RAJAR Q3 2021

It’s back after 18 months. For a comprehensive round-up, do take a look at what Matt Deegan and Adam Bowie have written.

With more of us working from home and getting up later, we’ve expected the 8am breakfast peak to shift later and for home listening to further surpass in-car/workplace consumption. The latest data reflect this.

We can also see a pattern - daytime listening has increased and holds more steady. Listeners are still choosing radio, it’s just where they listen that’s changed.

Digital listening - including DAB/internet/digital TV - has jumped to 65.8% (up from 58.6%). Looking at devices, DAB is the most popular platform with a 43% share of all listening (up from 40.2%).

Analogue (AM/FM) now accounts for 34.2% (down from 41.4%) with the internet at 18.1% (up from 14%). Smart-speakers are a key factor here - and analogue’s decline is a device switch accelerated by COVID.

Turning to demographics, while 15-24 reach hasn’t fallen dramatically overall (there’s been a gradual decline) hours have taken a bigger hit once again. See Matt’s analysis for further details.

Regarding new stations, it was a very impressive debut in the survey for Boom Radio and Times Radio which reach 233k and 637k listeners each week respectively.

On new national brand roll-outs, the total reach for all GHR’s new frequencies hasn’t declined dramatically and hours remain the same.

While the strong heritage ILR stations have lost audience, as expected - but still not as much as many had predicted - the lesser performing stations (or group!) first acquired by Bauer two years ago area a far more attractive product now than they ever were before. As Matt Deegan says:

Older audiences have always been more voracious consumers of radio.

These latest data continues to prove that point.

What percentage of the heritage ILR, INR or BBC audience is actually engaged? Are they just listening because they always have? Do they just consider their chosen station to be the least worst option?

Perhaps this explains little change following the rebrand as Greatest Hits Radio - and maybe those older audiences actually prefer it to what was there before.

The success of new entrant Boom, amongst other stats, shows there’s clearly an appetite for stations super-serving older demographics - stations that aren’t desperately trying to drive new younger ones that they’ll struggle to attract.

I know we’re not really supposed to be drawing quarterly or yearly comparisons yet - but where's the fun in not having a go?

BPR study: streaming closes in on our leading medium

A global study from BPR suggests radio remains a relatively robust medium despite increased competition with the highest cumulative audience of all audio listening (streaming close behind - podcasts not yet as widely consumed and time spent listening to them is much less).

However, music streaming is slightly more people’s main listening medium.

In almost every one of the 8 markets surveyed, radio is the most listened to audio platform but it’s pretty close. In London, streaming is ahead by just 1 percentage point - further ahead in Madrid and Stockholm. Varied results for podcasting but consistently the lowest.

Total share of listening: only 1 percentage point in it between music streaming and radio for 18-34s. Among 35-54s, radio has a much stronger lead. Podcasting sees similar results across the board. Streaming is only ahead in London and Stockholm but, again, close elsewhere.

40% say a radio station’s music mix is their main reason to listen:

There is clearly still a sizeable music-driven audience for radio despite the alternatives on offer.

Good news for the medium - but prepare for big tech to change its tune from "linear is dead" to "we want a slice of the cake".

74% of podcast listeners also consume linear radio - so an opportunity for the radio industry to own podcasting.

No other podcast provider will have as direct a platform to reach potential listeners with new shows nor the same opportunity to grow the space in the years to come.

Individuals or organisations with established niche audiences also have an advantage in cutting through.

More Question Time Tinfoil Hatters

Tonight’s Question Time has sent the anti-BBC conspiracy theorists into overdrive. Firstly, Fiona Bruce declaring that the "majority of (the audience) voted for Brexit" and, secondly, her repeated clarification that Prince Andrew denies the allegations against him.

Regarding selection of the QT audience, it always tries to reflect the location as accurately as possible. Tonight’s show came from Aldershot where 57.9% voted for Brexit and 58.4% voted Conservative.

A show filmed in Hackney would have a studio audience made up of roughly 78.5% in favour of remain and roughly 70.3% Labour voters.

Meanwhile, others complain of "bias" because little to no Brexit and/or Tory voters were overly supportive of either cause.

In reality, this just suggests many Brexit and/or Tory voters in Aldershot regret their decision and/or don’t support the current government.

Re Prince Andrew, broadcasters are required to offer a right of reply to those who are the subject of significant criticism or allegations of wrongdoing either by seeking a response themselves or by acknowledging a publicly stated comment on the said allegation(s).

This is a fairness obligation under the Ofcom Broadcast Code - and it’s reassuring for the licensee to know they’re legally covered.

In 2021, nothing gets an audience by default

A common misconception is that whenever an area loses a trusted local radio brand, a community station becomes the de facto replacement regardless of identity, proposition or USP.

You won’t get listeners by default. Content has to go to the next level to actually attract an audience - now more than ever.

You need a real point of difference (meaningful local content etc) as well as a clear proposition, a strong identity and to be a visible, accessible, multi-platform operation.

If human resources are used wisely, community stations can actually match (or even exceed) the public service value of an ILR station - either with a linear service or on demand content. As Paulo tweets:

Take Radio Newquay as a perfect example. Just three main people, fully automated yet provides excellent local news and EVERY link screams LOCAL. Take another station (shan't name) with 40+ volunteers yet the entire station is a self indulgent unlistenable car crash.

Quite true. Take @radionewquay as a perfect example. Just three main people, fully automated yet provides excellent local news and EVERY link screams LOCAL. Take another station (shan't name) with 40+ volunteers yet the entire station is a self indulgent unlistenable car crash

— Paulo (@Paulo3times) October 12, 2021

Stop playing Blurred Lines

Up until a few years ago, even the most listened-to commercial radio network in the UK had Robin Thicke & Pharrell’s ‘Blurred Lines’ as part of its fairly tight rotation.

The track always got bad press - not least due to its X-rated video and sexually suggestive lyrics (together with the less serious Marvin Gaye court case) - but amid the Me Too movement, this intensified.

Just in the last few days, Emily Ratajkowski alleged that Thicke sexually assaulted her on the music video set.

If you’re a radio station still playing this song - as I can see from social media, astonishingly, some are - why?!