Nisha Narayanan, Senior Vice President, Red FM
Currently, we don’t experiment and are too cautious. The radio industry has to experiment, we have to diversify into differentiated content. There is enough space for all, irrespective of the number of channels. The unfortunate part is that we may be nine stations in the same city, but we are targeting the same TG and playing the same songs. However, the policy has to be more enabling, more multiplicity of channels, news and current affairs from unlimited sources, so, once these issues are tackled, there is higher scope of differentiated content, of getting newer formats, etc.
Currently, we don’t experiment and are too cautious. The radio industry has to experiment, we have to diversify into differentiated content. There is enough space for all, irrespective of the number of channels. The unfortunate part is that we may be nine stations in the same city, but we are targeting the same TG and playing the same songs. However, the policy has to be more enabling, more multiplicity of channels, news and current affairs from unlimited sources, so, once these issues are tackled, there is higher scope of differentiated content, of getting newer formats, etc.
Nisha Narayanan is the senior Vice President, Red FM. She began her career in radio broadcasting over a decade ago, working with the state-run All India Radio before working for a private FM broadcaster. She moved onto the cable and satellite television sector, serving both as a newscaster as well as Executive Producer and Business Development Manager. Later she became an independent media consultant, focusing on FM broadcasting, and Head of Distribution for Deutsche Welle radio in India. She has wide-ranging experience with Times FM, RBC radio (satellite radio), educational channels like Gyan Vani and commercial FM stations. She has served as Head of Audio Visual programming for Vaishnavi Corporate Communications, which looked after the overall communications of the Tata Group of companies. A Chevening Scholar in broadcast journalism, Narayanan has also authored many articles on radio policy and regulation, and writes regularly for both the mainstream media as well as specialist journals.
Robin Thomas Q. What makes you so passionate about radio? The beauty of radio is that it’s so response driven, and it is all about thinking local. One of my biggest learnings of being in radio is ‘think local and be local’. Radio works if you think local, it is such an immediate and response driven medium. Radio has worked well for all of us, whether it was the Mumbai floods, cyclone affected Orissa or even during the Mumbai terror attacks on 26/11. Most of us have grown with radio and we have seen Indian radio evolving from what it was then, without any commercial radio, to the coming of satellite radio, to the coming of FM radio and now the opening up of campus radio and community radio, etc., which is very good. It is, however, unfortunate that most of the media institutions do not give students sufficient knowledge or education about radio. There is so much to radio other than being an RJ – from research to strategic planning, marketing, music management, and the job of producer and so on.
Q. The IRS R2 2009 results show that after rebranding to Red FM, your listenership has seen a jump, what are the changes you have brought post the rebranding? The whole exercise was predominantly done, but in a scenario where we were reeling under the economic slowdown, the way forward was to leverage on an existing brand with whom we have a sales and marketing tie-up and try and use that mileage to build our programming and listenership as well as our advertising. Today, I think approximately our Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata stations come approximately with about 20 per cent of the market share, and after this whole rebranding exercise and with our other markets, now we are hoping to reach 20 per cent of the other markets as well, which wasn’t the case earlier. So, definitely after the rebranding exercise we have received a huge response from the advertisers, however, it is the image of the brand, the visibility of the brand that has always been there. Therefore, by changing the name immediately, the aspirational value, the likeability of the station, everything went up.
Q. Out of the 48 stations, which one of them is the most challenging one and the fastest growing one for Red FM?
Every city has its own dynamics and every station comes with its own challenges, but if you go to a hilly station, you have transmission issues, wherein you have the overlapping of frequencies. In some places, you have manpower issues, where you are just not able to get the talent you may need. With some, you have power issues and technical operations and setting up issues, etc. Hence, every city comes up with its own dynamics and challenges. The challenge is to understand the psyche, to understand the music, the film industry of that state and so much more.
Bhopal, Pune, Indore, Bhubaneshwar, Jaipur, Kochi, etc., are some of the key markets that are growing fast. Now, advertisers have faith in radio, even at the retail level they want to experiment with radio. Delhi and Mumbai clients are accustomed to radio, but now even the retail market is picking up and I have always maintained that the future of radio lies in smaller towns. The retail client now has more faith on radio, firstly, because it is an effective medium, secondly, because it is a response driven medium, and thirdly, because it is affordable and local. The retail market is picking up, and because of commercial FM radio playing a lot of regional songs, the regional music industry is also forming associations, organising itself and seeing a lot of growth. Come Phase III, and with 700-odd frequencies means we have to go all the more local than what we already are right now.
Q. Mumbai has always been seen as Red FM’s bastion until a year ago when it slipped to No. 2. What do you think went wrong and what is the road ahead for Red FM in Mumbai? The numbers keep fluctuating, but we are still No. 1 in our TG. If you see SEC ABC 18-35, we are the No. 1. As far as the road ahead for Red FM in Mumbai, it is about being local, being highly interactive. I think there is a lot more we can do to reach out to people through programming.
Q. Where do you want to see the Indian radio industry few years down the line? Currently, we don’t experiment and are too cautious. The radio industry has to experiment, we have to diversify into differentiated content. There is enough space for all, irrespective of the number of channels. The unfortunate part is that we may be nine stations in the same city, but we are targeting the same TG and playing the same songs. However, the policy has to be more enabling, more multiplicity of channels, news and current affairs from unlimited sources, so, once these issues are tackled, there is higher scope of differentiated content, of getting newer formats, etc.
Q. What about the programming changes you had to undergo? Earlier, it was ‘SFM Jhoomo Jamke Jhoomo’. After re-launch, it was Bajaate Raho, which became the expression for our station, and I think that has emerged loud and clear. Today, any listener or client recognises the fact that it is a Bajaate Raho station, so the attitude has come in. However, there was no point in having this attitude earlier, when the positioning was ‘Jhoomo Jamke Jhoomo’, which was a more musically driven station. Now, the challenge is not only playing the best song, but also to ‘Bajaate Raho’. We have some of the best RJs now, in every town we have got a popular RJ, our music was tested in all our markets, in terms of packaging we are able to share content as well across our different markets.
Q. And what are the advantages of have a large network? There are huge advantages that you have as a network. You drive from the experiences of various markets. There is a huge talent pool in all these markets – Mumbai and Delhi, which have enjoyed FM radio for the last eight years. I think somewhere down the line a saturation point has been reached as far as talent is concerned, but if you go beyond these big metros, you find immense talent, the idea is to identify them and train them and repeatedly train them and give them the needed exposure. Therefore, the ideas come from the other markets, you have accessibility. The joy of sharing content has definitely picked up, even from the sales point of view. Between SFM and Red FM, Red FM is a far more popular brand with an attitude, so yes, rebranding has definitely helped us build listenership. Our listenership has in fact, more than doubled or tripled now, the clients are extremely enthusiastic because there is a certain amount of quality than an advertiser expects from us, there is a certain amount of quality and content that a listener expects from us and we are able to deliver that.
Q. How was 2009 for Red FM and what are your priorities for the year 2010? I would say the year 2009 was brilliant, because today we are a larger network, where Red FM went from three cities to 48 cities, so that has been the biggest achievement. It has been arguably one of the biggest rebranding exercises that commercial radio has witnessed in India. My priorities from programming point of view is to ensure that we take the brand from home to each city, to be as local as possible, to be as interactive as possible, to support local causes of that city. Therefore, it’s not just about rebranding, you are Red FM Bajaate Raho, a station for expression and that in its true form should be reflected in every station.
Read more news about (internet advertising India, internet advertising, advertising India, digital advertising India, media advertising India)
For more updates, be socially connected with us onInstagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook Youtube & Whatsapp
TOP STORIES
TRAI releases Consultation Paper on reserve price for auction of FM radio channels
The regulatory body has asked for written comments on the consultation paper from the stakeholders by November 6
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has released a Consultation Paper on "Reserve Price for auction of FM Radio channels".
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) sent a reference dated August 22, seeking recommendations of TRAI on reserve prices for 283 cities (260 new + 23 existing) under FM Phase-Ill Policy.
Accordingly, this Consultation Paper has been prepared to seek the comments and views of the stakeholders on issues related to estimation of the reserve prices for auction of FM Radio channels.
As part of the consultative process, the Consultation Paper has been uploaded on the TRAI website.
The regulatory body has asked for written comments on the consultation paper from the stakeholders by November 6. Counter-comments, if any, may be submitted by November 13, the paper said.
Read more news about (internet advertising India, internet advertising, advertising India, digital advertising India, media advertising India)
For more updates, be socially connected with us onInstagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook Youtube & Whatsapp
ShareRadio Mango Nerolac ‘Pulikkali’ celebrates the essence of Onam
Radio Mango in association with Nerolac Healthy Home Paints flags off an Onam folklore-themed roadshow in Kerala
Radio Mango in association with Nerolac Healthy Home Paints launched ‘Pulikkali’, an Onam folklore-themed state-wide roadshow that resonates with the ideology of unity among all people, regardless of their caste, colour or religion.
The road show brings to life the most vibrant and eye-catching ritual of Onam, the Pulikkali (Tiger Dance). The campaign also fondly recalls the popular Onam folk song ‘Maveli Naadu Vaneedum Kaalam, Manushar Ellaarum Onnu Poley.’
It is designed around the ancient folklore of the golden reign of King Mahabali when there was no discrimination on the basis of caste or class and there was neither crime, nor corruption.
The dynamic crew of entertainers, dressed as Pulis (Tigers) accompanied by Chenda Melam (traditional percussion) artists will travel across Kerala for 15 days as part of the campaign to emphasise the fact that no matter what, we all are one and whatever the colour, we must unite to make this Onam colourful.
The flag off to the ‘Pulikkali’ roadshow was conducted in Kochi by Malayalam actor Saiju Kurup in the presence of Ravindran Nair, Programme Director, Radio Mango, and Rajesh C., Kerala Regional Sales Manager, Nerolac Healthy Home Paints, at Malayala Manorama’s Panampilly Nagar office.
Read more news about (internet advertising India, internet advertising, advertising India, digital advertising India, media advertising India)
For more updates, be socially connected with us onInstagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook Youtube & Whatsapp
PM Modi lauds Fever FM’s #PlasticSeBreakUp initiative
In a tweet, the Prime Minister congratulated Fever FM for its innovative campaign to ensure reduced usage of single-use plastic
As part of the Fever Voice of Change CSR initiative, Fever FM launched the ‘#PlasticSeBreakUp’ campaign to make India free from single-use plastic.
Drawing inspiration from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s message this Independence Day, the initiative urges all shopkeepers to do away with single use plastic bags.
PM Modi too tweeted in support of Fever FM’s Bharat Positive initiative. He said ‘I congratulate Fever FM for their innovative campaign to ensure reduced usage of single use plastic. I urge shopkeepers to take part in this campaign with vigour. Such efforts will add valuable momentum to the Swachh Bharat Mission.’
I congratulate Fever FM for their innovative campaign to ensure reduced usage of single use plastic. I urge shopkeepers to take part in this campaign with vigour. Such efforts will add valuable momentum to the Swachh Bharat Mission! @FeverFMOfficial
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 12, 2019
Talking about the initiative, Harshad Jain, CEO – Radio and Entertainment, HT Media Ltd and Next Mediaworks Ltd., said, “We are extremely grateful to our honourable Prime Minister for his encouragement and appreciation of our latest Bharat Positive campaign, and assure him of our unending support. This encouragement gives us motivation to continue our work with greater zeal to bring about a positive change in the country. We are committed, with our latest campaign against single use plastic, to drive the citizens towards a plastic free India. Bharat Positive is a Fever Voice of Change (FVOC) initiative, the biggest CSR in the history or radio.”
Gautam Gambhir, cricketer, MP and face of Bharat Positive initiative, said, “Credit to team Fever and the listeners of the radio station. PM sir noticing the campaign is no mean feat, it just gives a shot in the arm. Of course when Mr Modi talks, the world listens. There’s substance in his thoughts and him putting the weight behind ‘Plastic Se Breakup’ campaign will only galvanise the whole movement. The fact that his following cuts across age groups is another huge plus. Through PM’s support, the youth, the mid-aged and the elderly, everyone will know about this campaign.”
Read more news about (internet advertising India, internet advertising, advertising India, digital advertising India, media advertising India)
For more updates, be socially connected with us onInstagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook Youtube & Whatsapp
RED FM's ‘Pride Ki Side’ campaign highlights LGBTQIA + issues
To celebrate the first anniversary of repealing of Section 377, the initiative will provide a platform to share stories and highlight challenges faced by the community
93.5 RED FM has launched a brand-new initiative – ‘Pride Ki Side’ to celebrate the first anniversary of repealing of Section 377. The initiative will provide a platform to share stories and highlight the various challenges faced by LGBTQIA+. The concept of this campaign majorly aims at educating the masses about the pride community.
RED FM has joined hands with Naz Foundation and Breaking Barriers – a project by students of Tagore International School, Vasant Vihar, Delhi, to sensitise the society at the grass root level.
RED FM is targeting the children at a young age so that they become compassionate and kinder towards LGBTQIA+ children.
To support this belief, various workshops are being conducted in schools to provide a safe and respectful learning environment for everyone. Trained and certified counsellors accompanied by RED FM’s team and RJs are conducting the workshops.
Speaking about this campaign, Nisha Narayanan, COO and Director, RED FM and Magic FM, said, “Looking at the status of LGBTQIA+ community in India, it is high-time we start educating the people about them. Everyone should have the right to openly appreciate and practice who they are and love who they want. At RED FM, we believe in supporting this movement through our humble initiative ‘Pride Ki Side’. We want to raise awareness in the public about the challenges faced by them. We hope more people will come forward, share stories and help empower each other. Our vision is to create an inclusive environment and encourage our audience to adopt a progressive and compassionate outlook towards the LGBTQIA+ community.”
Commenting on the association, Anjali Gopalan, Founder and Executive Director, The Naz Foundation Trust said, “I am so happy that RED FM has taken this step to highlight LGBTQIA + issues. The Naz Foundation (India) Trust is proud to be part of this journey.”
To ensure maximum outreach, RED FM has also introduced a daily special morning show on their radio channel with a counsellor. This engaging and interactive format of the show will address queries and problems of the community who face bullying, hatred and discrimination at institutes or workplace.
Besides this, RED FM has also invited a well-known LGBTQIA+ influencer at their studio who will share stories of courage in dealing with cyber trolls, verbal harassment, and how they moved-ahead and dealt with such situations.
The campaign, which began September 4, runs till September 13.
Read more news about (internet advertising India, internet advertising, advertising India, digital advertising India, media advertising India)
For more updates, be socially connected with us onInstagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook Youtube & Whatsapp
Dia Mirza supports BIG FM’s green Ganesha initiative
To spread awareness about using eco-friendly Ganesha idols, BIG FM held a two-week-long contest and 15 winners were felicitated with a Tree Ganesha by Mirza
For the 12 th year in a row, BIG FM has brought to light the importance of celebrating festivities in an eco-friendly way through Ramky’s BIG Green Ganesha.
The initiative promotes the use of eco-friendly Ganesha idols and its celebration with minimum environmental damage. RJ Rani, the face of Ramky’s BIG Green Ganesha initiative, hosted the event, which was graced by actress Dia Mirza, Sujiv Nair from Ramky Enviro Engineers Ltd and Ram Kharpuriya, Director - Greenland Farms.
15 lucky contest-winning listeners were felicitated with a Tree Ganesha by Mirza, at the BIG FM office.
To spread awareness about using eco-friendly Ganesh idols, a two-week-long contest was held and it resulted in widespread response from listeners across Mumbai. BIG FM Mumbai associated with Tree Ganesha as they create eco-friendly idols which are made of natural soil and also melts completely after immersion in water bodies as compared to non-biodegradable options that create pollution.
Commenting on the initiative, a BIG FM spokesperson stated, “BIG FM has always tried to bring about a positive change in society. BIG Green Ganesha has been our on-going initiative for the past twelve years which is amplified through on-air and digital channels. We at BIG FM believe in ‘Change starts with you’ and through this campaign tried to raise awareness on the environment pollution created with non-biodegradable idols. The campaign has been very successful till date and we are happy and proud that we as a medium can offer our listeners entertainment with purpose.”
Nair, Chief Human Resources Officer of Ramky Enviro Engineers Ltd, commented, “The Green Ganesha initiative is our contribution to the environment. Being in the space where we closely experience the hazards that affect the environment, we are trying to make Green Ganesha an awareness campaign and save the environment from the use of harmful products. Through this we urge the people to acknowledge an environment-friendly celebration by adopting the use of eco-friendly products.”
Mirza added, “I am very happy to be here. Moreover, I am extremely grateful to BIG FM for this campaign that has been raising awareness over the last 12 years. For the past few years, I have been associating with beach clean ups post the Ganpati Visarjan and it’s very disheartening to see the remains of the idols washed back ashore. Three years ago, Dattadri (Kothur of Tree Ganesha) and I made one of these tree Ganeshas together and it was a beautiful feeling. The happiness you feel while doing something for the better good just elates you to a whole new level. I urge more people to opt for eco friendlier methods, for not just their Ganpati celebrations, but in their day-to-day activities as well.”
Read more news about (internet advertising India, internet advertising, advertising India, digital advertising India, media advertising India)
For more updates, be socially connected with us onInstagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook Youtube & Whatsapp
Radio Adex: Ad volume sees 8% decrease in indexed growth in Q2 2019
Paytm.com continues to be the top brand to advertise in the services sector in the first half of both 2018 and 2019
The recent Radio Adex report for ad volumes in the medium for the first and second quarter of 2019 shows 8 per cent decrease in indexed growth.
In the first quarter (Jan-March), the service sector had 31 per cent share which came down to 26 per cent in the second quarter (April-June). The retail sector saw increased share in the second quarter. From 8 per cent in the first quarter, the ad volumes from the retail sector increased to 11 per cent. This was the time when IPL, General Elections and World Cup were ruling the roost.
Interestingly, Banking/Finance/Investment sector which was one of the top advertising categories in the first quarter with 12 per cent share, doesn’t find a place in the top five super categories in the second quarter. Education makes an entry in the top five list for Q2 with 10 per cent share. Auto jumped from 8 per cent to 10 per cent, while food beverages declined from 10 per cent to 9 per cent.
If we consider the ad volume in Radio for the first half of 2019 vs the first half of 2018, the indexed growth saw a decline by 9 per cent. Services continue to take the maximum share. In 2018, it was 30 per cent share while in 2019, it is 29 per cent share. Retail, Food & Beverages, Banking, Finance and Investment saw similar shares this year as was in 2018. Auto moved from 8 per cent in 2018 to 9 per cent this year.
Paytm.com continues to be the top brand to advertise in the services sector in the first half of both 2018 and 2019. Google Pay takes the next spot this year as compared to Amazon.in in 2018. Google, Cars24, Yahoo Cricket were the other brands which were a part of the top 5 brands in the first half of 2018. This year, Cars24 remained constant while there has been an addition of Hotstar and Phonepe in the list.
In the retail sector, except for Home Centre (Koz), all the brands that advertised on Radio in the first half of 2018 are missing from the top 5 brands list of 2019. While last year there were Great Eastern Trading, Central (Pantaloons), Max Retail, and South India Shopping Mall, in 2019, they are replaced by Alishan, Reliance Trends, The Chennai Silks and Lifestyle. In the Food and Beverages category, the Pan Masala brands continue to make a mark.
The cars category has jumped from 5 per cent to 7 per cent shares on radio, when compared to the first half of 2018 vs the first half of 2019. Properties/Real Estates have the maximum share of 8 per cent in 2019 compared to 9 per cent in 2018.
Read more news about (internet advertising India, internet advertising, advertising India, digital advertising India, media advertising India)
For more updates, be socially connected with us onInstagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook Youtube & Whatsapp
FM Tadka goes for makeover with ‘Apni Suno’ campaign
Apart from the new positioning statement, FM Tadka also sports a new logo indicating dialogue within for a positive change
Three months ago, management at the Patrika group decided to go for a makeover of FM Tadka. And just two weeks back, the revamp exercise reached a climax at film studios in Jaipur with RJs all across the country practicing steps for the new jingle video having both an aspirational and inspirational feel to it.
The radio network, spanning six states and 18 cities, started its teaser campaign on August 1 with a mascot named Mr. Mannki who ignited people's minds on the new message hidden in its pose which became quite a hit amongst listeners.
The campaign garnered praise from celebrities across the spectrum. Singers Sukhwinder Singh, Hariharan, Tochi Raina, Aastha Gill, and Hindi film industry stars like Tusshar Kapoor, Mallika Shehrawat, Urvashi Rautela, Sonali Kulkarni, director Nitish Tiwari, Super 30 founder Anand Kumar, comedians Shekhar Suman, Sunil Pal, Raju Shrivastav and sports stars appreciated the concept when it was shared with them during their visits to FM Tadka. The campaign, Apni Suno, talks about making a transformation in life.
“As a country, we have always followed Gandhi ji’s three monkeys, but now the fourth monkey Mr Mannki came with a message- to bring a positive change in your life and to the destiny of the country- Apni Suno. This network philosophy was aptly revealed on Independence Day,” the network said in a statement.
“From students as environment crusaders, young innovators to reality stars from smaller cities- there are many examples of people listening to themselves and carving a new life for themselves. It is this clarion call that FM Tadka is bringing to its listeners and propagating through roadshows, cinema, mall tie ups and artists across the country,” the statement read.
Gaurav S Karrir, the National Programming Head, further reveals, “The prospect of a product change around was quite exciting. We took innovative ways like making Mr Mannki our mascot, mask inserts in newspapers, celeb led Apni Suno life changing stories and using Patrika power in digital, outdoor, print and tv to make people notice the new message of Apni Suno”.
Saurabh Bhandari, National Head Marketing, Patrika Group, who has seen the radio product evolve over the years, applauded team Tadka and shared his vision, saying, “We at Patrika Group always believe to bring change in people’s life. Our endeavour FM Tadka's ‘apni suno’ positioning is yet another step in same direction, there has been a deep study and long research behind this, we are confident listeners and our trade partners will continue their love n support to FM Tadka.”
Apart from a new positioning statement, FM Tadka also sports a new logo indicating dialogue within for a positive change. Shades of blue pointing at freedom of expression. The core TG now is 16-30 with music starting from 2008 and the playlist focused on melody. FM Tadka's flagship Jaipur station now has a new team of RJs making the entire station live with focus on social impact plus technology and sports segments.
Read more news about (internet advertising India, internet advertising, advertising India, digital advertising India, media advertising India)
For more updates, be socially connected with us onInstagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook Youtube & Whatsapp