Disruption was the key theme of this year's National Radio Conference with headline sessions from speakers including Cummins&Partners global CEO, Sean Cummins, showcasing the changing face of radio.
With moves away from traditional advertising and media models, the impact of the 24/7 radio shift, and programmatic creeping into the equation, the conference looked at the innovation of the industry as it moves full-force into a digital, and always-on environment.
In case you missed the event, AdNews looked at the top five takeaways from this year's conference on the Gold Coast.
Blackley points to investment in SCA overhaul
Southern Cross Austereo CEO, Grant Blackley, has pointed to the importance of the heritage in the company's brands such as 2DayFM and FoxFM but has said investment is the key to going forward.
“I've always believed that great media companies need to invest in the medium and they need to invest in talent, marketing and monetisation,” Blackley said. “If you get that right, you'll actually project the confidence in the market and it will continue to grow.”
So far, Blackley has overhauled the reporting lines of the company, with just five leaders now reporting to him on a daily basis.
He also said one of the core issues with the company stems from the acquisition of Austero, noting, “I don't think there was ever a merger, but I think there was an acquisition”. For this reason, he said SCA still operates as four separate companies: metro radio, regional radio, regional TV and digital.
“SCA was a great company and is still a good company,” Blackley said. “But I don't think that it probably had the same love and attention it should have. There were a lot of easy fixes in my opinion and we're just at the very early stages of employing those.”
Define “programmatic” for your industry
As radio starts to move into the programmatic space, it's important for the industry to define it to suit its own needs, according to Carat CEO, Simon Ryan.
Ryan said the industry should come together to form a programmatic approach because, “we have a big industry to protect in Australia in radio”. But he added, to make sure that a best practice model is brought forward the industry also needs to decide what type of programmatic buying it's going to move into.
“You've really got to choose what forms of programmatic works for you and your cost base,” he said.
“While we talk about programmatic, and yes it is about efficiency and audience, but in actual fact, it's all about the data and getting a better response for the advertiser and a more meaningful response for the advertiser.
“If the advertiser is getting a more meaningful response and getting a better ROI, often they might be prepared to spend a little more on it.”
Content turf wars – who does it best?
Those with the data are the ones best placed to create content, according to OMD head of interactive, Dan Robins, speaking on a panel on owned, earned and paid media.
“The people who are best placed to do this are the people who own the data, or if you don't own the data it's the people who are best placed the manage the data, collate the data and draw insights from it,” Robins said. “So it's not, 'here is our big idea, let's go and throw it out there', it's these the people who we want to get there and this is the content that we know is right for them.”
However, Mindshare national head of owned and earned, Clay Gill, said publishers are best placed “by a country mile”.
“I see a great relationship where we're going: 'this is what it is that customers want, we know that you [media owners] can produce that in either short, medium or long form and please can you help us produce it',” he said.
SCA chief digital enablement officer, Vijay Solanki, said that coming into the business earlier this year, he has seen a real confidence within the company when it comes to creativity.
“You've got to remember that sometimes that content is produced in a studio and is FM radio but sometimes the essence of that is just the ability to create great content,” Solanki said. “Companies like ours and others have learnt to create that content in lots of different ways.”
If you're going to do branded content it had better be “bloody good”
Radio is one area of the broader industry which has been making bold moves into the branded content arena, but Cummins&Partners global CEO, Sean Cummins, has questioned the need to blend advertising and editorial.
Cummins argues that consumers don't mind being “sold to” rather than “told to” and said the drive to “go viral” has hurt the creativity of the advertising industry.
“Branded content seems to be the latest style of advertising. It is in at the moment, but like most styles it will go out and if you choose to create branded content, you better make damn sure that you have a bloody good story to tell,” Cummins said.
“Otherwise, who in the hell is going to listen to two minutes of self-important drivel?”
His suggestion to build great advertising? Give creatives the confidence to be fantastical.
The radio shift is now 24/7
With digital impacting radio in a big way, social media now means that radio talent are exposed 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
FOXFM presenter Fifi Box said that the problem with the shift to social media is that authenticity needs to remain key.
“The problem is with the shift in the importance of social media - absolutely identifying and recognising strength it has in building the radio community and promoting your show - but if anything goes on the Fifi and Dave Twitter feed that doesn't sit comfortably with who I am, that is a real problem,” Box said.
“Don't be swayed by the content director or communication manager. Just be true to yourself.”
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