Multitasking is nothing new to radio listeners. For generations, listeners have incorporated radio into working, driving, cleaning, cooking, and socializing. It’s the ultimate passive medium—as a listener, you can engage as much or as little as you want. Successful radio programmers have even used “usage imaging” to teach listeners how to multitask using their stations. Examples of “usage imaging” include well known liners like “listen while you work” or “turn it on in the car”—phrases that instruct the audience to multitask with the radio.

In fact, radio’s nature as a multitask-friendly medium is one of its most underutilized strengths when it comes to digital opportunities. Radio is a medium that listeners are trained to use while doing other things. Producing online content that is relevant to the station’s broadcast might just be the key to easily getting more page views and “time spent connected” from your audience.

A new research study from Nielsen sheds light on the multitasking phenomenon among television viewers. Nielsen reports that three out of four Americans surf the web and watch TV at the same time—and half of them say that they do it daily. Two and a half hours per week is the average amount of time people are spending with the TV and web at the same time—usually using e-mail, Facebook, or other websites (mostly unrelated to the content of the TV show they’re watching).

This points to an obvious opportunity for television—an opportunity to create online content that ties in to on-air programming. If it’s done effectively, it might just get more mileage out of each viewer by attracting them to use the station’s website simultaneously.

In radio, we already know that our listeners are multi-taskers. We know that a significant number of at-work listeners are in front of the computer during the day with radio in the background. Is your station making use of this exceptional opportunity to engage listeners in your programming online? How are you pointing listeners to move from on-air to online… and back?

We have seen in numerous studies that the people who visit radio station websites are often P1s or P2s who can be converted to P1s. Knowing that PPM numbers are driven by high P1 listening, your ability to move listeners from sphere to sphere could ultimately even impact your ratings.

Make your station more compatible for multi-taskers—and for people who want to access your brand in multiple places at once. Block your competition by getting more time from your listeners—don’t give them the chance to multi-task with someone else.

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• Web Videos for Radio Stations - Latin Global Entertainment Networks has just announced it will begin providing radio stations with online videos. Movido TV will stream weekly “short-form” programs that are 5 to 15 minutes long. The videos will range from comedies to Latin-based television shows. All of the programs will be produced, marketed, and financed by Movidio.

• The Five Billionth Mobile Subscription - Ericsson, a provider in technology to global telecom operators, has just reported that the five billionth mobile subscription was achieved last week. China and India contributed most to mobile usage. Ericsson reported that in the year 2000, only about 720 million people worldwide had a mobile subscription. Two million mobile subscribers are added to the global digital grid each day, and the 3G subscribers have now exceeded 500 million worldwide.

• No More National Public Radio, Just NPR - Without notice, a nationally known news based radio network has stopped branding itself as "radio." NPR now stands for NPR. The Washington-based organization says the reason for the change is because “it’s more than radio these days.” With news, music and informational programming streaming through all sorts of digital devices, NPR has become more modern and streamlined. With no official announcement, NPR has told its entire staff and all affiliated stations to only use the initials for now.

• U.S. Government and Its Top Five Apps - The United States Government has just announced a number of new digital apps for your mobile device(s). Here are the top five downloads to date:

1. Product Recall App – download this application to see most recent government issued product recalls.

2. FBI Most Wanted App – this app allows you to view the top 10 most wanted persons in the U.S.A.

3. NASA App – view where the International Space Station is located with live feeds and watch all live shuttle launches.

4. White House App – check in on all White House activities; view all international guests for the current day.

5. U.S. Postal App – view all current rates, zip codes, mailing times, and delivery confirmations.

• SIRIUS XM Radio Update - It was only a year ago when this satellite radio company was facing bankruptcy. This past week, the company announced that at the end of the first half of 2010, it now has a record total subscriptions: 19,527,448. SIRIUS XM expects to add an additional 650,000 subscribers in the second half of 2010. A large part of the “new” company has been dependent on automakers and their willingness to install all new vehicles with satellite radios.

• Dan Halyburton Joins McVay New Media - McVay New Media announces Dan Halyburton as McVay New Media VP/Innovation, working with broadcasters to innovate beyond current traditional business models to more profitable digital multi-media models. Halyburton will work with broadcasters and technology companies to grow their revenue. This is the second addition to McVay New Media’s consulting team in 2010, following the announcement of broadcast veteran Jon Erdahl as McVay New Media VP/Digital Strategy in January.
(disclosure: Daniel Anstandig, author of this weekly newsletter, is President of McVay New Media)

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GADGETS: I WANT ONE

The TV Hat by SKM Industries – It was first introduced at the Consumer Electronics Show this past January and has become a national sensation. This is an actual hat that you wear and use for video viewing. The hat has an interior pouch to house your iPhone, iPod, Droid, or most MP3 players and contains a 2.5X magnification screen. With privacy side shields to prevent others from seeing what you are viewing, the TV hat is described as a “personal theater." What will they think of next? The price is only $29.95 plus shipping and handling.

Daniel Anstandig is President of McVay New Media Consultants and Co-Founder of Listener Driven Radio. Future-minded and passionate about the the digital radio convergence, Anstandig develops content and sales strategies for digital media companies. Reach Daniel at 3d@radio-info.com and by phone at 216-965-5440.