot of what we say around podcasting and how podcasting works for granted,” Chloe reflects. “It was a really good reminder for me that you need to understand that, of course, people coming to this industry, it’s still a relatively new industry, why would they know how ad buying in podcasting works?”
This finding has directly shaped AudioUK’s follow-up strategy, with plans for podcasting advertising webinars aimed at brands and agencies now in development, delivered by AudioUK member businesses.
Understanding the Advertising Gap
The event helped clarify the cultural and structural factors contributing to the UK-U.S. podcast advertising disparity.
“The U.S. was an early adopter of podcasting,” Chloe observes. “I think the advertisers and brands in the U.S. tend to be more culturally open, to new ways of working. In some cases more entrepreneurial, a bit less cautious. Of course, we have many great entrepreneurs in the UK, but there can be more of a tendency towards caution.”
She also identified a key structural difference in media buying practices: “In the U.S., from what I understand, they have a podcast ad spend channel in which they can put their money. Whereas in the UK, podcasting still comes under audio.”
This categorization overlooks the fact that podcasting is “definitely not audio” in the traditional sense, encompassing a much broader ecosystem that includes video, live events, merchandise, and TV options. Chloe estimates the total value of the UK podcast industry to be around £5 billion—far exceeding the £83 million in direct ad spend.
The showcase aimed to correct these misconceptions by putting advertisers in direct contact with the content creators themselves, rather than relying solely on intermediaries.
The Value Proposition: Intimacy and Impact
Throughout the “Power of Podcasting” event, one theme consistently emerged: the unique connection between podcast hosts and their audiences creates an advertising environment unlike any other medium.
When asked what podcasting offers that no other medium can, Chloe distills it to a single word: “Intimacy.”
“What an incredible privilege to be the sole person or people in someone’s ears, and they’re totally dedicated to listening or watching you with no other distractions,” she reflects. “That prolonged intimacy is wonderful. And that works for the hosts and for the advertisers.”
Chloe notes that this intimate connection translates to business outcomes, with podcast ads consistently outperforming other media in terms of return on investment. For UK advertisers still hesitant to invest, the showcase provided concrete evidence of podcasting’s effectiveness.
“The common misconception is that the return on investment isn’t there,” Chloe notes. “But the research shows that, if you look at return on investment, the return on ad spend is 4.9 for podcasts, versus 3.7 average across all media.”
Outcomes and Plans
The “Power of Podcasting” event has already generated tangible results, with multiple connections established between attending brands and the presenting podcast companies, according to Chloe.
“A lot of them have already made direct connections with some of the brands or some of the agencies in the room,” she reports. “There have been various meetings, and people are starting to work together.”
Building on this momentum, AudioUK is developing a series of follow-up initiatives:
“We’re hoping to follow up. We’ve got a few things in the pipeline with a few of our partners, and we are planning to launch a ‘Power of Podcasting’ webinar series,” Chloe reveals. “From autumn, a once-a-month webinar session presented by our various member businesses that advertisers and agencies can come along to.”
The first of these webinars, she adds, will likely focus on absolute basics—”podcasting 101″—reflecting the knowledge gap revealed at the showcase.
Plans for a second “Power of Podcasting” event in 2026 are already underway, with discussions underway about additional events in Bristol, Manchester, and London to expand the geographical reach.
Impact and Vision
For Chloe and the AudioUK team, the “Power of Podcasting” event represents the beginning of a larger transformation in how UK brands and beyond approach podcast advertising.
“We want it to inspire more agencies and brands to spend money on podcasting,” Chloe says. “Kickstarting faster commercial growth in the industry, particularly for a lot of the brilliant AudioUK member businesses who produce such creative and commercially successful content.”
This mission connects to a deeper industry philosophy that Chloe articulates: “I always say, I think that the creative industries are really interesting as a whole because there’s always this assumption that we’re lucky to work in them, which we are. It’s a wonderful job. I feel very lucky. But sometimes there’s an assumption that because you’re lucky to work in it, you don’t really need to get paid for it. And I’m always like, no, no, we’re lucky to work in it and we get to be creative, but we also should get paid and we should get paid well for it.”
Historically, what was once known as audio content has been viewed as “the poor sibling of TV,” but Chloe has a different vision: “The metaphor that I increasingly have started using is that actually I want podcasting to be the rich aunt. I don’t want to be the poor sibling. The content is brilliant and the data backs it up. Why should we not earn the money?”
“What does the U.S. know that we don’t?” With this provocative question, Chloe Straw, CEO of AudioUK, opened the organization’s inaugural “Power of Podcasting” showcase in April 2025.
The event was designed to solve one of the podcast industry’s most perplexing puzzles: despite compelling evidence of effectiveness, UK advertisers spend dramatically less on podcast advertising than their American counterparts.
“The podcast ad spend in the UK is £83 million a year, but in the U.S., it’s $2.38 billion,” explains Chloe. “If you distill it down to the ad spend per person, the UK ad spend is $1.6 per person, and the U.S. ad spend is $7 per person. That’s a huge difference.”
She believes this disparity is particularly baffling given the medium’s proven effectiveness. “The audiences in podcasting are engaged. They’ll often be listening for up to 40 minutes, single attention to one podcast, which is incredible,” Chloe points out. “They are wealthy. Numerous statistics suggest that podcast audiences have a large amount of disposable income. They trust the presenters.”
As the industry body representing approximately 130 independent podcast businesses in the UK, AudioUK is uniquely positioned to address this gap. The “Power of Podcasting” event brought together the UK’s top podcast production houses and networks directly with the brands and agencies that control advertising budgets, demystifying the medium and driving commercial growth.
The event itself emerged from AudioUK’s “podcast leaders lunches”—regular gatherings of CEOs from major podcast companies to discuss industry challenges and opportunities.
“The companies that we work with are incredible,” Chloe enthuses. “They’re all in competition with each other, but they all are so happy to come together and to share learnings and insights. It’s important to be competitive, of course, but they’re all very supportive of each other and the overall growth of the industry.”
The event’s development also highlighted the role of key industry leaders, such as Meera Kumar, a producer who partnered with Chloe to bring the concept to life.
“At AudioUK, our key aim is to grow the industry as a whole,” Chloe emphasizes. “We grow it both on behalf of our member companies, but we also do a lot of work around growing the industry in the UK both nationally and internationally. And as a result of that, bringing more money and more business into the industry.”
Inside the Event: Industry Leaders Share Insights
The showcase featured presentations from leading UK podcast companies, including Rusty Quill, Goalhanger, Granny Eats Wolf, Podmasters, DMG, and Edison Research. Each session was designed to address specific aspects of podcast advertising that often perplex newcomers to the medium.
“We tried to have a wide variety of different people who could talk about it,” explains Chloe. “Josh Akers and Charlotte Robbins from Goalhanger did ‘The Reality of Cross-Platform Partnerships,’ but they brought Bulldog Skincare with whom they work, so they could talk about how it worked. People often want proof of concept.”
Other sessions included Martin Bojtos from Podmasters (who was instrumental in the ideation and delivery of the event) explaining “Metrics 101,” Tom Billington from Granny Eats Wolf demonstrating “Using Sound to Tell a Story,” and Jamie East, head of podcasts at DMG, addressing “Brand Safety and True Crime.”
The lineup reflected the diverse approaches to podcast monetization beyond simple advertising spots. As Chloe notes, “With many of the businesses we work with, it’s not just about advertising. It’s also very much around sponsorships and brand partnerships over the entire series.”
Rusty Quill’s presentation highlighted another aspect of the UK industry’s unique position—many UK-produced podcasts have massive international audiences, particularly in the U.S. “They specialize in horror audio drama. They’re an incredible network and are incredibly commercially successful, particularly in the U.S.,” Chloe says.
The Revelation: Basic Questions Reveal Market Opportunity
Chloe shares that the most illuminating aspect of the event came from the questions submitted by attendees. Despite being media professionals, many had surprisingly fundamental questions about podcast advertising.
“We asked the attendees for questions in advance, which was great. And actually a lot of those questions were around like, ‘How do you buy a podcast advert?'” Chloe recalls. This revelation provided a key insight for AudioUK and the participating podcast companies: the knowledge gap was even wider in some cases than anticipated.
“I think that was super interesting because we take a lot of what we say around podcasting and how podcasting works for granted,” Chloe reflects. “It was a really good reminder for me that you need to understand that, of course, people coming to this industry, it’s still a relatively new industry, why would they know how ad buying in podcasting works?”
This finding has directly shaped AudioUK’s follow-up strategy, with plans for podcasting advertising webinars aimed at brands and agencies now in development, delivered by AudioUK member businesses.
Understanding the Advertising Gap
The event helped clarify the cultural and structural factors contributing to the UK-U.S. podcast advertising disparity.
“The U.S. was an early adopter of podcasting,” Chloe observes. “I think the advertisers and brands in the U.S. tend to be more culturally open, to new ways of working. In some cases more entrepreneurial, a bit less cautious. Of course, we have many great entrepreneurs in the UK, but there can be more of a tendency towards caution.”
She also identified a key structural difference in media buying practices: “In the U.S., from what I understand, they have a podcast ad spend channel in which they can put their money. Whereas in the UK, podcasting still comes under audio.”
This categorization overlooks the fact that podcasting is “definitely not audio” in the traditional sense, encompassing a much broader ecosystem that includes video, live events, merchandise, and TV options. Chloe estimates the total value of the UK podcast industry to be around £5 billion—far exceeding the £83 million in direct ad spend.
The showcase aimed to correct these misconceptions by putting advertisers in direct contact with the content creators themselves, rather than relying solely on intermediaries.
The Value Proposition: Intimacy and Impact
Throughout the “Power of Podcasting” event, one theme consistently emerged: the unique connection between podcast hosts and their audiences creates an advertising environment unlike any other medium.
When asked what podcasting offers that no other medium can, Chloe distills it to a single word: “Intimacy.”
“What an incredible privilege to be the sole person or people in someone’s ears, and they’re totally dedicated to listening or watching you with no other distractions,” she reflects. “That prolonged intimacy is wonderful. And that works for the hosts and for the advertisers.”
Chloe notes that this intimate connection translates to business outcomes, with podcast ads consistently outperforming other media in terms of return on investment. For UK advertisers still hesitant to invest, the showcase provided concrete evidence of podcasting’s effectiveness.
“The common misconception is that the return on investment isn’t there,” Chloe notes. “But the research shows that, if you look at return on investment, the return on ad spend is 4.9 for podcasts, versus 3.7 average across all media.”
Outcomes and Plans
The “Power of Podcasting” event has already generated tangible results, with multiple connections established between attending brands and the presenting podcast companies, according to Chloe.
“A lot of them have already made direct connections with some of the brands or some of the agencies in the room,” she reports. “There have been various meetings, and people are starting to work together.”
Building on this momentum, AudioUK is developing a series of follow-up initiatives:
“We’re hoping to follow up. We’ve got a few things in the pipeline with a few of our partners, and we are planning to launch a ‘Power of Podcasting’ webinar series,” Chloe reveals. “From autumn, a once-a-month webinar session presented by our various member businesses that advertisers and agencies can come along to.”
The first of these webinars, she adds, will likely focus on absolute basics—”podcasting 101″—reflecting the knowledge gap revealed at the showcase.
Plans for a second “Power of Podcasting” event in 2026 are already underway, with discussions underway about additional events in Bristol, Manchester, and London to expand the geographical reach.
Impact and Vision
For Chloe and the AudioUK team, the “Power of Podcasting” event represents the beginning of a larger transformation in how UK brands and beyond approach podcast advertising.
“We want it to inspire more agencies and brands to spend money on podcasting,” Chloe says. “Kickstarting faster commercial growth in the industry, particularly for a lot of the brilliant AudioUK member businesses who produce such creative and commercially successful content.”
This mission connects to a deeper industry philosophy that Chloe articulates: “I always say, I think that the creative industries are really interesting as a whole because there’s always this assumption that we’re lucky to work in them, which we are. It’s a wonderful job. I feel very lucky. But sometimes there’s an assumption that because you’re lucky to work in it, you don’t really need to get paid for it. And I’m always like, no, no, we’re lucky to work in it and we get to be creative, but we also should get paid and we should get paid well for it.”
Historically, what was once known as audio content has been viewed as “the poor sibling of TV,” but Chloe has a different vision: “The metaphor that I increasingly have started using is that actually I want podcasting to be the rich aunt. I don’t want to be the poor sibling. The content is brilliant and the data backs it up. Why should we not earn the money?”