Cornwall's 105 to 107 Itchy FM - Ofcom Licensing
Cornwall's 105 to 107 Itchy FM - Ofcom Licensing
Cornwall's 105 to 107 Itchy FM - Ofcom Licensing
Create successful ePaper yourself
Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.
Market Opportunity<br />
BBC Radio 1 consistently performs strongly in Cornwall but is completely unable <strong>to</strong> represent the<br />
“Cornishness” associated with the county’s distinct identity. Locally, Pirate <strong>FM</strong> continues <strong>to</strong> include a<br />
significant proportion of its music output from pre-2000, and even pre-1990. On the day of our<br />
moni<strong>to</strong>ring its second highest genre was 1980’s music. This format, not surprisingly attracts a large<br />
majority of its audience from the county’s over 35s. Indeed Pirate <strong>FM</strong> is still very much a traditional fullservice<br />
ILR which, our research suggests, narrows the market gap at the older end of the market.<br />
We have identified, and our research has substantiated, that in a county where 15-34s make up 20% of<br />
the population, and where the vast bulk of listening hours <strong>to</strong> the heritage ILR are from 35+ adults, that<br />
there is a compelling case and opportunity for a locally focussed, energetic music radio station. A radio<br />
station targeting this demographic will clearly complement Pirate <strong>FM</strong> which, although very successful in<br />
achieving a wide audience base, primarily appeals <strong>to</strong> a 35+ audience in its programming. <strong>Itchy</strong> <strong>FM</strong> will<br />
achieve its reach forecasts by focussing predominantly on the county’s 106,841 local 15-34 year olds.<br />
Business plan and assumptions<br />
After having satisfied ourselves as <strong>to</strong> the likely success of the station with our target audience through<br />
external research, we have also thoroughly investigated revenue levels, cost base and audience<br />
marketing requirements. We believe that through a realistic capitalisation of the station, and well<br />
planned staff structure plus a revenue plan encompassing local and national revenue the station will be<br />
well constructed <strong>to</strong> ensure its long-term financial sustainability. The business plan for IMD Radio<br />
Cornwall Ltd is underpinned by five basic assumptions:<br />
1. Effective financial management<br />
2. Audience attraction<br />
3. Sponsorship & Promotions specialism<br />
4. Non-traditional revenues<br />
5. Integrated approach<br />
Due <strong>to</strong> the limited amount of youth media within the county, IMD is convinced that a media channel as<br />
significant as <strong>Itchy</strong> <strong>FM</strong> will be a “must-buy” for Cornwall’s youth communications market, with a range<br />
of activities centred around the station, from local spots <strong>to</strong> sponsored events, from programme<br />
sponsorship <strong>to</strong> outside broadcasts, plus non-traditional radio revenue and brand extension activity<br />
(database rental, listener downloads, merchandising, listener publications, station CDs etc). This<br />
commercial innovation reflects the changing face of commercial radio as it evolves <strong>to</strong> compete in a<br />
multi-media on-demand world and IMD are confident this tactic will create strong margins within this<br />
radio station.<br />
We passionately believe that our genuine positioning of <strong>Itchy</strong> <strong>FM</strong> at the heart of the Cornwall youth<br />
experience (both local and visiting) will enable the station <strong>to</strong> maximise client spend and trust from<br />
launch.<br />
Effective financial management<br />
Commercial management team <strong>to</strong> launch the station<br />
Our team has extensive experience of running small, profitable media businesses. Our cautious<br />
approach <strong>to</strong> running the business on a sensible and scaleable overhead will be implemented via a team<br />
experienced in launching / re-launching youth media businesses. We intend <strong>to</strong> make good use of<br />
freelancers, shareholder resources, function outsourcing and extensive local relationships / goodwill<br />
generated over the last few years. The launch team, lead by Ian Merricks, has good experience of<br />
prudent revenue forecasting, cost controls and revenue growth, plus inven<strong>to</strong>ry and brand development.<br />
9