Your Turn to Host
Most of what we do at ADOPTER happens behind the scenes. We plan the media, negotiate the rates, hone the messaging, and track the results. Then the host brings it all to life with an ad read.
We’ve heard a lot of ads. The good ones have a few things in common. The host knows the product, the tone fits the show, and the client notes get worked in so smoothly you’d never notice them. So, we made a game out of it.
Podcast Advertising: The Game is a party card game where you improvise an ad for a brand that doesn’t exist, on a podcast you’ve never hosted, while following a last-minute request from the client. And it’s now available on Amazon.
How It Works
There are three kinds of cards. Podcast cards are the shows you’re hosting, advertiser cards are the brands you have to sell, and client notes are the last-minute requests you’ll have to work into your pitch.
Each round, one player takes on the role of CEO. The CEO deals out individual podcast cards to players, and then reveals one fictional advertiser for the round. Each player draws a unique client note and keeps it face down until their turn. Then, you go around and perform an ad read for the advertiser, in the style of one of your podcast cards, and incorporating the client note.
The CEO picks the best pitch, and the winner keeps the advertiser card. Then the CEO role moves to the next player. By the end of the game, the player with the most advertiser cards wins.
“We’ve done thousands of host reads at MeidasTouch, so playing this felt surreal. It’s scary accurate. I’ve received some of these client notes. The difference is, this time everyone was laughing.”
Jordan Meiselas, Co-founder and Host of the MeidasTouch Podcast.
The Brands Are Completely Made Up
A gym membership that donates to charity every time you skip a workout. A cellular service that purposefully doesn’t accept incoming calls. A language app that teaches you just enough to confidently order drinks and find a bathroom.
Now imagine selling one of those on a true crime or a sports podcast… and the client would like you to spell out the brand name at least 3 times during the ad.
Anyone who works in podcast advertising will probably recognize a few of the client notes, but most of them are there for fun and an additional challenge.
From Podcast Advertising to Party Game
We printed the first run for the Sounds Profitable Podcast Business Summit in New York this September, the opening event of Podcast Movement 2026.
It was a fitting place to introduce a game built around something podcast professionals work with every day. Podnews even gave the game a mention, describing it as “a fun game for the podcaster in your Christmas present list.”
“Podcast advertising is an art form in itself. It’s storytelling, brought to you by sponsors who believe in the medium. A lot goes into getting an ad read right, and we were surprised by how well it works as an improv game.”
Glenn Rubenstein, Founder and CEO of ADOPTER Media.
And that’s really what makes the game enjoyable. A good host-read ad calls for creativity, personality, and the ability to connect with an audience. Take away the real advertisers and the pressure of an actual campaign, and you’ve got a pretty entertaining improvisation challenge.
Who’s It For?
Podcast Advertising: The Game is designed for ages 13 and up, with options for 2 to 16 players. Bring it to game night, a holiday party, or your next team social. Or give it to the podcast fan in your life who can practically recite their favorite host’s ad reads word for word.
You don’t need to know anything about podcast advertising to play. Although people who work in the industry might recognize a few situations they’d rather forget. And yes, it fits in a stocking.
Ready to Play?
Podcast Advertising: The Game is available now on Amazon.
You can also visit podcastadgame.com to learn more about the game, see what’s inside the deck, and find out how to play. And if you’d like to hear what a great ad read can do for a real brand, that’s our day job. Let’s talk.
Sherry Del Rizzo
Sherry leads editorial at ADOPTER Media, translating the agency's campaign experience and podcast advertising expertise into education for the industry. Her job, in short: take what ADOPTER learns from running real campaigns and turn it into something worth reading.
