Kenneth, What *Is* the Frequency? Often, Listeners Know

How do your listeners identify your station? Increasingly, they do so by frequency, rather than call letters.
Arbitron has released an analysis about how diarykeepers use station identifiers to record their listening. It says a shift has occurred.
In 1996, call letters were the most common identifier. The new analysis of 2001-02 data shows that diarykeepers are now principally recording stations’ frequencies instead. Use of station name and program or personality have generally remained stable.
“The rise in the proportion of listening reported by frequency may be attributed to a couple of factors, one being that stations, particularly those on the FM band, increasingly identify themselves over the air by exact frequency,” said John Budosh, senior policy analyst for Arbitron’s Diary Analysis and Communications group, in the company’s statement.
“The increased penetration of digital-display radios at home, in the car and in the workplace has also influenced diarykeepers’ tendency to record station frequency more often than other station identifiers.”
Arbitron’s Scott Musgrave, senior VP and GM of Arbitron Radio, stated, “Stations would be wise to examine the primary identifiers they are using on the air and make changes, if necessary, so they stay in step with recent trends. … Stations should also take note that diarykeepers’ use of program and personality names is marginal.”