Statscan study points to older Canadians as radio industry’s main target audience

The days of teenagers carrying transistor radios is over, and the generation that made AM the breakthrough venue for rock and roll still makes up the bulk of radio’s listeners, a Statistics Canada study shows. Average listening time is also on the rise. In the fall of 1999, Canadians listened to the radio for an average of 20.5 hours a week, about the same as in the fall of 1998, ending four straight years of decline in radio listening. One of the reasons radio listenership has stayed strong among adults is the success of radio marketers who have targeted the office background music market, Statscan says. Adult contemporary music stations that have exploited this market niche have the highest ratings in the country, the study shows. Provincially, PEI residents listened to radio the greatest number of hours each week, while the lowest listenership was recorded in British Columbia. Adult males (18 years old or over) listened almost as much as women of the same age. Teenagers (aged 12 to 17) listening was a little more than one-half that of adults. Radio listening among anglophone Quebecers was the highest in the country, at 23.3 hours a week, the study shows. Their listening exceeded the listening time of francophone Quebecers by two hours and exceeded the average for all Canadians by almost three hours. In British Columbia, the average listening time declined slightly from the fall of 1998 to 18.4 hours per week. Listening time and habits differ according to age, rather than gender. Adult men listened to the radio 21.3 hours per week almost as much as adult women who tuned in 21.6 hours weekly. Teenagers’ listening time was the lowest (11.3 hours per week), a little more than half that of adults. This difference between adults and teenagers’ habits and listening time is not surprising, the Statscan study says. Adults have easier access to radio during weekdays. During the week, one-third of the adults listening was between 10 am and 3 pm, and only 9 per cent of teenagers’ listening was during these hours. On weekends, teenagers substantially increased their listening time during the day to reach almost the same proportion as that of adults. Adult radio listening varies significantly according to employment status. The largest proportion of adult listening time is attributed to full-time employees – 74 per cent of males and 54 per cent of females. After 3 pm, their listening decreased gradually, and from 7 pm to midnight adults listening was only 11 per cent. The adult contemporary music format continues to dominate, occupying 23 per cent of total listenership. Far behind in second position are the country music and gold/oldies/rock formats, each with 12 per cent. Contemporary music, talk and the Canadian Broadcasting Corp took in 11, 11 and 10 per cent respectively. However, the order of preference of station format varies according to province and audience category. In Quebec, Ontario, New Brunswick and British Columbia, adult contemporary music is the first choice of listeners. In all other provinces, country is the preferred format, and in Newfoundland, it holds 55 per cent of the market. Adult contemporary music is especially strong in the 25-to-54 age group. Teenagers, older listeners and adults 18 to 24 prefer the contemporary music format. The talk format and the CBC draw very few listeners from the younger groups. However, as the age of the listeners increases, these formats become popular. They represent the first and second choice, respectively, of seniors 65 and older. The choice of station format also varies according to the level of education. For example, the CBC has a low listenership (less than 5 per cent) among listeners who have not completed secondary education, but attracts 26 per cent of total listening among those with a university degree. For the country music format, the trend is in the opposite direction, Statscan says.

Statscan study points to older Canadians as radio industry’s main target audience

Broadcast | August 17, 2000

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