If radio understood the appeal of the internet, they’d know a great website isn’t the key to the battle to raise revenues.

Despite a growing database of purchased MP3’s, an iPhone, and an in-car iPod cable, I still enjoy listening to the radio. I have several routine drives that I make throughout the work week, and at least two of them are spent using the radio to catch concert news, hear sports updates, or stumble upon a new band. I think of radio like a nice blog, I visit because they offer a mix of opinions and content I can’t find anywhere else (i.e. it can’t be downloaded from iTunes). New music, a pinch of throw-back music, and DJ commentary add a spin that you might find in a podcast, but podcasts don’t have the same feel.

But in a suffocating attempt to leverage new media, radio stations are building content-oriented websites and promoting them on-air to their listeners. This was a great idea when users were listening to radio in the workplace… but with the boom of iTunes, most people who work at a computer aren’t listening to the radio. Instead, radio is slowly being limited to in-car entertainment.

The biggest problem with website-oriented in-car entertainment? No one is by a computer! So why are Radio DJ’s asking their in-car listeners to go search the station website to learn more about an artist, concert, or song? The last thing radio needs to do is push more people to the internet, especially for content better served by a Google search! In the off-chance a consumer remembers to look for the information, the chances of them using the radio website to find it are slim. Sure, there are exceptions, like station specific information, but by the time someone gets to a computer, do they really care? In an society dictated by instant gratification, I doubt it. If listeners are really looking for funny videos or concert clips they’re better off on YouTube… and the listeners know this!

Read the rest of this entry »