Major Study on Country Radio Presented at CRS 2020

RADIO ONLINE | Friday, February 21, 2020

Futuri Media

The final day of CRS 2020 featured the presentation "Defending Your Audience Share: Exclusive Research Findings," the results of a major study conducted by Futuri Media and the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications. The study was conducted in January, 2020 and surveyed nearly 1,400 people who named Country as their favorite music format out of a list of seven options. It also broke out those who listen to AM/FM Country radio (both terrestrial and streaming), and those who listen to Country music but not via AM/FM Country radio.

Presented by Daniel Anstandig, Futuri Media's CEO, and Rob Harder, Director of Programming/Brand Manager for the University of Florida radio properties, the study aimed to answer three questions facing country radio today:

• How do we defend our country audience and revenue share?

• How should we extend our country content onto new platforms?

• How will we transcend our challenges as the country competition landscape changes?

• 76% of AM/FM country listeners would prefer more video content from their favorite country radio station.

• Country radio listeners are tuning in to nearly the same amount of AM/FM radio as in the past, but 23% plan to listen to more country radio streaming in the next three months.

• Women 18-34 who listen to broadcast radio tend to be more active on social media than streaming listeners. Throughout the study, data shows that country stations should have a social strategy that targets country fans, especially younger females, with sticky and recyclable content.

• Country listeners who have listened to a podcast in the last month name music as their favorite podcast topic genre. This number is 30%; the next highest topic genre is news/politics at 11%. Country radio station are great at talking about music; this presents an excellent time-shifted and original podcast content opportunity.

• Quality station-specific mobile apps present a major engagement opportunity. Younger listeners are more likely to install them, and they're an opportunity for more connected car listening. Of AM/FM country radio listener respondents, 44% have their favorite station's mobile app installed on their mobile device, a number that jumps to 48% when looking at the 18-34 demo. And 26% of country fans listen to country music via a connected car platform and are highly likely to listen to country music connecting their mobile device to their vehicle.