Listenership measurement tool for community and small-scale radio

This project developed and tested a tool for measuring the listenership of community radio and small-scale DAB radio stations. Listener figures for BBC and commercial radio stations are measured by Radio Joint Audience Research (RAJAR), but no measurement tool is available to the community and small-scale radio sector as RAJAR is far too expensive for any such station to be able to buy into. In addition, RAJAR is not granular enough for community radio stations – a hyper-local measurement service is needed. However, proof of listenership is essential for such stations to be able to raise revenue from advertisers and government. As a result, the community and small-scale sector tends to remain stagnant, when millions of pounds could be leveraged.

This project developed and tested an online platform for measuring the number of listeners to community and small-scale radio stations in Northampton and Birmingham. Listener figures for BBC and commercial radio stations are measured by Radio Joint Audience Research (RAJAR), but no measurement tool is available to the community and small-scale radio sector as RAJAR is far too expensive for any such station to be able to buy into. However, proof of listenership is essential for such stations to be able to raise revenue from advertisers and government. As a result, the community and small-scale sector tends to remain stagnant, when millions of pounds could be leveraged.