RADIO STATIONS USING TECHNOLOGY TO RETAIN LISTENERS

Radio stations across the country are protecting traditional radio’s turf by taking full advantage of the digital revolution and opportunities created by the Internet. In a survey released today of 50 randomly sampled news, talk and news-talk formatted radio stations in the top fifty markets, News Generation found that more than half (27 out of 50 stations or 54%) are streaming 90% of their on-air content, and 40%, are streaming 100% of their on-air content.

Stations told us that the overall goal of their audio streaming is to keep listener drop-off at a minimum. Only 26% of stations interviewed said they are using their websites to attract new listeners, while 54% said they use the Internet to keep the audience they have and make it easy for them to tune-in throughout the day, at work or play.

With radio station personnel experiencing consolidation or layoffs in the past several years, responsibility for updating and managing station websites is finding its way from promotions to programming. Twenty-three of the 50 (46%) stations surveyed use programming personnel to manage their website; 28% use public affairs personnel; and 24% use promotion personnel to update and manage their websites.

And how do these listeners know where to tune in on the web? On average, DJs are promoting their sites on air, mentioning the website two to three times per hour. In fact, forty percent of stations require their on-air personnel to mention the station’s website three times per hour. And it’s this type of active promotion that is the number one way stations are encouraging listeners to visit their websites. Other marketing tools include offering free e-mail services, concert tickets, sales of CDs and station merchandise.

While stations have been quick to embrace this new technology, how do stations determine their website’s effectiveness? Thirty-one out of 50 stations (62%) use web hits to measure effectiveness; 26% use listener responses; and only six out of the fifty (12%) measure the effectiveness by advertising dollars. As the Internet audio broadcasting audience continues to increase, so will the potential to use this medium to garner more listeners and keep terrestrial listeners even in the online and unwired world.

News Generation, Inc. works with associations, corporations, government agencies, and not-for-profit organizations to get clients on the radio. For corporate information, please visit www.newsgeneration.com or call 404-812-5390. For samples of stories recently pitched to the media, visit www.radionewssource.com.