I have a google alert for the term ‘radio luxembourg’ so when the alert chimes I read the news article. Today it was another ‘listening under the pillow/blankets’ article. Barry Upton on 96FM Pattaya People Radio.
In the article it says
“The majority of the radio listening audience are travelling in cars but there is a growing number of online listeners and those who are discovering the FM tuning option on their Smartphones. There are also many options to choose a modern style of radio with USB inputs and Bluetooth, some of which include a docking station for your Smartphone so that it can be charging whilst using the larger quality speakers to play through.”
Some comments in review of these points
- Cars yes but online is not the opposite of car
- FM is not in the majority of phones and less so in leading models. Either not enabled or no FM chip at all
- Radio with BT & USB, so just tune to 96FM then
- There is no link to Pattaya People Radio in the whole article (bar main menu)
- What is needed is a simple big button on the web page that works on mobile too! see green play button at top of this post
Radio listening is popular because radio is a great communications tool and it should be easy to use out of the box or when the page loads! Don’t complicate it. Use your imagination, and keep it simple stupid (KISS).
Now you have me listening – why? why am i listening. How am I listening? am I an ambient blip never to return? what is my reason for being here? The good news is that you don’t have to find out. You just need to know how interested I am, can you find out who I am so you can remarket to me next week when you have a big guest about to arrive in studio? You can see why this would be a moment to send a push notification to me and the 1000s of other listeners. But you’d need an App for that I hear you say. Nope, just my email on your list. ASK ME.
Right now there are 2 people listening to Pattaya radio online – me and probably the server listening to itself.
The capacity is 1000, the extra cost of filling the 998 is zero to Pattaya People Radio, they already paid for that. The value in maximising the 1000 listener seats (computer jargon for your 2 ears) is a very excited studio – a happy radio executive and then the possibilities mount. Of the potential 998 extra listeners how many will be brand advocates for the station? how many will buy merchandise in your store and how many will converse with other listeners in a social media environment under your brand?.
Radio is more than talent / automation / adverts / imaging and staying on air. Invent your own healthy back channel with engaged audience and watch the enthusiasm leak on air. Make that phone hop – except nowadays that phone isn’t in your control room – it is in your listeners hand.
Go invent.
PS. this post is in no way an attack on PPR. We all know people with online and on air stations that have small listening numbers. My latest (unpublished) research shows that On Air stations are getting 0.3% to 5% of audience streaming online through web and app players. 1 in 300 to 1 in 20. This is a measurement of web stream server admin logs compared to audience research (face to face) for the Average Quarter Hour (AQH) of local and national stations on air in Ireland (August 2018).