NATIONWIDE RESEARCH AT A GLANCE
The Finney Media 2021 Why Listen? ® Survey! Almost 11,000 respondents from three different formats – Music stations, Music and Teaching stations, and all-Teaching stations and programs. Lots of fascinating information on our listeners!
One of our big questions is about tune-outs – things your listener perceives you might do that would cause her to tune away or turn off the radio. The list below is focused on just the respondents who came from Music stations. The percentages are the totals of “very likely to turn off” and “somewhat likely to turn off”:
- They have a negative, angry, judgmental tone 85%
- An announcer talks too much 45%
- They play commercials 44%
- They talk about a topic the listener is not interested in 41%
- They play songs the listener is tired of 36%
We discussed in last month’s article how the main reasons for listening to Christian radio could be summed up in two words – spiritual encouragement. Our top tune-out confirms this. The no.1 tune-out – and it isn’t even close – is a negative, angry judgmental tone.
Your listener is looking for spiritual encouragement without a tone of negativity, anger or judgment.
We believe that doesn’t just mean taking out things that are negative, angry, or judgmental. We recommend proactively including “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control*.”
The other tune-outs are important (“talking too much about something that’s not interesting” comes to mind), but none quite as important as your station or program being the loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, self-controlled channel in an otherwise negative, angry, judgmental world.
Coming in October: Another look at the Top Five Main Reasons Christian Radio listeners listen. This time, we review the Main Reasons in the whole survey – all formats – and discover how listeners to Music Stations are similar to – and different from – listeners to Hybrid Stations and Teaching stations and programs.
*”The Fruits of the Spirit” – Galatians 5:22
Chuck Finney’s had radio playing in his head since he was just a boy. Over the course of his career, he’s worked in programming, radio research, and audience connection. Chuck’s passion for words and communication is widely recognized and he’s won several industry awards.
If you ask Chuck how he’s doing, he’ll either say “Blessed, thank you,” or “I really get to do this for a living?!” He’s the President of Finney Media, a speaker and author who loves telling stories and helping you do the same. Chuck is married and has two adult daughters. He lives with his wife, Lynda, in the Dallas area. For more information, read about Chuck at finneymedia.com.