Acast Launches Free Podcast Advertising Training Platform
Here's the thing about podcast advertising: everyone knows it works, but most marketers still treat it like ancient magic. Acast just fixed that. The world's largest independent podcast company launched Acast Ads Academy – two free, on-demand courses that teach marketers how to actually plan and run podcast campaigns without the guesswork. Built on a decade of real campaign data, it covers everything from basic planning to advanced programmatic buying.
And here's the kicker: you get an industry-recognized certification when you pass. Expected to train thousands in year one, this isn't just education – it's Acast positioning themselves as the industry standard while removing the biggest barrier to podcast advertising growth.
Acast announced the launch of Acast Ads Academy on August 29, 2025, a free learning platform featuring two comprehensive courses for marketers. Global SVP Advertising Joe Copeman leads the initiative, which offers "Podcast Advertising 101" for newcomers and "Podcast Advertising 201" for experienced advertisers, both culminating in industry certifications.
The Key Points:
Acast launched two free, self-paced podcast advertising courses with industry certification upon completion
"Podcast Advertising 101" covers basics for new marketers, while "201" focuses on advanced targeting and programmatic buying
Platform built on over a decade of Acast's experience and real campaign data from their global marketplace
Expected to train thousands of marketers worldwide in its first year of operation.
Acast operates across 140,000 podcasts, 3,300 advertisers, and generates one billion quarterly listens
Why It Matters: This solves podcast advertising's biggest problem: knowledge gaps. Too many marketers avoid podcast advertising because they don't understand how it works, not because it doesn't deliver results. By offering free, comprehensive training with real certification, Acast removes the fear factor that keeps marketing budgets flowing to familiar channels like social media and display ads. When marketers feel confident about a medium, they spend more money on it.
The Big Picture: For podcasters and producers, this represents a massive opportunity expansion. Every marketer who completes Acast Ads Academy becomes a potential podcast advertiser armed with actual knowledge about the medium's effectiveness.
This education initiative will likely accelerate the flow of advertising dollars into podcasting by creating a larger pool of confident buyers. Producers should prepare for increased advertiser sophistication – these newly educated marketers will ask better questions about audience demographics, engagement metrics, and campaign optimization.
The certification aspect also means podcasters can now recommend specific training to hesitant potential sponsors, turning educational conversations into business development tools. Most importantly, as more marketers gain podcast advertising expertise, the overall market becomes more competitive and professional, driving up rates and campaign quality across the entire industry.
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