Radio One well set for Kolkata foray

Radio One, in its aim to become a metro specialist, has entered the Kolkata market and can now boast of a presence in seven cities in the country.

Unperturbed by its late entry, Vineet Singh Hukhmani, chief executive officer, Radio One, says they will have the last mover advantage in Kolkata.

Whether this claim is justified remains to be seen, but definitely, considering that the radio station is aiming to be a metro consolidator, it makes obvious sense for Radio One to enter the Kolkata market.

Building a listener base is the main objective for any station and holds true for Radio One, too, agrees Rajeev Bhandari, station head, Kolkata and Delhi, Radio One. “Within the next 15 days, we will finalise our marketing campaign and see how the listeners respond to our station,” he says.

Vehrnon Ibrahim, national programming head, Radio One, says, “Our aim is to provide listeners with a certain local flavour and also focus on the metro nature of our brand.”

He adds, “This is not easy for the other stations, which have to contend with being metro and small town all in one breath. This gives the client's brand experience a certain inconsistency as the medium is the greatest message in radio. Then, there are some stations that just do not reach enough metro cities, making us the best-fit metro radio brand.”

The Kolkata market is modern as well as traditional, says Bhandari, though the station's target audience is in the age group of 20-34 years. “From our research, the music preference of this age group is Bollywood music and we intend to cater to them with young and urban music,” he says. The radio jockeys will speak in both Bengali and English.

The operator has also tied up for a sales alliance with Radio Misty, a station with coverage in Gangtok and Siliguri. Bhandari informs that through this alliance, both will gain mutually as they will represent each other in their own markets.