How Do You Attract Younger Listeners?
That's what SiriusXM wanted to know a year ago - just like you do now.
So SiriusXM flipped their script and boldly introduced a streaming-focused strategy which ignored their long-time installed base of in-car satellite listeners. It was driven by a revamped and more powerful app built for mobile devices. Their audience was aging. We gotta get younger, they said!
Did it work?
No.
According to Radio Ink: SiriusXM now says it is “doubling down” on its automotive subscriber segment, which represents 90% of its current subscriber base.
Meanwhile...
I remember many years ago working for a radio station that was one-upped by a somewhat younger competitor which suddenly topped it in the ratings. We applied the obvious fix: We moved the whole station towards a younger-oriented music mix to confront this upstart. We were the leader! Certainly we could block these clowns!
Our ratings tumbled even further.
It turned out that our audience didn't want a younger-skewing music mix. They wanted us to be more of who we were, not more of who somebody else was.
We fixed the problem by returning to our audience core. Gone was the too-young music mix. Ratings grew. And we beat the competitor (who, by the way, no longer exists).
So here's my point:
Sometimes you can't attract younger listeners who have what they perceive to be better options on other platforms by messing with your radio brand. Even our friends in CHR are watching their Cumes decline by 40% over the past decade because "the hits" are not enough to keep young folks with lots of choices listening to the choice called "hit radio."
By mixing in the wrong music for all the "right reasons" you could easily do more harm than good.
So what do you do? The answer is two-fold:
- Respect your fans and build the best possible experience for them on the platform(s) they prefer to use. Don't try to be everything to everyone on your radio station.
- Consider how your station's ministry and mission can appeal to a younger audience and create products, services, streams, experiences, etc. which are built specifically for them. These could be digital, streaming, in the real world, etc.
More on both of these in faithbright issues to come.
Young people need Jesus too. You're a media ministry, not a radio station. Think like a media ministry and give folks what they want the way they want it.
Mark Ramsey Media does audience research for Christian Media - Perceptual research, digital studies, donor studies, music studies, etc. Learn more here. Call Mark at 858-414-4191 or email markramsey@mac.com.
And if you want a strategy to solicit major donors to pay for your research, look here and download this Listener Impact Study solicitation for donors from WAKW-FM.
Note: This is the final faithbright for 2024. Have a Merry Christmas and I'll be in your inbox in the new year!
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