Although there are always challenges to face and important questions to be asked, South African radio is in a good space in 2022
Beats have always added a lot of value to the radio business. From a bass-heavy club banger to usher in the weekend right down to the gentle heartbeat of every listener, different kinds of beats have the power to add an additional layer of emotion to what we do. You might go so far as to say that our existence as a connection-inducing medium is tied to these beats.
The same goes for getting the business of radio right, especially so during a global pandemic and in the age of diversifying audio. So how have we been doing in this regard?
Radio’s response to the pandemic
Two years on from the first lockdown, the South African radio industry has kept itself alive and growing thanks to the swift response to the challenges brought on by the pandemic. In the wake of high levels of uncertainty, radio has stood strong and reclaimed its stake as a viable partner to both audiences and advertisers. It has put its hand up and said “We’re here”, ready to be a constant in people’s lives.
This goes beyond just being a medium that is always on and available. Radio content has adapted as the pandemic has changed, acting as a vital source of information, educational resource and companion to people who have felt isolated or are in mourning. Some of the same remains in 2022: it continues to be a tenacious, robust and valuable resource, especially to brands looking to use it to continue tapping into their target audiences.
Looming threats to the business
That said, there are definite threats to the radio business too. Questions around whether or not the money is going to run out, or where the next revenue stream is going to come from, are hot on the lips of leadership teams.
It’s good to remember that radio has always been bankable from a commercial perspective. The pandemic has led to many stations studying their audiences a lot more intensively than in the past, conducting their own research, and sharing their findings with their clients and – where appropriate – with the industry itself. This has set them up much better for answering the earlier questions and for making highly considered decisions. It’s also worth noting that the secondInfinite Dial study from Edison Research, which looks at local patterns and consumption habits for all things audio, is on the way too. Its mere existence signals that there is great interest in audio and radio in Africa.
Having access to reliable listenership figures helps with making better decisions too. After not getting new Broadcast Research Council RAMS figures to work from during lockdown, stations are once again able to measure their listenership relative to their competitors. This is a positive development and we do have obvious winners already. Sure, there are always going to be issues and criticisms around numbers of this nature. The change of methodology also means we can’t compare old figures to new ones. However, the bottom line is that it’s good to know that there is once again an industry standard for measuring active listenership that can be used in discussions with potential advertisers.
Ongoing missed opportunities
Before diving into the state of commercial radio in 2022, we would be remiss not to ask what’s happened to The Beat and Rhythm FM. Despite ICASA rulings and promises made by shareholders and licensees, neither station is on the air. This means that audiences remain underserved in the Eastern Cape and Free State, where these licences were issued.
Although these have been ongoing issues for a great number of years, it’s a good time to ask where the buck stops and the beat starts. If these stations aren’t broadcasting, there must be bigger problems at work, and listeners are the ones losing out as a result.
The commercial radio landscape
Line-up changes at commercial stations have been as commonplace as ever in the industry over the last 12 months. This shows that management teams are working hard to get the right mix of presenters to hook their audiences at the right times, in order to deliver value for clients. The metric for what makes a good line-up is fast changing across several stations. There are different approaches to how stations choose their talent, always taking into account how influential said talent is beyond the radio landscape. Presenters need to be able to grasp the concept of broadcasting while having an understanding of the broader media environment. We’re doing a good job of finding people who understand this and letting go of those who don’t.
Something we’re not doing so well at the commercial radio level is getting the most out of programmatic advertising, an approach to advertiser management that uses automated technology for media buying. At maximum capacity, it should help divert resources away from digital ad campaign management, freeing up time for brainstorming and excellent content creation. We simply haven’t done enough yet to embrace it fully. It speaks to what radio is really good at: agility and speed. There’s also money to be made here. Those who are giving it a go already, actively learning from their missteps and spotting new opportunities, are bound to reap the rewards over the next year.
Signs of life at the SABC
No annual review of the South African radio industry would be complete without a glance in the direction of the public broadcaster. In contrast to previous years, the SABC should be commended for the efforts they have made and the steps they have taken to turn themselves around. It’s always going to be challenging to make an assessment around whether the restructuring process was the right call. It’s also always going to be easy to throw stones, purely because of the size of the organisation. They have generated some momentum and tried to be more relevant to their audiences, while better managing the spaces they hold. With such a mammoth operation, transformation isn’t going to happen overnight.
That said, it’s obvious that a somewhat lacklustre attitude in many areas of the SABC is still corroding their progress. It simply isn’t viable to have radio stations without key staff for more than two to three months at a time. When you’re going on upwards of 18 months, it is simply unacceptable from a business perspective. Agencies aren’t able to sell to stations where there is nobody to initiate and direct campaigns. Acting positions don’t encourage professional relationship development either. Introducing business unit managers was a good idea in theory, but are these simply station managers with new titles? Only time will tell, and we look forward to seeing what this means for the SABC from a revenue and listenership perspective.
Technical developments in the industry
We’ve been talking about DAB+ for a long time and it continued to be a hot topic last year for panellists at Radio Days Africatoo. The same questions still remain: What is its potential, and does it have a future in South Africa? While I’d love to have concrete answers for both, the reality is that it’s unclear what is happening with these conversations at higher levels. Frankly, it feels like things have gone a little quiet. Traditional broadcast groups want to capitalise on this, but my view is that they might be trying to keep everyone else out and indirectly stalling the process as a result.
In reality, the DAB+ opportunity goes beyond just the radio industry. It holds great promise for all parties that are interested in the digital space and tapping into underserved communities.
Nevertheless, I’m unsure about us approaching this opportunity with only the bottom line of the business in mind. Although it’s an important aspect, there is a greater social opportunity with this technology to empower communities across the country.
A community radio update
I’ve always been fond of community radio’s ability to uplift listeners in a highly targeted way. Much has stayed the same this past year, although there are noteworthy observations to discuss. Most significantly, many community stations have been hard hit financially, and the sector deserves to be congratulated for operating under very difficult circumstances.
Commercial stations have the infrastructure to stay on the air. Community stations have had to go the extra mile to do so, while also grappling with accurate reporting around campaigns, as well as answering questions about their potential for long-term sustainability. These stations have been able to shine by adopting a view of grassroots education and information, while consistently sharing Covid-19 updates too.
There is definitely an upswing in the amount of money being spent in the sector for infrastructure development, coupled with what seems to be more interest from a government perspective through agencies like the Media Development and Diversity Agency. This is a sign of promise for the years to come, although the sceptic in me still asks if building a free studio without making long-tern provision for training is a good thing, especially in the poorer parts of the country.
The development of audio-only tech segments
Over the past year, technology has continued to change much of how our industry operates. The growth of the audio-only aspects of big tech platforms (like Twitter Spaces, TikTok and updates at Instagram) has been an interesting experiment so far. As radio broadcasters, we’ve traditionally owned the audio space exclusively, but things are changing fast. We should remember that anything that enables us to use the power of audio or voice is a great thing. All that these platforms are doing is allowing for more opportunity for us to play in a space in which we’re already highly skilled.
From a revenue perspective, we’re only scratching the surface of what tech can do for us. Podcasting is one space where this is obvious. It’s estimated that 19-million people in South Africa will be listening to a podcast by 2024. Early adopters that are taking time to learn more now are already reaping better financial rewards. A blended approach incorporating podcasting, traditional radio broadcasting and digital audio could lay a foundation for great things in the future.
2022: the golden age of diversifying audio
In an age of quickly diversifying audio, the radio business has a great opportunity to flourish. One could even go so far as to call it a golden age of audiothat’s busy unfolding at the moment.
The fact that great content always wins remains true. Organisations that understand the value of investing in this alongside the right talent are going to set themselves apart from the rest. The reality is that we still need <itals>people<itals> to make <itals>stuff<itals>. Bots can’t create top-level, engaging content; unique ideas are unique to people. So the more unique people we have on air, the more unique ideas will get across to listeners. That’s a good business decision that benefits advertisers too.
Radio is in a healthy space in 2022. If there’s a rhythm, we’ll happily continue to be its beat.
Tim Zunckel is the regional media business advisor for Sub-Saharan Africa at Internews. He is an audio ambassador, trainer, creative and media mentor. He writes in his personal capacity and can be found on all popular platforms @timzunckel.
