How to advertise on Start Here: what it costs, who buys, and how to book

Spotsnow attributes almost all of Start Here's tracked ad activity to coded, direct-response host-read style buying, effectively the entire slate. The inventory is quoted per campaign rather than pulled off a public rate card, and it runs through ABC News, the publisher behind the show. BetterHelp, the top spender here, has run roughly 59 to 69 ads on the feed by Spotsnow's count. For a buyer weighing this show, that mix reads as a daily briefing that converts on offers, not just impressions. Spotsnow estimates all of this from tracked advertiser activity, not audience surveys.

You can see the full profile for Start Here on Spotsnow.

Why Start Here is built for host-read direct response

Start Here is hosted by Brad Mielke and produced by ABC News as a 20-minute daily briefing on national and world headlines. It sits in the mental health care advertiser orbit at the top of its roster, though the show itself lives in the news category. Spotsnow estimates the direct-response share sits in the high-90s percent range, which is close to the whole slate. That posture matters because host-reads carry codes, vanity URLs, and clean attribution, so a brand can tie a spot to signups the same week it airs. Reach is estimated at roughly 127,000 listeners per Spotsnow, and that number is an estimate, not a counted figure.

The format is the argument here. A tight news briefing keeps you moving from segment to segment, and the ad break lands inside that same rhythm rather than interrupting a loose conversation. Attention doesn't drop off a cliff at the handoff. A host-read borrows exactly that momentum, which is why coded offers work on a show read like the morning headlines.

On engagement, Spotsnow shows an Apple Podcasts average of 4.5 stars across roughly 6,000 to 6,700 ratings. The influence here is concentrated in the daily feed itself, a habit listeners keep every weekday morning, rather than spread across social platforms. For a daily news show, that repeat listening is the asset.

Who is advertising on Start Here

The roster runs wide, with Spotsnow tracking more than 250 brands on the show in the recent window, a mix of DTC direct-response advertisers and big-name produced spots. Recognizable names include Progressive, Mint Mobile, Shopify, Whole Foods Market, and PayPal.

The anchor advertisers, broken down

BetterHelp

BetterHelp sells online therapy memberships that connect people with licensed therapists over text, video, and phone. Spotsnow data shows it has run roughly 59 to 69 ads on Start Here, with estimated total spend over $100K, classified fully direct-response. A daily news habit and mental health support both fit the same person: a working listener who wants low-friction help without a commute.

Trust & Will

Trust & Will is a digital estate planning service that lets families build wills and trusts online in under half an hour. Spotsnow attributes roughly 23 to 26 ads to the brand on Start Here, with estimated total spend over $90K, all direct-response. Estate planning sells to responsible, middle-income households, which is the exact profile a national news briefing gathers.

Quince

Quince is a DTC brand selling affordable-luxury clothing, home goods, and accessories factory-direct. Spotsnow data shows roughly 37 to 43 ads on the show, with estimated total spend over $70K, classified direct-response. Quince targets value-conscious buyers who want premium materials at a fair price, and this audience skews toward exactly that kind of considered spending.

Progressive, the awareness outlier

Progressive is one of the most frequent brands on the show, but it runs mostly produced brand spots rather than coded host-reads. That's an awareness objective sitting next to all the direct-response, and it shows the feed can carry both.

All spend figures are Spotsnow estimates.

Why news brands cluster here

The pattern on Start Here isn't random. A daily briefing draws people who show up on purpose, in a decision-making frame, before the workday starts. Mielke's read carries the credibility of ABC News, so an endorsement lands as a recommendation from a trusted daily source rather than a random ad slot. Pair that authority with an audience that's ready to act, and you get therapy signups, estate plans, and cashmere orders traced to codes. That's why BetterHelp, Trust & Will, and Quince keep coming back at the ad counts Spotsnow tracks, and why any brand with a clear offer and clean attribution should look hard at this feed.

How your ad could sound

Here's a produced spot that ran recently on Start Here, so you can hear the pacing and where the break sits inside the briefing.

If you want your read to convert on a show like this, keep it tight to the format. Open with a hook that fits the listener's morning, frame the offer in the host's own words, and hand back cleanly to the news. Say the code twice and say it slowly, because a code buried once in a fast briefing is a code nobody remembers. Give people a reason to act now, not later. View what a great sample ad looks like here.

What makes a show like this convert

1. The format holds attention through the break. A 20-minute briefing keeps listeners engaged segment to segment, so the read lands inside that rhythm.
2. Host credibility does the selling. Brad Mielke and ABC News lend an endorsement the weight of a trusted daily source.
3. The audience is ready to act. Spotsnow describes a listener base that skews slightly male, sits in prime working age, and leans middle to upper-middle income, concentrated in the US.
4. Repeat buying proves the math. BetterHelp's roughly 59 to 69 ads, per Spotsnow, is a brand that keeps re-upping because the coded response holds.

Start Here in a nutshell

Start Here reaches an estimated audience of news commuters who lean slightly male, middle to upper-middle income, and heavily US-based, listening every weekday to a 20-minute ABC News briefing. The brands already buying, led by BetterHelp, Trust & Will, and Quince, run coded host-read style spots aimed at signups and orders. Inventory is sold on a quoted basis through ABC News, not off a public rate card. If you're a direct-response advertiser with a clear offer and an attribution code, this is a feed to shortlist.