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Yesterday, I conducted a poll about whether people were listening to podcasts more or less in 2020. I also asked if people would share the reasons why they're listening more or less, and I found some interesting trends. Ready for a thread?
For starters, these are the final poll results. The poll was open for 24 hours and participants were self-selected, meaning they deliberately chose to participate with a vote, a comment, or both. Why is that important?
It means that this collection of data may or may not accurately represent the overall demographic of people who listen to podcasts. Therefore, this is an informal exercise and is not meant to be seen as scientifically accurate.
Now, that said, the results are still interesting, so let's get to it. The poll numbers showed that more people are listening to podcasts in 2020, but of people who commented, guess what? Replies in the LESS category took a majority.
A total of 102 people commented, with seven saying that their podcasting habits have stayed the same in 2020, and therefore they didn't vote in the poll. My bad — "same" should have been an option.
Some comments were vague and I tried to follow up with them for clarification, but I didn't hear from everyone. I didn't want to make assumptions and misinterpret what a comment meant, so unclarified comments were not included in the final comment count.
Also, it is important to note that not everyone who left a comment voted in the poll and vice-versa. Some folks piggy-backed their reply to a friend's reply and didn't take the poll, or left a comment after the poll closed.
Time for another chart!
Time for another chart!
Of those who said they were listening to more podcasts in 2020, the largest reason given was "more time," most likely due to not working or now working from home. Several folks said they listen to podcasts while WFH as background noise.
It's no surprise that people are turning to podcasts as a form of human connection in quarantine. 25.8 percent of "more" responses specifically mentioned that they are listening more because they appreciate the sound of hearing others' voices while they are alone.
Possibly related to the last tweet, as well as due to having more time, a small percentage of folks said they started listening to podcasts for the first time in 2020 due to quarantine. If that's you, welcome! You've got so much you can explore.
Now for why people said they're listening less. Unsurprisingly, it's due to working from home. No commute = no podcast time for a lot of folks, which is something I suspected when I created the poll.
Some cited that they can't concentrate on podcasts due to distractions while at home. 7.5% said that they're tuning in to other forms of media besides podcasts, like music, audiobooks, and videos. The very last part of that statement doesn't surprise me at all.
2020 has been the year of Zoom and livestreaming. Since I've been at home, the vast majority of my social interaction has come from those sources. It got me wondering if people are trading podcasts for livestreams for entertainment. I don't have a definitive answer.
We're completely oversaturated with available content, whether it's TV, movies, podcasts, YouTube videos, Twitch streams...whatever. We only have so much time in our day, so we pick and choose. Have our priorities changed in 2020? I think the answer is yes, but it varies.
For those no longer commuting to a workplace, podcast listenership has taken a nosedive. I get that. Podcasts were my commuting drug of choice, too. Keeping up with podcasts at home has been a challenge, and I've pared down my subscriptions substantially.
I'm more likely to listen to music or a noise generator like http://mynoise.net while at home. I cannot focus on work *and* actively listen to what people are saying on a podcast at the same time. So I've turned to things I don't need to actively listen to while working.
But for those who *can* do their work and listen to podcasts, those folks might be picking up some of the slack from those who aren't listening as much. Especially if they have more time to listen now. Quarantine has also brought new listeners into the fold.
Several people mentioned that what they're listening to has changed. Overall, it sounds like people are seeking more comedy and fun stuff, which makes perfect sense when we have plenty of dystopia outside. That brings forth a larger convo about bigger podcasting trends, too.
This thread is long enough, so maybe I'll put those ramblings into a blog post or something. Overall, it seems like there's a fairly even split between people listening to podcasts more or less, tied heavily either way to not commuting.
Again, none of these findings reflect scientific accuracy, but it was fun seeing how it all turned out. To those who participated, thank you, and if you've read this far, thank you for your attention! END THREAD.
