The second Radio Audience Measurement 2010 by Nielsen has proven the strength of these two sister stations amid the buzz on the decline of traditional media. ADOI’s Andrea Mathew speaks to Azrullah Bin Mohd Nor, the COO of Red FM and Suria FM to learn their secret of success.

 

Red FM and Suria FM recorded as the fastest growing English and Malay radio stations in Malaysia. This is according to the recent survey results of the second Radio Audience Measurement 2010 released by AC Nielsen.

Red FM’s audience reach has grown consecutively in five surveys since 2008 and registered a 35.4% year-on-year growth for this survey. A comparison of the last six months between Red FM with the other English radio stations has shown Red FM having the highest growth for this period with an increase of 24%.

Red FM’s Breakfast, Drive and Evening shows also recorded the highest year-on-year growth within their timebelt at a respective 102%, 83% and 81%. The Time Spent Listening to Red FM has improved to 7 hours and 29 minutes per week from 6 hours and 35 minutes per week, making it the number two English station listeners tuned in the longest and preferred by a more youthful segment.

Red FM has also increased in its appeal among the more affluent group with a 137% year-on-year growth in household income above RM5000 per month. Red FM’s PMEB (Professionals, Managers, Executives and Businessmen) segment saw a 66.7% year-on-year growth, making it the highest growth in that segment across English radio stations.

These successes have demonstrated the accurate direction of developing focused shows for listeners filled with entertainment, information, celebrity content and helmed by witty deejays. “Few months prior to the sweeps, we conducted a study to understand  preferences of our listeners and we made changes to our product accordingly. We realise we need to be more creative in our product presentation and content to attract more listeners,” says Azrullah.

To cater to the needs and wants of their listeners, Red FM changed their marketing visual to present a vibrant, energetic youthful appearance to their listeners. In addition, they enhanced the content of their show to complement the face-lift. “Our listeners want content relevant to their life stage. For our target audience of 25 to 34 years old, we found career, relationships, family and entertainment such as latest movies are of their interest.”

One of their most successful marketing activities to-date is the Red FM Facebook contest. Listeners were asked to sign up and be a member of their fan page. Listeners can then obtain a Red FM icon which, if they display as their profile picture, will put them in the running to be  spotted to win a prize. The contest saw their fan page gain 40,000 new fans in a period of two weeks. “We found our listeners are active social networkers and enjoy interactive games and competitions such as this. Many other stations followed our lead after the success of our competition,” explains  Azrullah.

Suria FM, on the other hand, continues its meteoric rise with a 172% year-on-year growth. Suria FM’s Breakfast Show with Zizi and Halim Othman as well as Suria FM’s Drive Show with Linda Onn are the fastest growing Malay radio shows compared with other competing breakfast and drive shows. Local celebrities Halim Othman and Linda Onn have helped the station capture a phenomenal year-on-year growth in addition to having the highest increase in exclusive listenership. The station’s ensemble of engaging deejays, entertaining content and a host of exciting on-air activities have strengthened the position of Suria FM as evident by the increase in Time Spent Listening to Suria FM with a year-on-year growth of 36.3%.

“The fine tuning of our product to become the heartland of 90s and current music has drawn more fans to our station and attracted a more specific group of listeners. We changed our tagline from  music Terbaik Tanpa Henti to Muzik Terbaik 90an dan Terkini,” reveals  Azrullah. He adds, “In the month of July this year, we organised a concert in Putrajaya and captured a total of 45,000 fans. The concept was ‘Old versus New’. We had current artists battle retro artists. There were even collaborations between the two generations.” Suria FM’s listener profile is 25 to 35 years old, with an equal ratio of urban and rural listener.

The growth of both stations are applaudable considering there has been so much talk about traditional media losing popularity. The myriad of alternative or digital media available today is said to be the next wave of entertainment platforms that will wipe out the need for traditional media.  Red FM and Suria FM have proven this theory wrong with their latest sweep results as both stations are seeing healthy growth. Azrullah reveals the root of their success lies in their understanding of radio’s key advantage over digital media. “Radio offers the human touch and connectivity that mp3s, iPods and the Internet lack. In comparison to TV stations, radio stations have a fan base. Television on the other hand is loved for the programs and but not for the TV station brand.”

Commenting on the scepticism of the industry on the effectiveness of radio advertising, Azrullah reassures us otherwise. “Though it is general perception that listeners do not like advertisements but  reality is many listeners like to know the latest happenings around them such as an apparel sale or a new product in the market. You do not get this on your iPod or on Web based radio stations.”

It is proof that though popularity of music gadgets are increasing, but the general public still enjoys conventional radio for its diverse offerings and human element.