This Largely Untapped Audience Feels Three Times Happier Listening Together and Reports Stronger Advertiser Associations across Favorability, Search and Purchase Intent

NEW YORK – March 30th, 2023 – To uncover what marketers need to know about co-listening (the act of sharing digital audio experiences with one or more people), MAGNA’s Media Trails unit partnered with Spotify Advertising on new research: “The Togetherness Effect: Why Brands Should Be Paying Attention to Co-Listening.”

The Togetherness Effect found co-listening is a natural behavior for most people, with the majority of respondents (74%) saying they co-listen once a week or more often. Of those listeners: 86% are Gen Z, proving co-listening presents a real opportunity for brands looking to connect with hard-to-reach audiences.

The study also found co-listeners reported feeling happier (indexing at 307 above an average range of all emotions), more relaxed (285) and excited (173). Co-listeners also applied positive associations to the advertising they heard, with +12% pts. in search intent, +11% pts. in favorability and +8% pts. in purchase intent.

“Our research finds that advertisers who reach co-listeners are sharing a moment with an audience that is more likely to be feeling good, having fun and dialed into the content, ads included,” said Kara Manatt, EVP, Intelligence Solutions, MAGNA, the investment and intelligence arm of IPG Mediabrands. “Co-listeners represent an untapped segment for advertisers to explore and an opportunity to maximize impact and build closer relationships with key audiences.”

How brands can engage co-listeners: 

• Focus on Storytelling:  Storytelling ads performed better than product-focused ads, with respondents agreeing the test spot “caught my attention” (at 114/100), “was something I was open to” (108/100) and “improved perception of the brand” (107/100).
• Device Matters: The study defined which connected devices are most favored by co-listeners. 79% of people on gaming consoles co-listen. For TV watchers, it’s 73%, smart speaker (62%), in-car speaker (58%), smartphone (52%) and laptop/desktop (50%).
• Pick your Time Wisely: Co-listening has its prime dayparts, too. More people are co listening during lunch, their commute, and at night time, compared to solo listening.
  • • The Top 5 Co-Listening Moments: Respondents shared what else they were doing while co-listening, topped by relaxing, and followed by hanging out with friends and cooking, entertaining kids and doing yoga.
• Mood Matters: 19% of study participants listening to podcast content reported feeling excited, 13% said they were focused and 9% felt curious, surpassing music listeners for each of these mood descriptors. Podcast listeners also reported a 17% increase in search intent and were 10% more willing to learn more about the brand.
  • • Good Vibrations: Study participants shared their feelings, stating co-listening: provided a “special bonding moment,” “puts us in a good mood to have fun” and was a “mood elevator.”

“From Wrapped and Blend to sharing an Instagram story with a Spotify song soundtracking the photo, it is clear that listening is a social experience,” said Jon Gibs,  global director and principal data scientist, Spotify Advertising. “Co-listening is the pinnacle of social listening but what does this mean for advertisers? Our data found that brands that looked beyond product-focused advertisements and leaned into creative storytelling in a co-listening environment saw a more powerful response from listeners.  It’s actionable insights like these that help us arm advertisers to create more impactful creative that better reaches their target audiences.”

The Togetherness Effect: Why Brands Should Be Paying Attention to Co-Listening enlisted 1,357 digital audio listeners, divided into co-listener and solo listener profiles, who listened to 30 minutes of digital audio content, via smartphone, speaker or desktop/laptop. Participants heard advertising from two brands, T-Mobile and CVS Minute Clinic, featuring both product-based and story-focused executions, and answered a range of questions concerning their demographics, media-consumption habits and opinions on advertising.

The full study can be found here.

About MAGNA:

MAGNA is the leading global media investment and intelligence company. Our trusted insights, proprietary trials offerings, industry-leading negotiation and unparalleled consultative solutions deliver an actionable marketplace advantage for our clients and subscribers.

We are a team of experts driven by results, integrity and inquisitiveness. We operate across five key competencies, supporting clients and cross-functional teams through partnership, education, accountability, connectivity and enablement. For more information, please visit our website: https://www-wp-stage.magnaglobal.com/ and follow us on LinkedIn.

About Spotify:

Spotify transformed music listening forever when it launched in 2008. Discover, manage and share over 100 million tracks and 5 million podcasts titles, for free, or upgrade to Spotify Premium to access exclusive features for music including improved sound quality and an on-demand, offline, and ad-free music listening experience. Today, Spotify is the world’s most popular audio streaming subscription service with more than 500 million users, including 205 million subscribers in more than 180 markets.

Media Contact:

Zinnia Gill
Mediabrands
VP, Global Corporate Communications
(646) 965-4271
[email protected]