By Arthur Larrey, CEO and Co-Founder, Audion
It’s the Outcomes Era.
Across advertising, brands, agencies, platforms, and publishers are retooling around one imperative: measurable results. The industry is moving beyond impressions and awareness and toward accountable media that connects exposure to action, then action to revenue.
No channel has illustrated this shift better than television. In what’s now widely described as Performance TV, connected TV has become a measurable, optimizable outcomes channel.
Thanks to advances in attribution, access, and AI-driven campaign optimization, CTV is competing directly for budgets historically reserved for search and social.
Audio should be next.
For all its scale and engagement, investment in digital audio simply hasn’t kept pace with other channels. Global on-demand audio streams reached 2.5 trillion in the first half of 2025, and monthly podcast listenership now exceeds half a billion people worldwide.
Yet digital audio advertising remains a fraction of the size of search and social.
The primary issue here is accountability. For years, audio has been categorized primarily as a branding medium because its performance has been difficult to measure consistently, optimize in flight, and scale efficiently. As a result, performance in audio often relies on promo codes, vanity URLs, and show-by-show buying. While effective in certain contexts, these approaches are labor-intensive and hard to scale across fragmented platforms.
If audio is to claim its rightful place in the modern media mix, it must evolve in four key ways.
Make audio addressable at scale
The future of audio lies beyond siloed show buys in unified, cross-platform activation. As audio increasingly spans formats (think podcasts and music), streaming platforms, and even video-based distribution environments, advertisers need a way to holistically identify and reach audiences consistently.
If advertisers hope to activate cross-system campaigns with scale and precision, they’ll need tools that enable better content indexing and increased contextual awareness.
Establish credible third-party measurement
Performance channels earn budget because they are measurable. Similarly, it’s critical that audio adopt (and standardize) rigorous, independent methodologies for tracking conversions and brand lift.
Once advertisers can rely on consistent performance indicators, audio will transition from experimental spend to sustained investment.
Optimize in flight with performance signals
Advertisers no longer have to wait for campaigns to end to assess effectiveness. The modern media toolkit allows them to learn and adjust continuously.
Audio must embrace real-time optimization by using accumulated performance signals to dynamically refine targeting, frequency, placement, and other media variables. Machine learning and automation are no longer optional features here, but rather the foundational capabilities of the Outcomes Era.
Adapt creative to context
One of audio’s greatest strengths is its intimacy. Creative that reflects context (time of day, listener environment, or audience behavior) can dramatically improve relevance and response rates.
Dynamic creative approaches, including high-quality AI-assisted production tools, can help advertisers scale this personalization while maintaining brand integrity.
The future of performance audio
If audio adopts these performance principles, the payoff is significant. Advertisers will gain a high-engagement channel capable of driving measurable ROI. Publishers will unlock revenue tied to results rather than CPM alone. Consumers will benefit as well, enjoying a healthier ecosystem where quality content is supported by accountable advertising.
The market signals are clear. Search and social command more than half of global ad spend because they combine automation, measurement, and optimization at scale. CTV has grown rapidly for the same reason. In a world where accountability is table stakes, channels that deliver performance rigor get the proverbial goods—and capture the budgets.
Audio already has the audience and the cultural relevance. Now it’s time for it to earn its performance credentials.
