IBADAN AND THE INFLUX OF NEW RADIO STATIONS – 3 NEW RADIO STATIONS ARE SET TO BEGIN TEST TRANSMISSION SOON
Radio stations are just springing u everywhere in Ibadan, this is good, I love it, the OAPs have options now. I know one or 2 guys that have moved to 3 stations in just 1year, all they want is satisfaction, motivation, and a place where they will be appreciated – sometimes in life, you need to be selfish to achieve some things, the same reason why some players are moving from one club to another. So if you are a radio station owner in Ibadan today and you don’t give your OAPs on-the-job fulfillment, they can dump you and your station for good. that voice you don’t value is much more needed elsewhere, the transfer window of OAPs is always open unlike players in world football that are restricted to just the Summer and the winter transfer window.
So the biggest question everyone is asking about the influx of radio stations in Ibadan is that, is the business that lucrative to attract many people investing in it? Is it that easy or cheap to establish a radio station most especially when you consider how some radio station owners are setting up branches across different states? in case you don’t know, we have 86 “recognized” radio stations in Oyo state today according to NBC. There are many others that NBC have not captured but are operating online, who would have imagined this 10years ago we had less than 5? apart from Lagos, I doubt if there is any city in Nigeria that can boast of this number on their airwaves. So more radio stations, more options for the OAPs, more job opportunities for people in the city, and above all, more information to the people – this is so HUGE. Oyo state is so blessed.
Larry Izamoje has 4 Brilla FM in 4 different states
Amin Mousalli has Cool FM/Nigeria Info/Wazobia FM in 3 different states
Chris Ubosi has Beat FM/Naija FM in 3 different states including Beat FM in London
Dr. Yinka Ayefele(MON) has Fresh FM in 4 different states in just 6years
High Chief Adebayo Akande (MFR) has Splash FM in 2 different states and Lagelu FM in Ibadan
Judging by all of this, one would easily assume that being a radio station owner is like having an oil rig but to be honest it’s not as easy and cheap as anyone would think of. From the cost of obtaining a license which runs into millions of money to the purchase and installation of the transmitter, building a befitting structure, and above all hiring ” competent hands” – the major actors on the job and sustain them for months after the kickoff of your station, If your bank account Is not BIG, you cannot set up a radio station that you want it to do very well in the industry. You must invest heavily on equipment and manpower – the OAPs, they make the stations
While I may not be able to speak about the owners of other radio station owners, I have been at Fresh FM for 6years, and to a large extent, I can feel the purse of Dr. Yinka Ayefele as a radio station owner. There was a day he called us and told us jokingly that he has worked well enough before he set up Fresh FM to the extent that he has enough money to take care of himself and his family “forever” if he doesn’t work again he told us he can be spending his weekends in different countries flying business class or even chartered flights and live the life of a typical Naija celebrity to show how successful he is in the Entertainment industry but Yinka Ayefele told us he would rather use the money to invest on Fresh FM even if it’s just to change the microphone in the studio to give a better output to the audience.
As much as we are happy that stations are increasing in large numbers in Ibadan, my biggest concern is how many of them are operating the way they should be run PERFECTLY? Have you wondered why as they are coming, the majority are struggling? Do you even know some stations are dead already just a few years after being commissioned? the truth is how many of the owners can take the sacrifice Ayefele is making to make Fresh FM the fastest growing radio station in South West, Nigeria?
Apart from being an OAP on Fresh FM, I am also the head of the traffic department here in Ibadan and to a large extent, I know how much we make and how much we spend. I know the millions of Naira that are hanging outside with different agencies that we already executed their advert campaigns. I can tell you for free that it’s not easy to run a radio station “EFFECTIVELY” and make it the talk of the town. A veteran OAP once told me “all of us cannot have a radio station, let people like Yinka Ayefele go ahead, we are going to support them to grow the station”
While I welcome these new radio stations to the big city, I wish you all the best. create a good working environment for your staff and be ready to compete fairly without any intention to pull anyone down (if your intention is to pull anyone down, na u go go first 😄). work on your content, Ibadan audience loves good radio content. Be creative, task your head of programs to think deep, and create more content, we are tired of new stations coming up with the same program style/programs we are used to.
The sky is wide enough to accommodate all kinds of birds without any problem, don’t feel your presence is a threat to any station, respect people that have been here before you. instead of bringing up an unhealthy competition, look for how you can fill some space that is missing on the airwaves. study the strengths and weaknesses of others and work on how you can be better. There are many things that are useful to the audience but are not yet on any radio station, you just need to think and be creative, that’s why you need a highly cerebral head of programs as a content provider – the age and years of experience in the industry are of little or no importance here. Don’t just do COPY & WASTE of the programs on other stations
Finally, respect your audience, they are the KING. they are going to determine if you are welcome to the big brown roof city or not.
All the best.
My name is Kenny Ogunmiloro, I am an OAP, a computer scientist, author, and an up-and-coming actor in Nollywood.