The first radio ratings survey using the new GfK hybrid measurement system saw some significant moves at metro radio stations.
It was more or less business as usual though for Nova which was able to reclaim its place as #1 network with a cume audience of 4.2m.
smoothfm performed well too with the brand ranking as #2 FM in Sydney and Melbourne while the respective breakfast shows in those markets ranked as #2 FM.
To dig a little deeper into the Nova Entertainment radio ratings, Mediaweek spoke with Nova group program operations director Brendan Taylor.
We started by asking Taylor for impressions of the new Radio 360. “It’s great to see the detailed breakdown. Any deeper understanding and new insights into the audience is only going to help radio. It will take time to get fully across the data from multiple sources. The aim is to9 drive more investment into our industry which will be a real positive.”
Brendan Taylor
Radio ratings: Nova 96.9 climbs, no bump in breakfast yet
Sydney audiences helped Nova 969 move higher to 7.1%, yet breakfast was off the pace just a little, down to 6.8 where it was again outrated by sister station smoothfm. “In a big competitive market with big shows and big personalities there was some movement,” noted Taylor. “But the figures indicate we should still have confidence in the Nova results and in particular Fitzy and Wippa with Kate [pictured above] at breakfast. It’s the second most-listened-to breakfast show in Sydney. Kate’s addition to the line-up is showcasing great chemistry and providing fun banter with the guys.”
Taylor alluded to the competition at market-leader KIIS when he acknowledged “there were some quite extraordinary numbers in Sydney today”.
Nova cume saw the station push past 1.2m, a big audience. “When you see that smoothfm is also over 1.2m it shows how powerful the combo is. As programmers, we do focus on the share so the challenge now is to get the TSL higher.”
There was a similar story in Melbourne with a strong result overall for the brand, yet breakfast at Nova 100 eased back a little. “It is still early days for Ben, Liam and Belle,” Taylor reminded. “They are just three surveys in and we know breakfast shows take time and this is such a different show to the previous breakfast. The team are making great content but it will take time for the audience to settle.
“We are happy with the cume. It’s a very competitive market and we are one of four stations with a cume over 1.2m. We are fighting for share of audience with the likes of smoothfm, Gold and Fox. There is a lot of sampling going on.
“Like Melbourne, Brisbane remains a very competitive marketplace. It is really pleasing that Nova 106.9 is the most-listened-to station and breakfast show. Again, we have some quality competition and Nova has a lead of 100,000 in cume. But share is where we want to lead so there is some work to do in engagement.
Adelaide has two Nova breakfast shows – one at 6am and another from 7am. Taylor: “I couldn’t be happier with Jodie and Haysey [from 7am] and in just their third survey they are the most-listened-to breakfast show with a cume of 171,000. There is some gap between our direct competitor. We have such a great team and we will certainly be giving them time, but their content is already just so good.
“Nova Adelaide has pushed past Mix this survey in cume overall. That gives Nova the most listened-to stations in Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth.
Regarding Perth, Taylor said: “Nathan, Nat and Shaun continue to have such great content and it drives consistency at the show and the station. It is helping make it a really special year for Nathan who is celebrating his 20th year in radio.
“With so much change around the country this year we are so proud of our teams for being able to hold the audiences.”
The new Chrissie Swan afternoon show continues to build audience with a network cume of 1.5m, ranking #1. “There were particularly pleasing increases in both Sydney and Melbourne,” Taylor said.
“Likewise it was a good survey for Ricky-Lee, Tim and Joel and they are back at #1 in network share and network cume with an audience of 1.6m.”
Chrissie Swan
Radio ratings: smoothfm network cume 2.7m
Taylor noted there was plenty to be happy about for the smoothfm brand too.
“There has been good improvement in the Sydney numbers where the station is #2 FM and also solid in Melbourne where it is also #2 FM. We have always said consistency is key to smoothfm and these figures show how successful the teams have been in achieving that.
“The smoothfm DAB+ stations in Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide are all very competitive and have dedicated breakfast shows. Adding the audience from all stations gives us a cume around 2.7m which is very strong.”
See also: Survey 3, 2023 analysis for all five metro markets