Around two years ago, while reviewing podcast consumption, we – Atunwa and the Digital team at Ghana headquartered Multimedia Group Limited (MGL) – observed an interesting trend. Our top audience group consuming live audio content the most was also the group that accessed our podcast/on-demand audio content the least. This group was our +60 year old “African Uncles and Aunties” who weren’t tech-savvy and primarily listened to local language content.
We realized that if we could teach them how to access our streams online, there was hope for increased podcast consumption. So we implemented strategies such as video and banner tutorials, on-air promos, and sharing links for individual episodes. While we saw an improvement in podcast consumption overall, the +60 year old group didn’t show much progress.
To address this issue, we created an online-only live radio show called Bo Ho Bio. We co-produce and provide the remote broadcasting solution for the show, which is accessible from MGL websites and mobile apps. The show’s premise is to recap topics from various MGL podcast episodes, promote our growing podcast catalog, provide audiences an opportunity to call in live or send voice notes with their thoughts on the topics, and help audiences in real-time to figure out how to access the podcasts.
The show airs Monday to Friday on Adom FM, Nhyira FM, and Asempa FM, with a two-hour runtime after the main on-air programs have ended when the average traffic volumes are lower. The main host is Big Joe, and there are occasional co-hosts and guests. Since the show started a year ago, we have been able to directly connect with hundreds of listeners, live on-air or via WhatsApp, to teach them how to access Multimedia’s podcasts directly from MGL-owned websites and mobile apps. This has helped improve podcast consumption among the +60 year old group. Additionally, the live radio streaming traffic during the two-hour period has increased, providing us with more traffic to monetize.
With the growing popularity of the show, we are now considering new formats to connect podcast show hosts with audiences, extend the showtime to accommodate more callers and voice notes, and bring on prominent Ghanaian personalities whom listeners want to connect with.
If you’re interested in expanding the reach of your live streams during after-hours or figuring out the best way to promote your podcast to audiences, let us help you!
