COVID-19 and Public Radio

COVID-19 means we must rethink your marketing strategy in radio. (Public radio too)

-Live and local needs to be more than a slogan. It’s the lifeblood of the industry. Radio needs to recapture its hometown zeitgeist – not just during the pandemic but 24/7/365. And it starts with developing, embracing, and empowering its talent.

-Radio sounds better with fewer commercials. Let’s keep it that way. For public radio this means less clutter.

-Stop selling just the terrestrial audience. The audience is spending less time in the car. Think apps, smart speakers and laptops.

-Digital shouldn't be devalued. Think total reach.

For more on this, click the link below to read a blog from Jacobs Media on rethinking your marketing strategy. Think of COVID-19 as an opportunity

#publicradio #publicmedia #localradio

Turning Lemons into Lemonade

They're Still Listening...You're appealing to their values!

Knowing Your Audience

PRPD rolled out the Core Values of Public Radio between 2002 and 2005. I thought it was a big deal then, not because I was on the PRPD board for a couple of years, but because the research was able to define why listeners chose to listen and support public radio. 

According to the latest research shared by Jacobs Media in their 2018 Tech Survey at the PRPD conference, Core Values continues to be the top reasons for listening. I'm assuming this is across all platforms.

Core Values are the top six main reasons for listening.

  More credible and objective programming  78%
  To be informed about the news  72%
  Enjoy learning new things  71%
  Deeper news perspective  70%
  Respects my intelligence  68%
  Balanced perspective  65%

Favorite Program made the top ten. So did presentation style.

Some long held beliefs about radio programming, that listeners tune in because its a habit and because it offers companionship and because it's free, are pretty far down this list. 

For wonky research driven, audience first types like me, Core Values crystallized the reasons for the high loyalty of public radio's listeners. It's good news that those values still hold true. 

The results of the Tech Survey confirms that Public Radio continues to serve it's audience.

Jacobs Media: The sky is not falling!

I wanted to share this blog from Jacobs Media because within public radio the tendency often seems to be that the sky is falling. The latest fear is that radio will lose its in-car listeners. In-car listening is believed to be the last great hope. The recent news that car companies will be offering alternatives to radio in their cars, including WiFi, stirred up fears that radio will no longer be available and become irrelevant.

I've been in the public radio since the late 70's. Back then consensus was there was no way we could compete with commercial radio. Public radio's share of the market were measly. The best we could hope for was a niche service. We were.

We came out of the 70's and 80's growing audience because of our content. Loyalty to that content was built because it matched the core values of our audience. I remember hearing at the PRC in 2002 that public radio was done. In five to ten years, public radio would be irrelevant.

John Sutton pointed out in a recent blog, Public Radio 2018: Radio Still Rules.

• In Spring 2012 more than 37 million people tuned in to public radio.^

• The average number of weekly tune-ins per listener is around 7.5. +

• That means public radio listeners chose to listen to public radio stations more than 13.5 billion times in 2012.

On-line numbers don't come anywhere near the numbers created by on-air listening.

We've feared challenges from cable, cable news, talk radio moving to FM, satellite radio,  the Internet, Pandora, social media, and now mobile devices. The mentality is sky is falling. The sky is not falling.  Because of our content and connection to our audience, we are working from a position of strength.

The Jacob's Media Tech Survey 9 and research from Mark Ramsey suggests that listeners are not ready to give up their car radios. In the Tech Survey 83% of those looking for a new car said the most important feature they wanted in their car was a radio. In the Ramsey posting 76% disagree with the statement:

 ”It’s okay if automakers remove FM/AM radios from my next new car because I could always listen to my favorite stations on my mobile device via the Internet”

These are our listeners. They are clearly stating a preference. They are still loyal to their radio stations. They still believe in the connection and intimacy of radio has to offer. As long as you give the public radio audience what it wants on the platform(s) it prefers, a model of sustainability can be found.

Don't lose focus. Do what we were trying to do in the 80's and 90's. Do what these guys were and are doing. Start with your audience because they value our content.

Think Audience!

Weekends matter too on Public Radio

As a consultant and somebody searching for opportunities in public media, I've run into a lot of weekend programming that just isn't the same as the weekday programming. What's different? There's a programming shift. Not sure of what I mean? There are two places you can start. A recent blog by Fred Jacobs called "Working for the Weekend" highlights George Bailey's "NPR Weekend Programming" research. Fred came up with six takeaways. They all relate to the last. Do your homework.

1. Great programmers can program anything.
2. Know your audience.
3. Weekends matter. (Have a live presence because things happen)
4. Great programming transcends ratings methodology.
5. Do what George did. (use Metrics and Analytics )
6. Do your programming homework.

Part of my frustration as a listener is the lack of a live presence on the weekend in my market. Two major events happened in New England on the weekend. At the end of August and the end of October there were major storms that knocked out power for days. There was great coverage after the fact but, hardly anything during these events. The public service aspect of these storms was missing because the breaks at my local stations are pre-produced. It was a missed opportunity.

Public Broadcasting and Smart phones

There's a thoughtful blog from Fred Jacobs of Jacobs Media about the habitual use of smartphones. He's suggesting we (public radio/media) run...don't walk...to get our apps and brand out there. Use of these devices is rising dramatically.

It feeds on the need to be connected. I'm old enough to remember mail delivery time at college. (Remember Mail?) There were always about 100 of us waiting to see if there were letters from friends or family. Staying in touch was important.

I think there's an issue with being connected all the time. The constant ping of email is distracting to me. My son cannot understand me, because there are long periods where my smartphone is not on. But, that's not the point. Public Radio/Media must be on the platforms being adopted by our listeners (users) is we are to stay relevant.

Please read Fred's blog.  http://jacobsmediablog.com/2011/08/08/always-with-you-always-on/