New research on the Irish local radio market, which was carried out by Amarách Research, shows that 57% of local radio listeners say they are listening more to radio in recent months while 62% say that local radio it is one of the best sources of local news.
The research, The Future is Local, which was commissioned by IRS+ and presented at a Marketing Institute-hosted webinar this week, also shows that those aged between 35-55 are more trusting of local radio for local news than other demographic groups. In addition, the research also found that women and 25-35-year olds are more likely to be listening more to local radio recently.
“Our research shows the power of local radio at a time when a growing share of consumer spending and shopping behaviours are now driven by a focus on local options. The research also identifies the longer-term consequences of changes to commuting and shopping behaviours, especially for advertisers and media buyers who need to connect with the post-Covid-19 consumer,” according to Gerard O’Neill of Amárach Research.
“In the past few months, the idea of The Future is Local has gone from being a worthy aspiration to a movement with real momentum that will have long term impacts on how we live our lives from shopping to sports, entertainment and online purchasing,” adds Peter Smyth, CEO of IRS+.
“Meaningful engagement with our local communities has become the new norm. Brands and media buyers need to recognize that new reality in media. As the report finds, it’s one where local radio is front and centre as an engaging, digitally responsive community platform,” he says.
Some of the other key findings of The Future of Local include:
- 80% of local radio listeners are more likely to support initiatives by local radio than national radio.
- 79% agree that advertisements on local radio are more relevant to people like 88% think that local radio is a good way for brands and advertisers to tell them about products and services they might be interested in.
- 86% of all adults agree they are happy to shop locally more than before, even when they have a choice to shop elsewhere.
- 87% of adults agree they deliberately try and shop in their local area to support retailers etc.
- 89% agree they will continue to shop locally as much as they can even after the lockdown is finally over.
- 74% of listeners would like to hear more about special deals and offers in shops etc in their area from their local radio.
- 61% would like to hear more about new shops and stores opening in their area.
- 46% would like to hear about websites and apps that can help them save money.
- 29% of local radio listeners would like to hear about places to buy or rent in their area through their local stations.
- 67% of local radio listeners will be more likely in future to buy from a brand or shop that advertises on local radio – especially over 35s.
- 88% agree that ‘businesses in my area should use local radio more to advertise to people like me’.
- 80% agree local radio will play key part in helping our community recovery when the pandemic is over.
According to Peter Smyth:“2020 is the year local radio became a national force for change. During the Lockdown period local radio was finally given the opportunity to show itself as a brand builder that could deliver new, sustainable, market share and generate an uncommon level of engagement with consumers. These findings are significant for brands investing more in the medium and allows us to help them build authentic creative connections with communities around Ireland.”
