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Mark Ramsey Calls NextRadio Enthusiasm 'A Mirage'
August 6, 2014 at 5:11 AM (PT)
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Last week (NET NEWS 7/31), new research from COLEMAN INSIGHTS And KNOWDIGITAL was released, showing strong demand for the NEXTRADIO app. The data found smartphone owners are highly interested in NEXTRADIO, and have positive initial impressions of the app, indicate that they are highly likely to download and use it and believe it will cause them to listen to local FM radio stations more than they currently do.
The study was supported by the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF BROADCASTERS (NAB) and completed in cooperation with EMMIS COMMUNICATIONS, which developed NEXTRADIO and has spearheaded the radio industry’s support for its rollout. It is based on 801 online interviews with 18-49-year-old smartphone owners who viewed a 90-second video explaining NEXTRADIO’s capabilities and benefits.
But RAMSEY MEDIA Pres. MARK RAMSEY has an issue with it -- and asks in his blog, "Is NEXTRADIO’s Consumer Enthusiasm a Mirage?"
RAMSEY writes, "There are two kinds of research: The kind that aims to reveal truth and the kind that aims to prove a point that can serve as a news release. This is the latter."
He points out, "Consumers were exposed to what amounts to a video advertisement for NEXTRADIO and then asked how they felt about it. It’s an ad, folks, not neutral research stimuli. Respondents were, essentially, primed for positive feedback by the nature of the stimulus itself. Indeed, if you present a dozen ads for a dozen apps to respondents you are likely to get favorable responses to all of them -- in part because the respondent is telling you what they think you want to hear; they are being 'good respondents'.”
ALL ACCESS reached out to COLEMAN INSIGHTS, and Pres./COO WARREN KURTZMAN had no comment about RAMSEY's blog, but added, "We will be publishing some more thoughts on the research on COLEMANINSIGHTS.COM. While those thoughts aren’t in response to MARK’s post, they will shed some additional light on aspects of the research that MARK was not aware of when he posted his comments."
KURTZMAN noted COLEMAN INSIGHTS wouldn't be posting new data TODAY, but, "the blog post TODAY is more of an opinion piece that tells the story behind the research and why I believe the industry needs to get behind this initiative."
Read RAMSEY's full post here.

