Report: Listeners More Attentive To AM/FM Radio

The latest Westwood One blog post looks at the results from a simple question asked by researcher Vision Critical/MARU: How many Pandora, Spotify, and AM/FM radio listeners actually hear ads?

Here were the results from 2,617 consumers:

• Only 54% of Pandora and Spotify listeners pay attention to ads. Advertisers hoping to reach an engaged audience won’t be effective across these platforms. These listeners are using Pandora and Spotify at home, with these services being great for “chilling out” but not so great for engaging with the advertisements.
• AM/FM radio sees a much different story. On average, 84% of the AM/FM radio audience hears the ads. Whether they are at home, at work, or traveling in the car, the results show that consumers hear what people are talking about when they listen to AM/FM radio.
• For advertising to make an impact, consumers need to be exposed to ads and they need to achieve top of mind awareness. While Pandora and Spotify audiences are distracted and disengaged, AM/FM radio reaches an audience more connected to content.

Softly playing background music is great for “chilling out” but it’s not so great for advertisers. To see cash register impact, advertisers need to be in the heads of their shoppers. But first, listeners have to hear the ads.