Media&Marketing: Today FM has decided to shake up its morning line-up as competition intensifies in the commercial radio market.
Ray D'Arcy, who has posted very strong listenership figures over the last four years, is to be given a greater presence in prime time by starting his show at 9am. This pits him directly against 2 FM's Gerry Ryan show for the first time.
The changes involve shaving one hour off the Ian Dempsey show which used to end at 10 a.m. Also former 2 FM disc jockey Tony Fenton is to be given a new show airing between mid-day and 2 p.m.
The changes kick in from August 30th.
The station's managing director, Willie O'Reilly, said D'Arcy had been working well for the last four years in the mid-morning slot, but it was time to let him take his chances earlier in the morning.
"I think he can do it. We realise Gerry Ryan has a lot of the audience in that morning segment, but we are confident Ray can take a decent slice of it too," he said. Following the changes the Today FM weekly line up between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. will consist of five presenters: Ian Dempsey, Ray D'Arcy, Tony Fenton, Philip Cawley and Matt Cooper.
"We wanted to add another name to the line-up and create more space for some of the existing presenters, so we have achieved that," said O'Reilly.
He said the D'Arcy show would continue its established focus "on fun and entertainment" but there would be more of an opportunity to discuss issues relevant to his audience.
As for Tony Fenton, O'Reilly said: "After 18 years with the opposition, Tony took a year out and is now ready to get back to making great radio. His new show will see him playing a mix of current and classic hits along with some exciting interactive features".
Today FM said the changes were not a response to the arrival of Eamonn Dunphy to NewsTalk in early September. "This has been planned for a long time," said O'Reilly.
The audience after 9 a.m. tends to be radically different to the audience tuning in earlier in the morning.
The earlier audience tends to be a commuter-based one with more focus on news, sport and traffic.
After 9 a.m. programmes have a more relaxed air with housekeepers and especially young people making up a large segment of this group.
Consequently D'Arcy's use of text messaging and phone-ins have proved popular.
PR industry in good health
Its official - we do live in an era of spin. A new report shows that turnover among Irish public relations agencies has increased by 6.3 per cent in the last two years.
The report, put together by the Public Relations Consultant's Association (PRCA), shows the industry in rude health despite the downturn in global media over the last two years.
The report, based on replies from 29 agencies, shows total industry turnover in excess of €53 million. However, within this figure, most agencies reported relatively modest revenues, with only ten agencies managing to exceed annual turnover of €2 million.
The agencies cited two major threats to their profitability: economic slowdown, closely followed by clients putting commercial pressure on the agencies.
In terms of pay, the average salaries at a large agency were as follows: account executive (€27,677), account manager (€40,228); account director (€55,607) and associate director (€62,007). Those lucky enough to be board members or partners could benefit from a package worth almost €100,000 - and in some cases substantially more - according to the report.
The report also gives an insight into how each of these staff price themselves to clients.
At the larger agencies the hourly charges were as follows: €119 for an account executive; €144 for an account manager; €185 for an account director; €229 for an associate director and €241 for a board director or partner.
The report was compiled by KSI Faulkner Orr and the response at 88 per cent was far better than received for the last PRCA survey done in 2002. "Managing overheads and maintaining profitability were key factors to be addressed by all members," said the survey.
Unfortunately for the curious among us the salary details and hourly rates of individual agencies were not disclosed.
RTÉ puts premium on All Ireland finals
The summer is traditionally a challenging time for media owners with major media buyers and agencies in semi-dormant mode, particularly in August.
However the popularity of this years GAA championships has given RTÉ the chance to bolster its summer TV advertising revenue.
The station has circulated its rate card for the closing stages of the hurling and football championships to agencies and while buying airtime for the quarter- and semi-finals looks like a snip, getting space in the two finals is not for the faint-hearted.
30 second spots in the hurling and football semi-finals can be bought for €3,800, but the station is charging €15,500 for the half time break in either final and €9,500 for breaks at the start and end of the transmissions on Network 2.
The station has warned that even at these prices space is very limited and demand is believed to be very strong.
Flu campaign put out to tender
Advertising agencies have been invited to promote the annual flu vaccination campaign due to begin at the end of September. The aim of the advertising is a simple one: to increase the uptake of the influenza vaccine, particularly among certain vulnerable groups. The tender has been circulated by the Health Boards Executive.
The campaign is expected to run for a fortnight on national and local radio, as well as national and local press. A television component has not been mentioned in the tender documents. Agencies have been asked to supply quotations for creative work and media buying activities.
