Survey: Country Fans Turning To Radio More
NASHVILLE -- March 6, 2009: Country Radio Broadcasters and Edison Research's "National Country P1 Study 2009" was released Friday at CRS-40, and 77 percent of respondents said they're listening more to country music on the radio more than they did last year. Eighty-four percent of those who expressed an opinion said country music makes a positive contribution to American life, with 57 percent "strongly agreeing" that it does.
The online poll of 13,000 listeners -- invited from the databases of 18 Country stations -- also found that these country fans are into social media, with 62 percent saying they have a profile on at least one social networking site. Facebook was the most popular choice, with 42 percent. Twenty-seven percent also said they listen often -- "at least a few times a week" -- to their local stations over the Internet.
"The majority of the Country radio listeners we surveyed have profiles on one or more social networking sites," said Edison Research VP/Strategy & Marketing Tom Webster. "Status updates and other 'presence apps' are how listeners increasingly share their interests, videos, and even new music that they like. Though Country radio is still the most widely cited means of discovering new country music, radio stations must learn to embrace social networks and interact with their listeners whenever those conversations are happening."
Looking at some broader questions, 19 percent of the survey respondents said they're "very pessimistic" about the economy, but 8 percent are "very optimistic." Eighteen percent said their own economic situation has changed for the worse, and 20 percent said someone in their household has lost a job in the last year. Seventy-seven percent said they've cut back on discretionary spending.
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