I do an unscientific bit of radio research. I can’t help it. I’m an anorak, so it’s in my genes.
Whilst most humans are oblivious to the fact that there is anything ‘on’ in the background of shops, pubs, restaurants, cafes, etc., I immediately try to listen in order to tell what they are listening to. People I’m with have gotten used to it, even looking at their watches to see how long it takes me to make my first guess.
When I first moved into the Liverpool area and got over the shock of the complete lack of music radio station choice, it became fairly obvious that generally speaking most people listened to Radio City.
That was then. Now, the only time I hear Radio City or Radio City Plus (ie City Talk), or BBC Radio Merseyside is when there’s live football commentary available. During the week nobody listens to Radio City.
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| Is it only men with birds poohing on their heads that listen to Radio City? |
Radio City is the ‘heritage’ brand in Liverpool, being one of the very first commercial radio stations in Britain, and successfully living through the days when commercial radio had personality. At one point it was the rock of Liverpool listening. But not any more.
I realise that RAJAR do all the official audience research, and, despite me not being happy with their old fashioned diary recall methodology and their inability to actually research the young and student population unless they are living with their parents, it is their findings that the world of advertising and marketing looks at when deciding to place campaigns with stations like Radio City.
But, I don’t ever hear Radio City being played anywhere.
In fact, having toured many cafes and shops around North and South Liverpool, there are only two stations that I hear.
If the establishment is run by older people then it’s Smooth Radio.
Everywhere else it’s Juice FM.
And that’s it. I never hear the BBC’s national or local stations. I never hear Real Radio or even one of the receivable ‘local’ pop’n’prattle commercial stations aimed for other areas. It’s all just Smooth or Juice.
Some years ago there was far more diversity. In four different establishments they were listening via TV sets, and I clocked Kerrang in a cafe run by two young ladies, One Xtra in a newsagents run by young Asian guys, and Smooth in two other places. When one of them had their TV stolen it was replaced by a radio tuned to Smooth. Quite often I’d hear Radio City in newsagents and mini-markets, and in one place I heard Radio Merseyside.
Yet, in the few years that I’ve been here, despite all those stations still being available, I never hear them. Even taxis which were previously dominated by Radio City are now either Juice or Smooth.
Probably, out of Juice and Smooth, Smooth is winning. I guess that’s because I frequent places dominated by older people so it skews the statistics.
Ok, the statistics, my statistics, are not properly arrived at, but I do think they show something. The big question is why? Why aren’t people listening to Radio City any more?
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