When It Comes To The Crunch
The audience research team have been at pains to tell me that they are much more than "number crunchers". They actually spend a lot of the time meeting real listeners and viewers at focus group sessions and public meetings. They were a bit less forthcoming when I asked if I could take a group photograph as part of my ongoing efforts to tell you about the people behind the scenes at ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Radio Scotland.
"Can we have five minutes to put some lippy on?" asked Aileen Naismith. I told them they could have fifteen minutes. Er....not that they needed it, of course. Gosh... it's a minefield this photography lark.
Meanwhile let me tell you what these guys do with their time. Lesley Farquharson is the boss, Aileen is the specialist on radio data and Stuart Martin is the senior research executive who, when I popped into the office, was trawling through the various comments that had been made by viewers who'd watched ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Scotland's Hogmanay show on television.
"It's the honesty of our audience I love, " said Stuart, "they're not precious about telling you what they think."
Lesley explained the difference between radio and television research. Television producers get figures every night, telling them how many people have watched a particular show. In radio we get figures every three months. Lesley thought this allowed radio producers to focus on trends and not be rattled by the immediate reaction to a new programme.
In the photograph Lesley is holding a Rajar diary. This little booklet, which reminded me of a football pools coupon, is what listeners in a survey are asked to complete. They tick a box for every radio station they have listened to throughout the course of a week. The final data is compiled into the blue book that Aileen is holiding in the photograph.
Stuart is the one holding the calculator. Well...someone has to crunch the numbers!
