ARN launches new research series, Australia Unplugged

Australian Radio Network (ARN) has announced a 10-part research series in a bid to offer insights into what’s really on the minds of audio consumers.

The research into specific consumer categories, combined with ARN’s audio and commercial solutions, will enable brands to more effectively engage with their target audience across ARN’s suite of brands and products, it said.

Each iteration of the research series will be rolled out in line with media planning cycles, ARN said, with releases set to coincide with expected market movement, trends and the opportunity for revenue upside.

The first release will be titled ‘Mind, Mood and Whatever Comes Next’, and will look at how ARN’s audiences are adapting their behaviour in 2021 and beyond.

ARN’s chief commercial officer, Pete Whitehead, said the research series is yet another way ARN is defining its position as the clear market-leader in audio.

“Our first release of Australia Unplugged – ‘Mind, Mood and Whatever Comes Next’ – shows how our audiences are approaching 2021 with a sense of caution. We’ve seen a huge shift in people’s values and priorities off the back of last year, and with it, an increased desire to recalibrate the year in a way that helps us cope with any potential unknowns that might be coming our way; people don’t want to be caught out twice,” he said.

“Using these unique consumer insights, we can give our clients creative commercial solutions and effective campaigns that connect their brands directly with their target audience across ARN’s range of audio and digital assets.”

Chief strategy & connections officer, Lauren Joyce, said the research is about surfacing the unfiltered thoughts of consumers as they alter their relationships with brands.

“It’s clear the events of 2020 left a lasting impact on how consumers think and behave. It means the way they are now engaging with certain industries has significantly changed. Consumers are being far more selective with what gets a share of their wallets, and there are nuances in people’s path to purchase that may not have existed in the past, which advertisers now have to consider,” she said.