First anniversary for Keith Ngesi Radio
Online station celebrates with special event
KEITH Ngesi Radio (KNR) is celebrating its one-year anniversary tomorrow. The online station, founded by former Buffalo City Metro (BCM) communications manager Keith Ngesi, made its debut on April 2 last year.
To celebrate, the station will host an event at the Eastern Cape Audio Visual Centre (ECAVC) tomorrow where Deputy Minister of Communication Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams will be the guest speaker.
Ngesi said it has been a learning curve for him and his team.
“I know radio but not the online platform. I had to learn a lot about it and the fact that it costs people to listen to us,” he said.
“The team I have also made it easy for me. We have a vibrant team that is visible in the social media space as the radio itself is social mediaoriented.
“Our captive audience is there and we get instant feedback, unlike in a traditional radio.”
Operating online is a new thing for many and Ngesi said he had to teach some people a thing or two about the fast growing platform.
“Some would often ask me about the frequency and we had to come up with a slogan that says ‘ we are beyond frequency’ and we kept educating them and now people enjoy it more.”
Unlike traditional radio ratings that are measured by the South African Audience Research Foundation (Saarf), KNR relies on Google Analytic and Shoutcast for their numbers.
Shoutcast is the software online stations use to broadcast, which also gives them details of who tunes in and where they are listening from.
“We have registered with Google Business and every Monday we receive stats from Google Analytic. Shoutcast also helps with locations and that is why we are able to know about people listening as far as the UK, US, Germany and Australia just to mention a few,” he said.
When the station started, they were only broadcasting for four to six hours a day, but this has grown to 12.
Going forward, Ngesi said they would spend a lot of time marketing their platform.
“People will be seeing us in malls, schools and tertiary institutions. We believe we have made our mark in the social media space and we will continue to do so.”
● To listen to KNR, go to .—