Sound Advice on the Portable People Meter

There is a very big buzz these days about Arbitron's Portable People Meter. What will it mean for the radio ratings system and the future of your radio station? We'd like to offer up some thoughts.

1. There has been a lot of talk about less need for station identification in PPM markets. Not true. Though the PPM picks up an electronic fingerprint of your station and records it, individuals still have to remember who they were listening to so they can come back. This will require the same amount of station identification, branding and teasing.

2. Some radio stations are looking for ways to manipulate the system by driving vehicles with PA systems blaring their station around various locations so it will be picked up by people wearing the PPM. Though this might work in some small way, you'd be better off spending that amount of time coming up with compelling content for your radio station and promoting it, because that WILL work for sure.

3. It will be more important than ever to make sure your commercials are interesting and targeted to your audience. So far, actual PPM tests prove that people tune out when commercials start to play. They are more likely to stay with you or come back if there is a strong "listening appointment" made just before going into the stopset.

4. You will find that you share listening with many more stations than the diary method has shown. Some of this is by listener choice; some of this will be from the PPM recognizing a station that was not selected by the person wearing the PPM.

5. The PPM WILL reflect actual listening increases during dramatic or unusual times like bad weather, big news events, school closings or big listener-beneficial contests. This is why we need to have systems for these events mastered and promote them very well. When bad weather hits, you want to be the station your audience thinks of first and most.

6. The PPM will also immediately reflect when you do something that is not aligned well with your audience. This is unlike the diary methodology, where a person may not recall turning your station off because you were doing something they didn't like. This means you now will have no margin for error. How the listener responds will be recorded immediately and exactly.

7. Building a consistent emotional bond with your audience will still be important. BUT, programmers will always need to be on the hunt for "event"- or "capture the moment"-type situations to bring big cume rushes to the station, because it will be recognized and recorded immediately. The key will be to promote them well. In the PPM world, promoting a huge concert announcement or contest will actually work better than with the diary methodology. Likewise, if you are not creating these moments or events, you will not see an increase in listening.

8. Finally, the PPM will mean having to move faster, smarter and harder. We will have to be more aware and better targeted on a more consistent basis because what the PPM records is actual -- it has nothing to do with what a person thinks at the time.