CRS: Country PDs Don't Really Know Their Listeners

Do programmers understand radio listeners? Short answer, no. At least according to Mark Ramsey Media’s namesake, who Thursday morning presented CRS 2020’s most talked-about non-music session so far.

According to Chuck Aly at Country-Aircheck, the annual CRS research presentation became what one attendee likened to The Newlywed Game. Repeatedly, Ramsey would present a topic and questions with graphs representing how PDs thought listeners would respond. Repeatedly, listeners seemed to reply, “Wow, I thought you knew me better after all this time!”

Mark Ramsey

The disparity started right off the bat with the very definition of radio. The 152 surveyed PDs said listeners would have a somewhat expansive view of what constituted radio, but less than 10% thought they would identify DSPs – Amazon, Pandora, Spotify– as radio. Surprise! Roughly 40% of the 800 Country radio listeners surveyed consider streaming platforms to be radio. Other disparities: Programmers think listeners spend more time with radio via apps. Listeners use smartphones more and car radios less than PDs thought. TV and video games are much bigger competitors for listeners time with radio than PDs figured.

The differences also offered a fair bit of good news. Radio is more important to listeners than it used to be and PDs figured it would be less important. Listeners believe they are spending more time with radio; programmers assume they are spending less. Of course, that differential circles back around to the broader listener definition of radio as music delivery platforms.

Other takeaways:

• Overwhelmingly, listeners want music, lots of it, new and classic, balanced by gender and uninterrupted.
• PDs are way off from listener preference when it comes to pop collaborations. The audience likes them much more than programmers think. 
• Websites and Twitter have negligible impact.
• Contests are not compelling.