Why do radio stations still use jingles?
Jingles are part of the radio station brand identity and they should be treated like that. They are a great way to prevent your station from being flat or dull. They can give a specific tone to your station according to its content and separate distinctively the shows. Jingles will, and should, be used as the element that your listeners can identify your program with and reminder them of the station they are listening to. A voice over can introduce the station, the type of music, and what the listeners can expect while listening to the station, which keeps them tuned in.
As Dennis Clark, radio strategist, had emphasized at the Radio Festival 2011 in Manchester, “If radio imaging is interesting – if it’s well written and well produced – it actually holds listeners through 30-35 seconds. That’s kind of the limit on any piece we do. The transition between songs while using imaging is not a major tune-out. But we’re finding that we’re losing a couple of people if they hear ‘another commercial’. I guess it’s subconscious that they’re hearing ‘commercials’. Therefore, station imaging should not sound like a commercial; it should sound like a song.”
Image: Studio 1 of Radio University of Coimbra
I personally couldn’t agree more with this statement. Just think the times that bad radio station scheduling has resulted in back to back commercials or the same jingle being played every single hour. Jingles and commercials’ role is to enhance your program; not prevent listeners from tune in and staying there. You need to schedule them with wisdom, think of the listening experience and have a clear management area as to be able to know exactly when a jingle is supposed to play.
Screenshot of a basic break management area of a Radiojar station
What about audio jingles for shows? Jingles are definitely a strong entry for a show to begin. Morning shows usually have the most inspiring and full of energy intros as to positively bias the listeners. It’s actually an opportunity for you as a show host to personalize your broadcast and give your listeners a taste of yourself, whether it be in the music you select or the way you write the intro script. As The Chris Evans Breakfast Show proved, jingles can really become a part of people’s lives. Listeners used to write emails to the breakfast team about the show opener: “It starts their day or teaches their kids the days of the week.”
Chris Moyles Show on BBC and its “Cheesy Song” were one of the best uses of radio show intro. In a video, Moyles says: “People sing them. Jingles get stuck in the head and give you an identity that no-one else has. And here is the amazing jingle for the final show:
Evi Katsoulieri
Product Manager @Radiojar
