What Rajar’s Q3 Results 2022 mean for PR folks

Welcome to the PRmoment Podcast.

This week we’ve put in a bonus podcast where we chat about Rajar’s latest results. For those of you that aren’t aware of Rajar - it was established in 1992 and operates the single audience measurement system for the radio industry in the United Kingdom

Each quarter they publish the listenership figures for UK radio and this offers a really interesting insight for PR people on how the UK public is engaging with this important channel.

On the show today we have Howard Kosky, CEO of markettiers to talk us through the latest Rajar results.

Before we start the PRmoment Awards 2023 are now open for entries - do check out the awards site PRmomentAwards.com

Thanks to the PRmoment Podcast sponsors, The PRCA.

Here’s a summary of what Howard and PRmoment founder Ben Smith discussed:

1.30 mins A record 49.7 million adults listen to the radio every week, 89% of the UK adult population, over 1 billion radio hours consumed each week and the average listener listens to 20.6 hours of live radio each week.

3 mins 63% of people are listening to the radio at home, 23% of people are listening in the car and 14% at work or in places like the gym.

4 mins How technology and changes in consumers working practices post-COVID have evolved people’s radio listening habits.

4.30 min 13% of people listen to the radio through a smart speaker and 23% listen to the radio via online listening (streaming), DAB has dropped to 39%, Apps 10.2%

“The technology is driving the trend”

7.30 mins What is the opportunity for PR people in the modern radio market?

“There are more choices a listener, which means the opportunity to reach a more indexed audience is greater from a PR and communications perspective but it means more effort.”

“If you’re trying to mobilise a behaviour at a local level or at an age demographic or a profile demographic then the ability to reach tight audience group is absolutely there.”

9.30 mins What are the main content opportunities for PR people within radio?

“They are radio stations first but increasingly multimedia platforms”

13 mins Commercial radio has had a phenomenal year - “all commercial” radio is up from 36.8 million to 38.2 million, and local commercial radio is up from 24.4 million to 25.8 million.

“I take my hat off to how the likes of Global and Bauer have implemented a strategy…to give listeners choice…They have recognised there is an opportunity to provide targeted programming output to reach a particular audience group”

19 mins Why the BBC is trying to drop the age bracket of Radio 2 by not renewing the contracts of the likes of Steve Wright.