NuVoodoo Media Services is out with new research that suggests radio is losing ground as the biggest source of music discovery among most listeners, the majority of whom discover music through YouTube, with Spotify and Pandora following YouTube’s lead.
NuVoodoo Executive Vice President for Research Insights Leigh Jacobs, says, “When asked, “Which of these sources would you expect to be good at helping you discover music you do not know, but fits your taste?”, the majority answered YouTube. Among likely ratings respondents and those who listen to FM at least two hours a day, FM is no better than tied with YouTube as a music discovery source.”
While these music discovery stats are not a feel-good, Mike O’Connor, Executive Vice President, Marketing, NuVoodoo Media Services, notes: “Those with a glass-half-full attitude will realize that forming a local community of YouTube channel subscribers can help boost a station’s image as curator among local influencers. And, when it comes time for paid digital marketing, every YouTube interaction can be bundled as seed data for retargeting and lookalike audiences. These so-called “first party” data relationships give stations a huge advantage over their competitors.”
Carolyn Gilbert, President and Chief Executive Officer, NuVoodoo Media Services added, “Though these findings are dismaying – especially given radio’s long-held dominance over all other media as the place to discover new releases or artists – smart radio marketers will see a distinct opportunity to leverage YouTube’s popularity as a source for music discovery to strengthen their connections with
listeners and extend their station brands in a powerful way. We invite all radio professionals to learn more about the opportunities and insights uncovered by our latest Ratings Prospects Study in the second installment of our Spring 2019 Webinar Series beginning Monday, March 18th at Noon Eastern.”
