Over the past few years, talent scouting has been a hot topic because brands saw influencers as having a ready and engaged follower base to advertise too.

However, some experts now suggest that the followers of TikTok influencers, or Instagram Reels, don’t necessarily want to hear the same people talk at length in a podcast. 

Further to this, many brands have a renewed focus on the bottom line, wanting proven talent and ideas, and a desire for a better return on their podcast investment.

This focus will particularly affect original programming, which is a far greater gamble. 

However, the shift to focus more on the bottom line might also suggest that the podcast world is moving from a niche channel to a more established distribution channel for big advertisers.