Those who jetset around the world are also those who switch on the radio, says a new study from research company Nielsen and radio industry body Commercial Radio Australia (CRA).
The study, Radio on the Move, says some 4.5 million Aussies aged over 14 have travelled either domestically or internationally in the past year.
And there’s three distinct groups of travellers who tune into radio; the Travelling Suits – who are usually mid thirties, white-collar males in Sydney or Melbourne, OS Adventurers – just over half are women either 25-39 or over 55, and the Local Leisure Seekers – older families from Melbourne or Adelaide travelling for a holiday.
Nielsen and CRA distinguished variations in how each group consumes radio.
The Travelling Suits are committed radio listeners, talking about what they heard on the radio and relying on it for updates on what’s going on around them.
A quarter of the OS Adventurers trust their favourite radio station for information about products. And the Local Leisure Seekers tune in during brekkie time.
However, all three groups tended to listen to radio while commuting, with breakfast and drive radio key times for switching on – nearly half of respondents within the groups identified with these trends.
From an airline perspective, Qantas was the most travelled, and most preferred, airline over the past year, with Tiger Airways seen to have the lowest airfares.
David Burge, associate director, Media Industry Group, Nielsen, commented: “By developing a strong radio strategy, brands within the travel sector would engage with a large majority of their key stakeholders across important segments of the public.
“The majority of Australian radio listeners are engaging with the travel industry each year, and sometimes several times a year, to organise flights, research new destinations and plan the details of their next trip. In order to inform and secure interest from these groups, travel brands need to incorporate radio into their marketing plans – these findings prove that the listeners are there, however they have specific preferences and interests that need to be taken into account.”