Effects of Ad Placement and Type on Consumer Responses to Podcast Ads

The purpose of this study was to understand the effects of podcast ad placement and podcast ad type on consumers' perceived intrusiveness, perceived irritation, attitude toward the ad, and ad avoidance. Our 2 × 2 (traditional ad vs. sponsorship by beginning vs. middle) experimental study found that sponsorships generated better consumer responses than did traditional ads and that podcast ads placed at the beginning of audio podcasts yielded better consumer responses than those placed in the middle. Implications for marketers and advertisers are discussed.