India Radio Forum 2012: The day at a glance

The India Radio Forum 2012, held on 22nd May at JW Marriot, Mumbai saw the attendance of a number of stalwarts of the radio fraternity as well as international speakers. Suryan FM and Superhits 93.5 RED FM were the Premium Presenting Sponsors this year.

 

The 7th edition of IRF focused on how the launch of phase III of FM radio policy would have a positive impact on the industry, how social media can be converged with radio to reap benefits  and most importantly how radio has evolved as an advertising medium.

 

CEO ROUNDTABLE: LETS GET THE BIGGER PICTURE, the inaugural session of IRF was an interesting panel discussion of industry leaders who provided key insights into the current strengths and weaknesses that pose the radio industry and what the future holds in store for it. Atul  Phadnis, CEO, What's-On-India served as moderator of the session. The panel members consisted of Asheesh Chatterjee, CFO, Big FM ,Apurva Purohit, CEO, Radio City, B Surendar-S r VP & National Sales Head, Red FM, Harrish Bhatia-CEO, My FM, Harshad Jain-Business Head,Fever FM, Hitesh Sharma-COO, Radio Mirchi and Joy Chakraborthy, CEO, Oye FM. The discussion revolved around the performance of the radio industry in 2011 and also stressed on the strategic innovations and opportunities that can be introduced in the future thereby; giving the medium a greater amount of exposure.

 

Talking about the future developments, Asheesh Chatterjee-CFO, Big FM said, “The status quo needs to be challenged. There is a need for utilizing newer technologies. The listenership base should be expanded in order to make radio  a more profitable medium.” He also added that innovations in the digital media space can be integrated along with radio to achieve a complete approach.

 

Harshad Jain-Business Head, Fever FM drew the audience’s attention to the fact that radio is still an under-penetrated category which needs to be tapped. He explained how Fever initiatives like Gandhi and Ramayana have received an over whelming response from advertisers. He also asserted that radio in India has a long way to go.

 

Talking about the evolution of radio, Apurva Purohit- CEO,Radio City said, “Radio is only a 10 year old medium. It is in a nascent stage and therefore needs to be nurtured with utmost care. There has been maximization of efficiency.Personally, 2011 has been a great year for Radio City. We increased our market share by two percent.”

 

“Radio is a people driven industry. The radio jockey is the product. The key is to get the best people in the best environment who are able to deliver the best results, “stated Apurva.

 

B Surendar, SrVP & National Sales Head, Red FM spoke about the developments that the radio industry has witnessed in the past two years. He explained how Red FM today is a differentiated and distinctive brand in itself and how it has performed well not only in metros but also in non-metros. “Radio is an amazing medium and Indians have taken to it extremely well, “exclaimed B Surendar.

 

The overall conclusion that emerged out of the discussions was that growth of radio is inevitable because of the available talent pool, value creation and Phase III of FM radio policy.

 

The next in the series of events was a talk by Jason Brownlee -International Development Director of Radio GAUGE; which is a global system of measuring effectiveness of radio advertising. Jason revealed the key attributes that make radio commercials effective and how these attributes need to be tapped in by the advertisers. In THE RADIOGAUGE HALL OF FAME, Jason showcased some of the most successful and inspiring radio commercials tested by Radio GAUGE from around the world that generated fantastic results for brands and advertisers.

 

PETE’S CAFÉ was a visual treat by Pete Bishop, which included clippings of stuff that he found creative.

 

SOCIAL MEDIA AND RADIO was yet another interesting panel discussion which offered a perspective into how social media has revolutionized the connect, that radio jockeys share with the audiences. Twitter, Facebook and other social media platforms have helped radio to communicate with its target audience in a more effective manner. The discussion was moderated by Suman Srivastava, Founder& Innovation Artist, Marketing Unplugged. The members of the panel were Premjeet Sodhi, COO, Lintas Media Group, Raj Nayak, CEO, COLORS-Viacom18,Satbir Singh-Managing Partner & Chief Creative Officer, Euro RSCG ,Tushar Vyas, Managing Partner, GroupM South Asia. The panel arrived at a conclusion that; social media needs to be looked at as a medium of communication that can be creatively engaged to benefit radio.

 

MAXIMISING RADIO'S ASSETS: HOW TO GAIN SHARE OF MARKET SPEND  was a panel discussion that centered around how radio can gain a greater share of the total media spend. The discussion moderated by Apurva Purohit saw the participation of members like Arpita Menon, Head - Media Planning & Buying, STAR TV,Kartik Sharma-Managing Partner, Maxus, Shubha George-COO, MEC, Shubhranshu Singh-Marketing Director India & South Asia, VISA, Vinay Bhatia, Sr VP Marketing, Shopper's Stop Limited. The discussion provided insights on how radio can achieve sales goals in a better manner.

 

In THE RADIO PITCH CHALLENGE, planning teams from media agencies pitched a product or service also explaining the objectives, challenges, use of media platform and the effective role of radio in the campaign along with a radio promo.

 

India Radio Forum concluded with the 2012 Excellence in Radio Awards ceremony. | By Aditi Popat [aditi(at)adgully.com]