Halfway through the survey year, SCA’s chief content officer Dave Cameron tells Mediaweek that 2024 has been “excellent in terms of the audience that we’re appealing to nationally, which is 25-54s.”
“That’s our money audience, and that’s where 80% of our revenue is. To have the lion’s share of that and to continue to grow and give us more distance between us and our competitors, that’s been a pretty successful strategy for the last six months.”
SCA in Melbourne
This year has seen all eyes on the Melbourne radio market, and survey four was no different. With The Fox coming in as third FM station and Fifi, Fev & Nick as third FM breakfast, Cameron said that he is “really pleased that local programming is rising to the top in Melbourne.”
“That’s not only us, that’s other local shows as well. We congratulate the Nova show, I think Brendan [Taylor]‘s decision at Nova was a smart decision.
See also: Nova’s Brendan Taylor on survey four and ‘quite emotional’ result for Jase & Lauren
“I’m really pleased that there’s a really strong local offering in Melbourne at breakfast time that is keeping new interstate opportunities very much at bay.”
Staying in Melbourne, survey four was the final survey for Marty Sheargold on Triple M Breakfast. He will continue The Marty Sheargold Show podcast, and make the move to the 3-4pm national Triple M show.
“Marty has made a decision, and we support that decision,” said Cameron. “We’re also happy that Marty and his team, who are just as big a stars as Marty, are staying on what is a highly successful podcast, and will continue to be heard at three o’clock. Marty and his team are very much still part of the Triple M family, which we’re wrapped about.
“Also, Marty just got his best result, which is always the case on your last one. For Marty to end his breakfast commitment on his best result, is kudos to him and his team.”
Marty Sheargold, SCA Chief Content Officer Dave Cameron and Fifi Box
Around the Network
Brisbane has been a particularly strong market for SCA this year, recording four surveys in a row with B105 and Triple M as the number one and number two stations in the market.
“Outside of this year, we have only been number one and number two twice in the last 19 years – we’ve now done it four times in a row. We feel like the products for both of the stations, breakfast and music formats, are incredibly strong in Brisbane right now,” said Cameron.
“In Adelaide, we have the number one station, and our second station SAFM has also increased and had a reasonably good result in breakfast. Adelaide is a very strong market for us, certainly from a Triple M perspective, at least.”
Cameron admits that “Sydney remains somewhat of a challenge given that it’s a very tough market to crack,” but said he’s feeling particularly positive about the city’s Triple M station.
“In terms of Mick & MG on Triple M, that show has only been on air for 14 months. That’s a blink of an eye in terms of the radio watch. It’s a show that we believe is absolutely on course for some great results later this year.”
“Perth is a volatile market at the best of times. We started off this year with the number one station a couple of times in a row, we went to number three, and then number two. It can be a bit of a juggle in Perth. That just shows that in any survey, there’s a market that is highly competitive with some really good products, including our own.”
Looking Ahead
With four surveys down and four to go, Cameron said there are a number of goals the SCA team will be focussing their attention on.
“Our focus remains on the continued success of The Fox in Melbourne, which continues to be the most locally active show in the market. We keep it very busy with can’t switch off moments each week. It’s well programmed, it doesn’t get distracted by external noise, it knows who it is and exactly what its audience wants. So The Fox remains a focus for us.
“We want to continue to maintain dominance in Brisbane, and we hope to continue to grow Triple M at the same rate as we have the last couple of years by putting it into a growth strategic approach. We’re now talking to new audiences, because we’ve adjusted the format quite significantly over recent times – that’s now paying dividends for us in a lot of our markets.”
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Top image: Dave Cameron