The Radio Industry Speaks

Last week we surveyed thousands of individuals throughout the radio industry. This survey was promoted through our weekly blog, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and a variety of other social media sites. Respondents included those in traffic, sales, sales management, programming, general management and others. We asked questions that many of our weekly readers have posed to us over the last 12 months. To receive a complete list of survey comments click here.

Number of Survey Respondents: 2,849
1. How would you rate the recovery of the radio industry within the last 10 months? (1 = Weak , 5 = Strong)

RESULTS:
23% = 1
28% = 2
33% = 3
11% = 4
3% = 5

2. Is radio effectively using their websites and other digital assets to generate new revenue and advertising leads?

RESULTS:
26.4% = yes
56.6% = no
16.3% = other (also include comments)

Unedited Responses:

I believe some are, and some are not. Stations are doing a lot of digiatl assets for the on air staff, but I believe there is still way more as far as leads and revenue go in that department. Anonymous

I think we need to have more traffic to the sites to generate new revenue. Anonymous

Not at all. Every on-air personality in the biz should have their own blog and podcast with web-exclusive content. Instead most stations have a website that’s too cluttered with no real content or reason to expect even a moderate number of page views. Having only a facebook page and twitter account that lets listeners know where the next remote is seems like the new media plan for most stations Anonymous

The numbers make this a quantitative answer rather than mere opinion: Radio got less than $300m last year from online sales, while TV got more than $1b and newspapers more than $3b. It’s barely a blip on their radar screens because they view it as just a cool marketing device rather than a significant new business venture. Anonymous

Still seem to be stuck in the paradigm that the transmitter is the primary asset and that digital platforms should drive listeners to the broadcast
signal. Anonymous

While some stations have an effort, there is not a professional focused, successful model out there yet. Anonymous

There are opportunities, but they are few and far between. Anonymous

not bad for the current staffing levels at stations. Anonymous

There is further we can expand on it. Anonymous

“stations” ARE SPOOLING UP…the community is remote and slow to accept new advance technologies Anonymous

3. Are market managers given more autonomy today than 10 months ago?

RESULTS:
22.1% = yes
58.0% = no
17.8% = other (also includes comments)

4. Does your broadcast group support your bold initiatives or are they more likely to promote the status quo?

RESULTS:
43.1% = bold initiatives
51.7% = status quo
2.2% = nr

5. Are you effectively marketing your station to both listeners and advertisers?

RESULTS:
38.2% = yes
51.1% = no
8.3% = other (also includes comments)
2.0% = nr

6. Do you have any suggestions for improving the radio industry? (partial unedited list)

COMMENTS:

GET back to PASSION & why we loved it to begin with. Let’s have real relateable personalities.Some GM/OM’s that have done radio in the past so they have that love in common. If a major broadcasting company is cutting employees left and right and making bad financial decisions, put a cap on how many stations people with asses for brains can have. Anonymous

LIVE & LOCAL! Our audience likes diversity & creativity. Anonymous

Corporation ownership must staff stations with local experts and get out of their way. One size does not fit all and Texas is not New York.

If the focus was on super-serving the core audience on a deep level instead of chasing dollars and pinching pennies, listeners would develop loyalty & ROI would increase dramatically. Anonymous

You bet. Care more about the listener. Keep stations well engineered and strong as they should be so people can listen whenever they tune in and they’ll listen more often. Less automation..use real people instead of just letting the computer do it. Help your talent develope so people want to listen

Get digital ASAP Anonymous

Go back to being the best station you can be. Don’t play a song just because others do. WIDEN the playlist, don’t tighten. Listeners HATE hearing the same songs over and over. Bring back the importance of PERSONALITY radio. Encourage jocks to be unique and focus on their show rather than 50 other hats in the building.
Less narrowcasting
putting the listeners first
And the advertisers WILL follow
It works! too bad the management here doesn’t understand it

More community based initiatives. Anonymous

Broadcast can no longer be a stand alone entity. Convergence isn’t the wave of the future it is how responsible broadcasters keep themselves relevant and ahead of the curve in today’s market. Failing to incorporate new media into a revenue model is a huge problem that must be dealt with Anonymous

fire the consultants. what works somewhere else, probably won’t work somewhere else. Leave the programming and sales ideas to the LOCAL people who know the markets. Anonymous

7. Which of the following best describes your job title at the station?

RESULTS:
17.5% = general manager
8.9% = operation manager
6.6% = sales manager
17.8% = program director
7.4% = sales
2.0% = program asst.
<1% = traffic
12.9% = prefer not to answer
24.4% = other ( also includes comments)
1.4% = nr