Here’s what happened at Radiocentre’s Tuning In North conference, which returned to Manchester on Thursday last week.
Taking place at Stoller Hall, attendees from across stations, agencies, brands and the wider media sector watched a programme of sessions exploring the opportunities offered by commercial radio and audio in 2025.
Against a background of record commercial radio audiences and buoyant advertising revenues, Radiocentre’s Chief Executive Matt Payton highlighted the growth in digital listening during his opening address. He said this increase, particularly on voice assistant devices, was the driving force for the recent work Radiocentre has done on protecting access to radio on digital platforms securing its future.
UK Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Lisa Nandy, recorded a special message for the event, underlining the Government’s commitment to commercial radio. Nandy praised the industry’s “spirit of innovation” and highlighted the medium’s reputation for “being a really trusted environment for advertisers, with a safe, regulated landscape which listeners trust and value”.
Nandy emphasised radio’s importance as a contributor to growth, supporting a range of industries from advertising to the charity sector. She also spoke about the government’s measures to secure the long-term success of the UK’s local and community radio stations.
“As a Government we’re determined to make sure our media ecosystem can continue to grow and meet people where they are. That’s why we’ve implemented new legislation that guarantees people can listen to all licenced UK radio stations on smart speakers like Google Nest and Amazon Echo” Nandy said.
Matt Payton returned to the stage along with Head of Insight Donna Burns, to unveil the key findings from Speed of Sound, a new report highlighting the pioneering digital innovations that are redefining the commercial audio market. Conducted in partnership with research consultancy MTM, the study explores how digital audio amplifies audio’s advantages for advertisers.
Vital points were raised during a panel session which followed the launch of Speed of Sound. The session, “How to maximise the audio opportunity”, saw leading figures from agencies discuss ways of unlocking more audio value for their clients. Jon Kershaw, Managing Director, PHD Manchester; Kate Bradbury, Deputy Managing Director, Wavemaker North; Gemma Lee, AV Partner at Carat (Dentsu); as well as Bauer’s Simon Kilby who returned to the stage to join Matt Payton for the session. The group discussed the perception gap sometimes held by agencies around the size of audio and what the industry needs to do to address it.
Kirsty Gallacher interviewed Arafa Heneghan, Director of Brand at online electrical goods retailer AO, about how the retailer’s use of audio has made it stand out from its established rivals. Heneghan revealed that AO’s brand sonic, using the “Hey, ho, let’s go” ear worm from the Ramones’ iconic “Blitzkreig Bop” had repaid its investment, accelerated the brand’s fame and was here to stay. Arafa discussed how radio advertising has been a key element of the brand’s growth since it was first established 25 years ago. “Radio is a cornerstone for us” she said “It’s a trusted channel that really works for reach and frequency”.
Social media’s role in exacerbating feelings of distrust, anxiety and depression was explored in depth by Bauer Media Advertising Managing Director Simon Kilby, who shared insights from Bauer’s mental health awareness campaign Where’s Your Head At? The campaign calls for “safer socials” and will be backed by a number of initiatives to ensure positive outcomes for mental wellbeing when navigating social media. “We want to be on the right side of history,” Kilby said, as he urged adland to take account of social media’s impact on society.
In a fascinating session about the importance of creative consistency, Andrew Tindall, Senior Vice President of Global Partnerships at System1, highlighted what audio advertisers can learn from System1’s influential joint research with the IPA Compound Creativity. With audio examples from Smart Energy GB, McVitie’s Penguin, McDonalds and EE, he showed how sticking with consistent ideas, executions and in many cases agencies builds stronger brands and greater profits.
The closing session focused on one of the most entertaining brand tie-ups of recent times. Mickelle Roberts, Director of Branded Entertainment at Global, teamed up with Tom Goddard, Client Director at Carat, to show how a close creative partnership between Greggs and Capital Radio has created viral moments and led to lasting success. One highlight was the launch of a brand new breakfast roll “The Jordan” to celebrate the arrival of Jordan North as host of Capital Breakfast last year.