Listener Differences by Format: Who, what, why?
Chuck and Jan here.
It’s that little cartoon in the back of the magazine. “Find the things in these two photos that are different.” Or that tune we’re (and you?) still humming from childhood TV, “One of these things is not like the other.” Yes, differences. As we pray, plan and program our stations, networks and shows, knowing the differences among our listeners helps us attract new audience, learn from our format friends and discover what to emphasize.
We see distinct differences in our 2016 Finney Media Why Listen? national survey when we break out response by format. The formats we looked at are Music, Music and Talk, and Teaching-Talk. All Christian. All across the country with a total of about 23,500 Christian radio listeners.
We will sort our listener feedback into three areas: Why I listen, What I want to listen to, and Who I am. Let’s consider these one at a time.
Why I Listen
For starters, it’s remarkable that for both Music and Teaching listeners, about a third of each group say they come to Christian radio for music and teaching equally. Some would suggest these formats have very different audiences—yet about a third in each format seeks the other format’s distinctive. And the difference really does shine through: 35% of Listeners to Music say that a main reason they listen is to better understand the Scripture, while 82% of Teaching listeners indicate that. (See the Who I Am section comments on Daily Scripture Reading which reflects this perspective.)
Consider how many listeners to Music there are, and understand the potential here for the Teaching format and for Biblical bite size chunks within Music itself.
Across all three formats, we see different intensities in Main Reasons to listen. The presentation is calming is a Main Reason for 48% of Music and then scales down to 36% for Music and Talk and yet further down to 29% for Teaching. We see this same scaling, reversed, when looking at a Main Reason of I want to help spread the Truth. Here, it’s 52% for Music, 63% for Music and Talk and 65% for Teaching. This demonstrates why someone who listens to more than one station selects the station they do: It reflects the need of the moment, whether that be calmness or challenge.
What I Want to Listen To
The more music the station plays, the shorter the program length preferred to get the whole message. Consider: 35% of Music listeners prefer a program of under 15 minutes. 9% of Music and Talk. And 6% of Teaching. On the other end of the spectrum: 25% of Music listeners prefer a program of 25 to 30 minutes show. 44% of Music and Talk. And 51% of Teaching.
These same format groups of people have varying views of what the content does for them, as well. When we look at how important various topics are, we see a variance.
Listeners perception of the Importance of discussion same-sex marriage discussion on air:
Not at all important: Music 11% Music-Talk 5% Teaching 4%
Very Important: Music 34% Music-Talk 53% Teaching 54%
Listener perception of Interest in hearing discussions of same-sex marriage on air:
Not at all interested: Music 22% Music-Talk 10% Teaching 9%
Very Interested: Music 17% Music-Talk 32% Teaching 34%
There is quite a bit less interest in hearing on air than in perception of importance. We see a similar pattern with other potentially controversial topics, some more and some less pronounced.
This leads to another finding. Listeners turn off the radio when the station talks about something they are not interested in. Either Agreeing or Strongly Agreeing are 39% of Music, 53% of Music-Talk and 56% of Teaching.
It’s important: choose your topics wisely—always. It’s the 21st Century, your listener has lots of choices, so if you’re talking about something not interesting to her, she is likely gone.
Who I Am
Finally, the composition of the audience reflects format differences. People under 49 comprise 43% of the Music audience, 24% of the Music and Talk and 28% of Teaching. We see a similar picture presented when we look at political leanings. Indicating they are Very Conservative are 24% of Music, 40% of Music and Talk and 48% of Teaching. And listeners who indicate they read Scripture at least daily reflects these formatic trends, too. Music 49%. Music and Talk 64%. And Teaching 69%.
In Conclusion
Differences don’t necessarily define us, but knowledge of them can help produce a fuller understanding. And understanding of a broader audience can prevent misunderstanding—but more, can help create a close relationship with the hearts and lives of all who come your way.
Action:
Register for the Finney Media Why Listen? Workday—special rate expires Oct 30! Plan now to keep developing your understanding of listeners—with both understanding and action. The Finney Media Why Listen? Workday will provide additional insights and help you develop more specific daily action plans. Intimate. In-Person. Action-oriented. And coming in six months! The special Momentum registration rate expires the end of next week, Sunday October 30. Talk it over, make plans—and register. Use the word MOMENTUM as your code for savings.
