Why is audio important?

In our 2025 Media App Report, we revealed that almost half of Pugpig apps now contain an audio component. The data makes a compelling case for why: apps with audio features consistently demonstrate a higher number of monthly sessions per user and a longer average session duration.

Crucially, users who actively engage with audio spend nearly twice as much time in the app as those who don’t. This suggests that audio isn’t just an “add-on” feature, it is a primary driver of retention that expands the utility of your app into times when users cannot read, such as commuting or exercising.

This guide outlines how to build a strategic audio offering using your existing Pugpig Bolt capabilities.

Defining the audio offering

In the past, in‑app audio largely meant podcasts. While podcasts still play a valuable role in the app, they mainly attract superfans, whereas casual listeners tend to prefer dedicated platforms such as Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

To drive true engagement within your own app, you should consider a broader strategy.

1. Exclusive Podcasts


Some publishers have successfully moved their premium podcasts behind a paywall within the app. This can help to drive downloads and enhance subscription value by preventing your best content from being commoditised on open platforms. But it requires significant investment to promote.

2. Article Text-to-Speech (AI vs. Human)


We have seen that text-to-speech is an excellent driver of engagement because it is a product that exists only in your app or website and not in third party platforms. Moreover, it allows article content to fit into moments of people’s lives where text or video can’t, such as commuting, exercising, cooking or getting ready for the day. There are two primary ways to create this content:

• Human-Read: The “gold standard” approach is using professional voice actors or editorial staff. However, this is costly and slow to produce.
• AI Narration: A scalable alternative is integrating AI services like Amazon Polly or BeyondWords. These tools can automatically generate high-quality audio for every article you publish, ensuring 100% coverage with zero additional editorial workflow. 

Encouraging engagement

Relying on a user to tap “Play” from inside an article often yields modest results. By the time a user opens an article, they have already made the decision to read. To capture listeners, you must intervene earlier in the journey.

The “Queue” Strategy


In our Media App Report, we analysed how Foreign Affairs transformed their audio product from a niche offering into a core feature. They introduced a dedicated audio section with a “Listen Queue,” allowing users to add multiple articles to a playlist from the timeline. This improved visibility and allowed users to build a listening session before committing to a specific article.

The “Edition” Player


Another effective approach is integrating audio into your digital edition. By offering a “Play Edition” button, you allow users to listen to the entire daily edition start-to-finish without needing to manually select tracks, perfect for morning commutes.

Curated Briefings


Also, consider a “Daily Briefing” playlist. This can be surfaced in a carousel on the app's home screen, offering a pre-packaged selection of 3-5 top stories. The goal is to reduce friction: meet users before they decide to read and allow them to queue tracks effortlessly.

Integrating CTAs throughout the app

In addition to building playlists and queues, you must ensure users can easily discover audio content at every touchpoint in the app. If audio is hidden inside articles, only people who are already reading will find it.

To surface audio to users, consider:

• An audio section: Adding a dedicated tab in your bottom navigation bar creates a distinct space for listeners, separating audio-first experiences from other more text-heavy sections. This can be supported by Tooltips, which introduce the feature to users on first open.
• Adding audio icons on cards: Ensure your timeline cards clearly display a headphone icon and the duration (e.g. “6 min listen”). This helps users perform a quick time-value calculation while scrolling, allowing them to spot listenable content without opening the article.
• Push to audio: Experiment with push notifications, deep-linking this notification directly to the audio player or playlist.

Developing a marketing plan

Finally, simply adding these features to the app is often not enough. To drive adoption, you should treat audio as a major product launch. Promote the feature in your newsletters, welcome emails and print editions. Remind your audience that your app offers an exclusive audio experience, such as narrated articles and curated playlists, that they cannot get elsewhere.

Measuring the results

Our Bolt Analytics specification details all the tracking available for audio events to help you measure success. We have events which track when a track is added to an audio queue, when it is played, paused and completed. We also track any engagement with our audio player, such as skipping forward or moving on to the next track in the queue.

These events contain parameters that indicate which specific track is being played, its duration, and the exact timestamp where the event occurred. This data enables you to measure the full funnel, from the total number of users hitting play, down to which specific articles are achieving the highest completion rates.

If you'd like further guidance or support with your audio strategy, contact Pugpig Consulting Services at info@pugpig.com