Compiled by Tess Connery
On the money with CommSec Market Update
LiSTNR has partnered with CommSec to launch the CommSec Market Update podcast with refreshed content and twice-daily updates.
The podcast still provides market updates for listeners but is crafted in a way that better lends itself to an audio ecosystem. The new format introduces a dual host discussion, and deep dives into not just the numbers, but why they are important and what they mean for investors. The podcast won’t assume that its listeners know everything about the market – but understands that they have a certain depth of knowledge.
Podcast Week’s Tess Connery spoke to CommSec market analyst Tom Piotrowski about the refreshed podcast and the work that goes into producing two episodes a day.
The refreshed podcast has been produced and distributed by LiSTNR since May 1, a partnership that Piotrowski says has worked well for both parties.
“What we had done previously was just rely on our own wits and resources to develop our own podcast. What we felt we needed to do was focus more on the needs of an emerging group of investors that have become a lot more familiar with the stock market over the last couple of years, and make sure that they were being well served with a nicely produced podcast.
“That’s where LiSTNR comes in with the incredible skill set and knowledge from a production and distribution standpoint.”
Financial markets and the intricacies of the economic world can be a daunting topic for people who aren’t as well versed in how they work. On the flip side, CommSec Market Update also attracts listeners who understand the market deeply. Piotrowski says that the accessibility of the podcast’s information “is really the starting point for all of our conversations.”
“We are really conscious that there are some people who have a very strong need to get their databases filled ahead of the day, but then there’s also another group of people wanting to understand how you actually approach the share market. There is a lot of complexity, and there are a lot of voices who will tell you what’s important and what you need to look at.
“All of a sudden, it’s a necessity for people to be a lot more informed about these developments. We really place a heavy burden on ourselves to make that information more accessible to people.”
In this column, we often speak to people who are producing one or two podcasts a week. This isn’t the case for CommSec Market Update, which comes out twice a day. Piotrowski jokes that the output requires “a lot of stamina!”
“The rhythms of the market dictate that you could do two, three, maybe even four updates a day, such are the windows of time in which things can happen.
“But given the fact that there’s only a finite number of people in our team, we opt for just two. The early morning podcast is probably the most challenging one, because you do need to get cracking rather early to be fully appraised of everything that has gone on in the overnight session. We aim to get something up by about 7:30 in the morning, which means we’re generally up at something with a four in front of it!
“We’re in here quite early getting up to speed with things, but that’s something that we take a lot of pleasure from as a team. It’s just a normal part of the way that we operate, really.”
Ultimately Piotrowski says that the team are really working to appeal to people’s curiosity, and bring them into what he calls “quite a fascinating world.”
“Our aim is to just have the average listener well equipped ahead of the day, so that there aren’t too many surprises as they look through the news stories of an afternoon. Most of the big headlines we will have touched on in some respect and provided some context.
“It’s really about providing the average listener with some context for the day’s developments, because then it doesn’t seem like it’s too far removed from your experience.”
[Listen to CommSec Market Update here]
Blowing out Birthday Candles: Three years of Fear & Greed
On Thursday, business podcast Fear & Greed blows out three birthday candles. Having launched during Covid, the podcast has clocked up twelve million downloads, more than 2,000 episodes, and 720 guests.
Fear & Greed is a collaboration between former Macquarie Media chief executive Adam Lang, former head of content at Macquarie Media, Michael Thompson, and former editorial director at Fairfax, Sean Aylmer. Having come from the mind of Lang, the podcast was the reason that Thompson and Aylmer originally met each other, with the journey starting in an office near Sydney’s Circular Quay.
Podcast Week’s Tess Connery spoke to the trio about how far they’ve come, and what comes next.
It’s been a big three years, how the show has evolved since it was first launched?
Aylmer: “We started in Covid. I think was Peter Fitzsimons or someone who wrote this great column in the Herald that said never start a podcast in Covid – and we stupidly did. We’re actually really proud of the fact that three years later, we’re talking to you.
“Last week was the fourth-highest number of downloads we’ve had, so we’re still growing. I think that’s something we should be proud of.”
Lang: “There are so many things that we’ve learned along the way. Some things are massive lessons and other things just show that we do think so differently. So incrementally over time you look back and go, we do things so differently now – and better! I’d love to say that in another three years’ time, we’ll be able to say the same thing.”
What sort of topics or guests do you find resonate most with your audience?
Aylmer: “Investing is definitely a really core thing for us. Investors like us, because we’re certainly not giving them any advice, but we’re talking about stuff they should be thinking about. That and economics. Our biggest show in recent times was the one after the budget last week. We have Stephen Koukoulas, a well known economist on every Monday, he rates really well. So economics or investing are definitely the two things, I would argue.”
Thompson: “I think what we’ve learned is just about wrapping it in a packaging that is appealing. Sean looks pretty sour right now, but he’s an entertaining and funny guy, with a good personality. It’s just about making sure that that comes through.
“We make sure that when we say we’re going to have an episode out every single weekday, and it’s going to be available by 5:30am, that it is there by 5:30am so that we become an essential part of people’s daily routines. We are habitual people and podcasts should be part of that daily routine. That’s what we’ve found. I think that is one of the reasons why we’re still here after three years is because we’ve played to those strengths.”
Looking back at the last three years, are there any highlights that stand out?
Aylmer: “Michael is at heart – I’m holding myself back here – a naughty little boy. When we say things like the housing market is bottoming, you just see Michael in the background sniggering. I find that a highlight.”
Thompson: “I don’t know what you’re talking about! You’re the one that loads the content with innuendo.
“I’m going to go the complete other way and give a very serious highlight. For me, it’s actually after any big story has happened – something like the US banking crisis a few weeks ago, after the budget, after any interest rate hike. The thing that I enjoy most is that I’m learning as well as we go through this. The thing that Sean does, I would say better than anyone that I’ve ever seen, is provide the context around these stories and explain why it matters and the impact that it has.”
Aylmer: “We’ve had some great guests, from the boss of the Commonwealth Bank and the boss of Domino’s, through to small business owners who have these great stories. I really get a kick out some of the investing guys that come on and talk about stuff that is so left-field to me. Often we get tech people on, and I just find myself learning all the time.”
Looking into the crystal ball, what comes next for Fear & Greed?
Lang: “I’m acknowledging high bias, but I think the content is fantastic. Across what Sean and Michael do, our interviews, and how much coverage and context you can jam-pack into podcasts, I think we deserve to see our audience grow. I think we’re halfway there. In terms of what we’ve achieved so far, as good as it is, I like to think that it’s more in it.”
Thompson: “And world domination!”
Aylmer: “I think our competitive advantage is that other business podcasts take two or three stories and dive into it, we do about 12 to 15 a day, at least. We also give enough detail to work out why it affects individuals.
“You mention global domination, Michael, but there is the opportunity for us to do this in other places, we’ve worked out the process and the genre we’re in, and that has taken three years to get there. I think that we can do this, you can replicate this in other markets.”
Casefile True Crime comes out on top in April’s Podcast Ranker
The April rankings on Triton Digital’s Podcast Ranker have been released, and iHeart’s Casefile True Crime has claimed the top spot, knocking Hamish and Andy down to the second spot.
Casefile True Crime finished the month with 962,509 monthly listeners and 2,628,159 monthly downloads.
Joining Casefile True Crime in the top three on the Ranker is Hamish & Andy at #2 and Shameless coming in at #3, lifting 2 places.
LiSTNR’s podcasts saw strong listener increases on the Ranker, led by sport and comedy titles. They also came out on top in terms of top sales representatives. Sports Bizarre, hosted by Titus O’Reily and Mick Molloy, jumped 36 places into the top 50 podcasts at no. 46, Triple M Rocks Footy AFL and Triple M Rocks Footy NRL both rose 21 spots to no. 24 and no. 62 respectively.
WILOSOPHY, hosted by Wil Anderson, which moved to LiSTNR last year, climbed 19 spots and into the top 100 podcasts at no. 93, while KICPOD rose nine places and Motley Fool Money was up eight places.
LiSTNR announces new original podcast Blak Matters
LiSTNR has released the first episode of the new original podcast Blak Matters; an exploration of First Nations issues, and why they matter. Published weekly, each episode provides an honest conversation between accomplished radio presenter, 104.1 2DayFM’s Michael ‘MC’ Christian, and his long-time friend Teela Reid.
Teela Reid is a proud Wiradjuri and Wailwan woman, rebellious lawyer, essayist, storyteller and co-founder of @blackfulla_bookclub, a platform that honours First Nations’ ancestors as the original storytellers. In 2022, Teela was awarded the Indigenous Leader of the year at the Australian Law Awards and the Marie Claire Voice of Now. Currently, Reid is a Sydney-based Senior Solicitor practising in Aboriginal Land Rights litigation and is the inaugural practitioner in residence at the University of Sydney Law School. She is also an accomplished public speaker and was a working group leader in the constitutional dialogues that culminated in the Uluru Statement from the Heart.
With the forthcoming referendum, Blak Matters is an engaging and welcoming space for all Australians to become more informed on what has led to this point, what the Voice means, and how it could change the future of Australia. The podcast is focused on sharing stories and explaining the context of Aboriginal affairs leading to the Voice.
The Matty Johns Podcast expands to three episodes weekly
NewsCast, News Corp Australia’s on-demand audio arm, is now publishing three episodes a week of The Matty Johns Podcast, with NRL legend and media personality Matty Johns adding a new show to the line-up, Good Chat.
Good Chat sees Johns stepping into different genres, interviewing big-name talent from the music industry, movies, sports and newsmakers. Released every Monday, upcoming guests include Fat Boy Slim, Sarah Harris and Mick Fanning.
Since 2019, every week during the NRL season The Matty Johns Podcast publishes NRL Analysis, where Johns and Cooper Cronk analyse the latest in the NRL every Wednesday. On Friday, it’s the Family Episode, which sees Johns at home with his wife Trish and their sons Jack and Cooper bringing listeners into their inner circle with lots of banter and laughs.
News Corp Australia’s general manager, commercial networks Ainslee Horstman said the podcast had been a phenomenal success for NewsCast over the past three years.
“The Matty Johns Podcast is one of the top performing sport podcasts in the country, regularly featuring in the top 25 on the Triton Podcast Ranker,” Horstman said. “With over 400,000 downloads a month the podcast has really gone from strength to strength.
“Commercially, it has been supported by Neds, Audible, Monday.com and Foxtel. We’re excited to introduce Good Chat to the franchise and only see the podcast further growing from here with episodes now published across Apple Podcasts, Spotify and on YouTube.”
[Listen to The Matty Johns Podcast here]
Dyl & Friends and entire Producey slate join iHeart Podcasts
The iHeartPodcast Network Australia has announced a strategic partnership with Producey, focused on the monetisation and growth of its podcast slate. This includes sales representation for the popular podcasts Dyl & Friends, List Cloggers, 200 Plus, Bromley-Lynch and more.
The addition of the Producey Podcast slate further showcases the iHeartPodcast Networks’ ability to connect brands with the podcasts Australians can’t get enough of. With half of the nation’s top 10 podcasts, the addition further bolsters the networks line-up.
Director of Producey, Dylan Buckley said: “We’re delighted to partner with the iHeartPodcast Network to grow the sales component of the Producey podcast network. We’re extremely proud of the content we create for sports-loving millennial males and with ARN/iHeart’s support we’re excited about the opportunities that will open up for us in the future.”
Corey Layton, head of digital audio said: “Producey’s sports content credentials are exceptional as proven by the scale of fan communities that surround Dyl and the broader slate. The flagship show has captured sports fans for over 5 years and we’re thrilled to be working with the team to propel it further well into the future.”
Triton Digital announces partnership with Audacia across APAC
Triton Digital has partnered with Audacia to represent the Triton Audio Marketplace inventory across all audio formats in the Asia Pacific region.
Through this partnership, the Audacia ad network will have access to Triton Digital’s exchange of premium audio publishers ranging from live streaming on demand and podcasts.
Audacia will be leveraging Triton Digital’s Supply Side Platform (SSP), an audio-first SSP, built from the ground up for broadcasters, podcasters, and music streaming services.
Integrated with the world’s leading DSPs, the SSP provides advanced publisher controls to manage access, regulate pricing, and establish ad quality settings in the Triton Audio Marketplace.
In addition, both open and private marketplace deals with specific buyers, brands or sales houses can be configured. Audacia will be able to create custom, targeted packages of audio inventory and make them available to any connected DSP.
