“Content is king, Social Media is the gasoline,” Jay Baer a global business analyst, once said. Baer couldn’t have been more correct. At a time, when social media’s rise has given birth to influencers of all sorts, even once popular radio jockeys (RJ) across private FM channels have pivoted towards being full-time influencers. “The charm of radio was being a mystery. The idea of radio itself was based on triggering the imagination of its listeners. However, we are living in a time where the primacy of the visual sense is extremely strong and hence the charm of radio is lost,” RJ Sarthak, Fever 104 FM, told BrandWagon Online.
In the current scheme of things, RJs no longer work exclusively for any particular radio station and run their own content channels, primarily on Instagram. While RJs are on-air for approximately three to four hours, social media allows them to extend their relationship with their listeners beyond the time they are on on-air.
No more lucrative!
Even as radio has been able to maintain its ground with its share of dedicated listeners, the arrival of social media platforms has created a new trend. Under this, many popular RJs have migrated to full-time jobs of being an influencer. One of the key reasons is definitely the fact till date RJs are not highly paid in India. Compared to this, social media allows them to create a big fan following and this could be further capitalised to earn from brand partnership. “Radio jockeys are much more accessible nowadays due to their social media handles. Social media has provided radio jockeys an opportunity to present their work and connect with global audiences. Earlier, the RJs used to be like philosophers or guides. However, the RJs of today are more like your friends,” RJ Sayema from Radio Mirchi, said. Also, RJs it is believed now only create 20% of the content which is scripted as compared to 60-80% earlier.
According to industry estimates, leading RJs earn anywhere in the range of Rs 1-1.2 crore annually. These are also the RJs who host the prime-time band between 7 am to 10 am and 5 pm to 7 pm. The salary continues to decline as the grade lowers and the annual increment ranges between 5-10%. Furthermore, brand association allows RJs to earn anywhere between Rs 3-5 lakh per association, depending on the nature of the content. When compared to international markets like the US – – the median hourly wage of customer service representatives in the U.S. radio and TV broadcasting industry was $20.66 (Rs 1717 per hour) in 2021.
Social Media: The New Beast
Meta’s Instagram and Facebook, among other social media platforms, have slowly garnered the attention of content creators and both millennials and Gen-Zs. Short-form videos have been the go-to choice for youngsters. Another reason for the rise of short-form videos has been growing smartphone penetration and cheap data rates.
According to a report by RedSeer Consulting, the short-form video industry is set to reach $5.5 billion in revenue by 2023, with a compound annual growth rate of 32% from 2019 to 2023. Moreover, the daily active users (DAUs) for short-form video apps in India reached 115 million in 2020 which is almost twice the number in 2018. Furthermore, short-form video apps have also become a platform for influencers and brands to reach out to their target audience. The report estimates that the influencer marketing industry in India will reach $2 billion by 2023.
While the majority of content on social media platforms is humour-based, experts opine that creators must set their content apart. “While RJ’s voice and radio skills were the main focus for them back in the day, RJs are more medium agnostic as entertainers today. I feel every person has a different flavour which traces back to their socio-cultural background. I feel creators have different takes on similar topics basis their socio-cultural background,” RJ Vidit, Radio Mirchi, said,
The future of radio
Despite facing several challenges from digital besides music streaming apps, Radio has been one of the most popular mediums ever since its inception due to its ability to trigger the imagination of its listeners. According to an EY-FICCI report, radio has more than 200 million weekly audiences. Radio as a segment grew by 29% in 2022 to Rs 2,100 crore, but was still 66% of its 2019 (pre-pandemic) revenues. According to industry estimates the cost of a 10-second ad spot across private FM channels ranges between Rs 800-900. This kind of ad rate is commanded by top stations in metros, while in smaller cities it drops to as low as Rs 200-100 per 10-second ads. “Radio has shifted its focus from being a medium of discovery to being a medium of push. RJs are moving from radio to podcasts. People hardly listen to the radio these days with audio OTT taking over. People are willing to pay a premium to avoid ads. RJs have their own channels now on different platforms where they are pushing their own content,” Himank Duvvuru, founder and CEO, Mando’a MediaWorks, said.
Radio listenership was the highest for listeners between the age group of 34 and 44 years.