Bumper Ads

Bumper is a podcast growth and measurement company founded by Dan Misener and Jonas Woost (CBC and Pacific Content veterans) that in 2026 leaned hard into measurement infrastructure with the launch of the Bumper Score. Announced April 21, 2026 and launching as a free service in May 2026, the Bumper Score is an independent audience verification tool — a 0-200 index where 100 represents the industry average, designed to give advertisers a standardized, first-party data-backed signal of how reliably a show delivers ads to real verified listeners.

The Score uses real-time listener data, deduplication, fraud detection, and engagement signals from hosting providers, podcast apps, and episode-level retention data. According to research from Oxford Road, better data and verification methods could unlock an additional $1 billion in podcast ad spend annually.

To date, Bumper clients have already allocated over half a million dollars toward ad buys enabled by the Bumper Score. For independent podcasters, getting a strong Bumper Score becomes a credential to attach to your media kit — third-party validation that downloads convert to actual listening.

Bumper also runs paid Dashboard tiers and agency services. Where it shines is in solving advertiser trust — the chronic credibility problem in podcast measurement. Where it falls short is that the Score alone doesn't generate revenue.

Bumper is a measurement and growth partner, not a primary ad marketplace. For shows already monetizing and wanting better sponsor leverage, this is sharp. For shows pre-monetization, it's a step you take after you have inventory worth defending.