How SCA is set to bring the ‘heavy artillery’ to turn around Sydney numbers in 2023
Mumbrella's Kalila Welch sat down with Southern Cross Austereo chief content officer Dave Cameron to wrap up the year that has been, and understand the radio group's plans to bump its presence in the Sydney market in 2023.
The last 12 months have largely been a recovery year for Southern Cross Austereo (SCA), after a tough previous two years of “sheer exhaustion” just keeping people “on the air and broadcasting”, chief content officer Dave Cameron tells Mumbrella.
While Cameron acknowledges results have been less than ideal in the Sydney market, with the latest radio ratings putting Triple M and 2DayFM at less than half the total audience share of market leaders, he remains excited about the numbers SCA has seen over the past 12 months.
Dave Cameron, chief content officer, Southern Cross Austereo
“I’m feeling very confident about what we’ve got in store for next year,” says Cameron, pointing to a 33.1% increase in national cume for the radio group in the last 12 months, landing SCA its highest ever national cume audience of 6.131 million listeners across its Hit and Triple M network in Gfk Survey 8.
Over the year, the radio group saw 8.8 million listeners across Australia, with the Hit Network up from 2.8 million in 2021 to 3.8 million at the end of this year. Triple M also increased from 1.9 to 2.6 million national listeners year on year.
While much of the growth can be attributed to the depressed figures of 2020 and 2021, Cameron reasserts that SCA’s strategy is to dominate in younger audience segments, rather than lead ratings overall.
According to the radio group’s analysis of the latest Gfk results, it is meeting these objectives, with the Hit Network number one for women in the 25-54 demographic, as is Triple M for men 25-54.
Cameron adds that the gendered programming of each network reflects the way client briefs come in, with both networks sitting at about a 60/40 or 70/30 gender split.
While SCAs seen some encouraging results in overall growth, the Sydney market remains an obvious trouble spot for the radio company.
In the latest survey for the Sydney market, Triple M and 2DayFM’s breakfast programs finished the year on 4.4% share for the timeslot, with 2GB’s Ben Fordham leading the pack on 15.7% and KISS1065’s Kyle & Jackie O on 14.8%. In drive, the story was only slightly more optimistic, as Triple M’s The Rush Hour bumped up to 5.9% share, and 2DayFM’s Carrie and Tommy reached 6.4%, just over four points behind timeslot leaders KISS1065’s Will and Woody, on 10.7%.
Molloy will return to the Triple M breakfast slot alongside MG from the 16th of January
With the situation feeling dire, SCA is holding out hope that the return of Mick Molloy to his ‘spiritual home’ of Triple M to front a new breakfast lineup will be the silver bullet the network needs to regain its footing in the market.
Molloy is set join current breakfast host Mark ‘MG’ Geyer in the new year, with the show featuring MG’s co-hosts Jess Eva and Pagey having been axed a year after replacing Lawrence Mooney.
“We knew going into this year that we didn’t necessarily have exactly the right product,” says Cameron. “But throughout the course of the second half of the year, we’ve we’ve looked at exactly what’s needed in that market, we’ve taken the time to be able to assess who we think would be able to be a key weapon in delivering that strategy.”
“Mick Molloy’s name always pops up aligned to Triple M because he always drives that male audience, that we know he’s been hugely successful with for nearly three decades in this company.”
“I think the combination of the two of them will have a great kind of larrikin feel and then putting Natarsha Belling in the mix as well – I think it’s just going to be a just a really nice way to approach breakfast differently.”
Cameron’s hopes for the new lineup are high, describing Molloy as “heavy artillery” in the comedy genre and as someone who “knows radio better than anyone else in the industry.” Ultimately, he hopes the shift will “make a really significant difference in the Sydney market and really shake it up”.
With the opportunity so strong, Cameron cites that his key focus for 2023 will be to ensure the new hosts launch “really well” and build an audience quickly.
He explains the ideal outcome for the network will be to own the 25-54 demographic for males.
“That is the only filter we are looking at for that station. We don’t aim for it to achieve number one in ten plus or anything else, because that’s not what our key buyers are asking us to deliver with Triple M. They’re asking us to deliver a product that works for males, and for a product that has sports integration as well.”
Cameron continues: “Over the next few years, success to me will look like continuing the momentum that we’ve been able to establish this year, which is continuing to grow audience.”
While the changes at Triple M stray from Cameron’s overarching strategy of consistency in the lineups, he assures Mumbrella that the talent will otherwise remain largely the same through 2023.
Rumours of a change to the 2DayFM lineup were quelled several months ago when when Erin Molan announced she had re-signed with SCA, alongside her co-hosts Ed Kavalee and Dave ‘Hughesy’ Hughes.
Despite the shows’ numbers, Cameron insists that the radio group considers success through a 12-month lens. Cameron adds that he is not prepared to “shake up” a line up that has grown from an audience of 622,000 weekly listeners to 969,000 in one year.
While the game of radio is one that SCA will continue to have to compete in, it is clear that the company is doubling down on the importance of it’s digital audio offering, LiSTNR, to its overall strategy.
Naming some of the radio group’s biggest achievements of the year, he points to the success of R&B Fridays in DAB as a “quiet but massively successful story” for SCA. Since the beginning of 2021, the show has overtaken ARN’s CADA, now with almost double the total cume.
“As DAB continues to grow deliver a really meaningful audience, we’re really proud of the growth they’ve had there.”
Asked again if SCA had any upcoming plans to rebrand under the LiSTNR name, as suggested by Grant Blackley earlier this year, Cameron falls short of a conclusive answer.
“All I can say in that regard is we will continuously say that LiSTNR is at the very centre of this company,” he shared. “So take out of that what you will.”
Cameron adds: “I’m sure you can appreciate how important the LiSTNR brand is for us, in our company, from top to bottom right across our country.”
I liked Steve Price and Australia Today (on DAB), I also like Mick and Triple M.
I stopped listening to Steve Price because of Natarsha Belling. A great news reader with a lot of talent who had opinions that made me start shouting at my radio in constant disagreement. I don’t want to do that while listening to Triple M! Please!
DC, is Mick moving to Sydney? Seems not if the Front Bar is on each week.
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So the strategy for Sydney’s two lowest rating commercial FM stations is the same in 2023 as it was in 2022 – but adding Molloy to breakfast on MMM.
That’ll do it,
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