Pawel Soltys, CEO of Radio 357, runs an online-only radio station and podcast network. Although they are available for free, they make money from the small percentage of listeners who donate a sum of money each month. They were able to get established through crowdfunding and within a year of launching they had 45,000 supporters donating money every month. This is possible by being different and making a difference that truly matters to their audience.
Coralie Piton, from the children’s radio station La Chouette Radio & Merlin knows that it is important to keep children reading and listening in a world full of screens. Even when kids are consuming audio, it’s through the parents’ smartphone. Radio France and Bayard therefore created La Chouette Radio to create a physical radio station for 3-12 year olds. With the radio, kids could listen to everything from yoga classes to space podcasts to fairy tales.
Marlies Hartendorf, Executive Producer at Qmusic asks “What if your fans only follow you on social media?”
“When it comes to creating unique content, radio and social media are equal to each other,” says Marlies. They adapt their content to each social platform. They are also constantly filming in the studio – even between songs, this allows them to post to social media on the same day. Every week, a YouTube video comes out with content that has never been on the radio and is exclusively for social media.
In the words of Marlies – “Choose your content wisely – you’re building a brand. If you’re not, don’t post it”. Maybe you have fans who only follow you on social media? No problem !
