37 million Turks listen to radio per week

ISTANBUL

New television and radio tower in Istanbul has been built on Çamlıca Hill.

Some 37 million people in Turkey tune in to radio stations every week, a survey conducted in December last year by the global marketing research company Nielson has shown.

“According to radio audience measurements in December, which represents [around] 46 million people in 30 provinces over the age of 12, approximately 27 million people a day listen to the radio, and this figure reaches 37 million for a week,” said Didem Şekerel Erdoğan, Nielson’s general manager in Turkey.

Six people out of 10 listen to the radio, she added.

While 52.9 percent of women listen to the radio, this rate is 62.6 percent for men, and the average radio listening time is more than three hours per day, according to the figures Erdoğan provided.

“Radio listening rates are over 50 percent in every age group and socio-economic level. This percentage is over 60 between the ages of 25 and 44,” she added.

Erdoğan also emphasized radio listening habits are directly proportional to socio-economic level.

People listen to the radio besides rush hour as well, contrary to popular belief, she said.

“While accessibility ranges over 7.5 million people from 9 am to 5 pm, in other periods of time this figure can reach 9 million,” she added.

One in two people listens to radio stations while driving, according to the figures.

“Since a consumer that listens to radio in their car has the chance to stop at the nearest shopping point during the journey and meet their needs, we regard radio audience as the closest ones to make purchases. We believe that brands should capture this in their communication strategies,” she said.

Headquartered in New York, Nielsen is a research company that tracks consumption patterns in more than 100 countries. It has been carrying out its activities in Turkey since 1984.