HBG Media Minute: How do workers pass the time on the job? They are listening to audio.
In this week’s edition of the Harker Bos Group Media Minute, we dive into a recent study that asked 800+ radio listeners nationwide about their audio listening habits on the job. The results are startling, especially if you are a boss (or hold any sort of management position). Of the radio listeners we surveyed, 86% listen to audio while they are working.
Graph (below): Do you listen to audio while you are working?
Given today’s attention economy and the variety of distractions available at a moment’s notice to the modern worker, you might think that this 86% is to be expected. That is until you factor in how long the radio listener is in fact listening to audio.
Graph (below): For how long do you typically listen to audio during the workday?
69% of radio listeners are listening to any type of audio most of the workday (at the least). A resounding quarter of those surveyed are listening to audio the entire workday (24%). A mere 6% state they listen only for a little bit of the workday.
What becomes increasingly apparent as we pore over the results is that radio listenership indicates a predisposition towards generally high levels of audio consumption on the job, regardless of the source. When queried further as to the type of audio they listened to, some curious findings emerge:
Graph (below): What kind of audio do you listen to while you are working?
What catches the eye immediately, especially if you are a radio PD, is that music streaming is 10% points higher than music on the radio (81% vs. 71%, respectively). However, 71% listening to music on the radio for substantial periods of time while on the clock, is quite strong. In any case, these numbers demonstrate the continuing resilience of over-the-air AM/FM radio. Rounding out the list, 35% of radio listeners are imbibing podcasts, 16% are getting their news fix, and 16% feel the primal pull of sports.
Once again, any level of radio listenership is likely to correlate with high levels of audio consumption more broadly, whether it be on the job, as discussed in this study, or in other contexts. When you are bitten by the audio bug, you just cannot resist getting your fill.
…Are they even working?
Study Profile:
Ages 18+
National study of markets around the US
Conducted in March 2024
800+ Employed radio listeners
