Deirdre King left her comfort zone for the unknown world of radio – as the pandemic hit. Now, Jacaranda FM’s managing director shares deep insights on radio’s biggest hits and misses.
It was right at the start of the first lockdown in April 2020 that King took charge of Kagiso Radio’s Jacaranda FM. Oddly enough, although she was an experienced marketer, radio was a whole new world to her.
King had done time with Nando’s as general manager of brand experience IMEA and head of marketing and communications (Africa) for The Walt Disney Company. “I’m really looking forward to feeling uncomfortable and learning new stuff,” she said at the time.
Little did she know that the first time she would sit in her new office on her new chair at her new desk, she would have her first uncomfortable experience.
“I literally used to hero worship Alex (Jay, who hosts The Workzone on Jacaranda on weekdays). Remember when he did Pop Shop on TV? Oh, my goodness! We adored him. I had a poster of him on my bedroom wall.
“So anyway, Covid-19 hits and I start this job in Level 5 lockdown. It’s a bit of a shit show. I come into the office one day, because I think I should get a feel for this office that is going to be mine.
“Only talent was allowed to come into work. I didn’t allow anybody else to come in. So, I’m sitting at my desk, which is at the far end, at the bottom of a corridor, when I hear this very famous voice say, ‘Is the boss actually in today?’
“I had the weirdest feeling; I just flashed back to the poster on my wall at 16. And I was like, this is too bizarre.”
Being the boss she is, she clearly handled the encounter with aplomb, but the story led to King’s strong views on radio talent right now.
“If I take, a bird’s eye view over our industry, I actually do believe there’s a lack of great talent in radio. I think there are some standout stars who are really amazing, and there are a lot of strong, older presenters – but are we seeing that in the younger presenter? No – and I think we, media owners, are to blame,” she says.
A provocative statement, for sure. And she’s got more.
Tune up the talent
“It is certainly our responsibility and I feel quite strongly about this,” King continues. “It’s our duty to be growing that young talent through internships, and development slots on air. I have a bench with some young talent that we bring in on weekends, or night shows…”
One of the problems, she points out, is that influencers think because they have influence, they can also be effective radio presenters.
“I don’t think that is necessarily correct,” says King, “I think people think it’s easy just to switch on a mic, you know – but radio personalities need the ability to engage with all generations. They’ve got to form emotional connections with their audiences, and create that trust that radio is so well known for.”
It takes skills – a number of different ones – to be effective, she says (“How appalling are some interviews that you hear on air? And you go, oh my goodness. Shocking. Shocking.”) And, most importantly: “You’ve got to have the personality.”
Jacaranda FM presenters, she says, must be highly adaptive, “because you might have planned your show; your producers planned your show, and driving in, something big happens. You’ve got to be agile enough to turn, on a tickey.
“You’ve got to be creative and passionate. You’ve got to be reliable, because if you’re the guy that’s switching on the first mic for breakfast and you’re not there at 5.30 in the morning, that has a huge impact. And then you’ve got to have technical skills because you’ve got to run that desk,” she says.
Jacaranda clearly gets the mix right.
“When you look at the different demographics, we are seeing mobile phones playing a much larger role, certainly among the younger generation or our younger listeners,” says King. “They consume audio, or radio and audio, quite differently to the way we’re traditionally used to consuming it.”
Jacaranda has a wide demographic. “I think there’s often the perception, certainly living up here (Gauteng), that Jacaranda is this white Afrikaans radio station – actually, our audience is 53% black,” she says.
Steer strategic connections
King passionately believes audio strategies need to change to encompass younger listeners. “What we are seeing is the shift in devices; it’s quite notable that audio strategies need to change. And I think agencies and clients need to change their audio strategies to meet their younger listeners, because they are consuming quite differently.”
Kings says Gen Zs are blurring the line between consumption and creation. And they’re consuming more music than any previous generations. “So, certainly, music radio stations, I think, win.”
Recent research for Jacaranda showed radio is still used to discover music. “I think we audio radio providers and also agencies need to really have a look at how Gen Z is sharing playlists, because they’re definitely engaging a lot more.
“As marketers well know, you must meet your audience where they are, not where you think they might be.
“What’s interesting, is that Gen Zs are discovering us on TikTok. Jacaranda went onto TikTok with a dedicated strategy, and we’ve seen a remarkable upswing in our Gen Z listeners. So, in my mind, radio has to have a holistic ecosystem.”
Another aspect of the current audio climate is creativity in radio advertising. Or lack of it. “Sometimes I listen to the radio, and hear some ads and I just cringe,” she says emphatically.
So where does the problem lie? “When I lived in Cape Town a thousand years ago there was pride in being a radio producer; the same kind of pride as if you’re a TV producer within an agency. I don’t know what has happened.
“But sometimes, I feel that maybe radio is not perceived as sexy enough for agencies. There’s a tendency to take the TV voiceover and just slap it in. Agencies should be designing adverts that work on various platforms, because then you’ll get the highest efficacy. So, I do challenge creativity in radio. I think it needs to be challenged,” King says.
Challenging conversations
She recently presented SoundGen, a masterclass, at a Mediamark –Jacaranda’s sales agency – event (see story on page 31) to an audience comprising CMOs, marketers and agencies.
King says the sessions delivered interesting insights and education into the advancement of radio and audio, as well as some challenging conversations. “What was fascinating was having some creative going: ‘This is what we should be doing in audio,’ because they are creative directors and creatives that love the media.”
Which begs the question: Are agencies keeping pace? Because obviously media owners deal with agencies all the time. It’s a symbiotic relationship.
“Perceptually, agencies and clients seem to think TV and digital are the spaces where they should be. But the reality, and the delivery of other platforms, shows that this is not true.
“We don’t have an internal sales house, as sales are done by Mediamark, so it’s quite an interesting dynamic. In terms of engaging with agencies and clients, the strategy is to keep the client’s brand at the centre of the relationship.
“I think it’s got to be about open and honest communication. And I think that where we’re winning is when we co-create campaigns with clients and agencies.
“If you have an open, transparent relationship, everyone feels comfortable to co-create a campaign that we know will work for the client. The agency knows the campaign idea, the big idea, and the client knows at the end of the day that they’re going to win on all metrics,” she explains.
Just four years ago, data and audience insights weren’t as prominent as they are now. Media owners and agencies have much bigger market research and insights departments.
And what’s clear is audio owners must have a holistic ecosystem. “You’ve got to be available everywhere in whatever format. And of course, then the content creation is different for each format.
As King says, “Radio is no longer just radio; it’s a complicated content business.”
Still, there’s nothing quite like an old school transistor radio. King says, “I actually bought one the other day. I found this beautiful retro-styled transistor radio that has Bluetooth capability. It’s got the dial, so you get the static – and then you get this clear sound.”
Long live radio!
