Radio Milwaukee to partner with business strategy and research company Magid to field five county listening tour

MILWAUKEE (April 13, 2023) – Radio Milwaukee will partner with business strategy and research company Magid to field a five county quantitative and qualitative listening tour of its listening area, the station announced Thursday. The tour will encompass Milwaukee, Waukesha, Ozaukee, Racine and Washington counties and aims to inform how the station can best serve its community as a unifier.

“As a public radio station, it is imperative that we do the ascertainment work to truly understand the audience we are serving,” said Executive Director Maxie Jackson. “We are thrilled to be able to make this commitment to community engagement and have a great partner in Magid to field a comprehensive study.”

The project will produce a rich, qualitative map of the wants, values, and priorities of greater Milwaukee and a working map of the current media landscape. The research will encompass the station’s total listening area, but aims to focus on the next generation of public media consumers. By understanding the unique and shared needs, wants and aspirations of Milwaukee’s multicultural and multiethnic areas, Radio Milwaukee will take action to strategically impact the lives of its listeners.

Based throughout the U.S. with Midwest offices in Chicago and Iowa, Magid brings over 60 years of experience to the project and has worked directly with thousands of media brands of all sizes from local, urban radio stations to national, multiplatform broadcasters.

“We’re thrilled to work with Radio Milwaukee on this effort to better understand and serve its audience,” said Bill Hague, Executive Vice President, Magid. “Through our continuous study of consumer behavior, we know how often attitudes and preferences change. Beyond the research, we’re also using our years of experience in media and communications to get to the right path forward and help the station put it into action.”

Magid was selected as the partner on this work through an extensive request for proposal process that began in January, led by Mallorey Wallace and Darron (DJ) Brüwer, Radio Milwaukee’s community engagement coordinators.

“We were incredibly impressed with Magid’s proposal and direct past experience in the public media space,” said Wallace. “We feel they bring the national industry experience to broaden our understanding of the community we serve, with the Midwest roots to understand our specific region.”

Radio Milwaukee will kick off the listening tour this month and will conclude the project in November. The tour will consist of two key components: qualitative listening sessions and a quantitative online survey. Listening sessions will be conducted first and analysis will inform the building of the online survey.

“One of the key components of Magid’s process that resonated with us was their approach to listen to the community first,” said Brüwer. “By having listening sessions inform the development of a broader survey, we are confident the results will help us understand our current and potential audience on a holistic and deeper level.”

Select results from Radio Milwaukee’s listening tour will be made available for public consumption and use in November. The station plans to conduct this survey annually to inform storytelling and journalistic content in support of its music discovery channels, 88Nine and HYFIN.

For more information or interview requests, please contact Sarah Lahr at sarahm@radiomilwaukee.org or 815-260-7218.

About Radio Milwaukee
Radio Milwaukee (WYMS-88.9FM) has been a positive force for Milwaukee on air, online and in the community since its 2007 launch. Through its creative programming and content, non-commercial Radio Milwaukee utilizes a multimedia platform for creating a better, more inclusive and engaged community. 88Nine broadcasts and streams a unique blend of musical styles, including at least one song by a Milwaukee artist each hour, and short Uniquely Milwaukee stories that foster engagement and positive change. On 88.9FM-HD2 and hyfin.org, the station operates an Urban Alternative channel, HYFIN, that focuses on connecting with young, diverse audiences through the full spectrum of Black music. The organization runs a 24/7 all-Milwaukee music channel at 414Music.fm online and 88.9FM-HD3 on-air. The award-winning station receives the great majority of its financial support from its 6,000 contributing members, more than 150 underwriters and 25 foundations. Learn more about Radio Milwaukee and stream the station at RadioMilwaukee.org or via the Radio Milwaukee mobile app.

About Magid
Magid is a strategy and consulting firm that helps companies make better decisions and put them into practice. For more than six decades, our courageous thinking has helped hundreds of brands worldwide become an essential part of peoples’ lives – making and sustaining category leaders. With a human-centered approach grounded in psychological and social principles, we leverage years of experience, perspective and foresight to help clients win.

 

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.