James Cridland, a “radio futurologist” in the U.K., will give a special presentation at RAIN Summit West on Sunday, April 6, in Las Vegas. (Full agenda, speakers, and registration here.) His speech and accompanying slide show are called The World’s Best Radio Apps.
Cridland, an advocate of digital extensions for radio, built what he told RAIN was the first mobile app for a radio station. In a phone conversation from Toronto, where he was stopping over before heading to Las Vegas for Sunday’s conference, he told RAIN about his background.
“Back in 2005, when I was working at Virgin Radio, I launched the world’s first radio app. I’ve played with a lot since. Many radio apps are the same old thing: a logo and a listen live button. But some apps have caught my eye, and my ear. I’ve spoken to a variety of different companies across the world on Skype and in real life, about what they’re most proud of.”
We asked Cridland whether it’s important for a radio station to built its own mobile app. He acknowledged other ways of reaching the mobile audience, but emphasized the importance of serving a station’s best customers.
“Loyal listeners want a dedicated app, and will use it. TuneIn, iHeartRadio, and other aggregators are fine for the stations’s P2s and P3s.”
As an example of digital innovation for mobile radio listeners, Cridland described one app’s extra features. “One station’s app had a feature where users could chat with each other about the music playing on the radio. The station discovered that users weren’t listening to the web stream through the app; they were listening on the radio. They used the app for the social features.”
The World’s Best Radio Apps will start at 10:05 sharp during RAIN Summit West, a whole-day educational and networking conference co-located with The NAB Show. Some tickets are still available, and include $100 off an NAB Show pass, or free access to the NAB Show exhibition hall. Go here for full descriptions and registration.