TodayFM maps out its future

You’ve got to hand it to Today FM -  they have a great programming formula that works.

The recent JNLR figures show Today FM as the biggest winner, increasing its market share by 0.4 per cent to 12.1 per cent. A key winner for Today FM was Matt Cooper’s The Last Word, which recorded 192,000 listeners, an increase of 9,000 since September, to overtake its RTE Radio 1 rival for the coveted evening drive time slot.

What is it that gives Today FM the edge? They keep it simple, they have good presenters and they have clever marketing campaigns. As one well known radio producer commented: People love consistency on the radio; they develop a relationship with that presenter, and they like to know when they hop in the car for that long drive home that Matt or Tom will be there to keep them company. Also Today FM strives to convey a local feel even though it is a national station.

Having said all of that, the main factor in the growth of Today FM is down to the fact that it is owned by one of the biggest media companies in the UK, Emap, who yesterday said that they are doing a major restructuring of their Media division in an efficiency drive that is likely to involve redundancies.

Emap business interests include consumer magazines in the UK and around the world, b2b information services, events and publications with a focus on radio, music and television. They employ approximately 4,500 people in the UK and Ireland and are quoted on the UK stock exchange. So in a reality TodayFm is run by a corporation which is so commercially
orientated it makes the banks look like your local charity.

But in fairness, Willie O Reilly and his team, plus their ad agency Cawley Nea, have to be applauded for holding to a strong, clear and focused campaign in what is an extremely competitive business.