Westwood One has announced its agreement with TagStation, LLC owner of the NextRadio app, to roll out the first, and largest, interactive audience measurement tool of over-the-air FM radio. This alliance enables Westwood One to deliver consumer insights and intelligence that optimize campaigns and prove ROI to national advertisers.

Through the NextRadio mobile app, consumers can listen to live local radio on their smartphone and experience synced interactive ads and content. Listener interactions with a call-to-action, like store directions or promotions, are tracked via the Dial Report® – the first attribution dashboard to measure the impact of FM advertising campaigns. This rich data is translated into actionable insights on campaign demographics, brand exposure, listening engagement, in-store traffic, proximity and more.

Westwood One has been testing this ground-breaking advertiser offering. In May 2017, the network ran a NextRadio campaign for a major retailer on 250 of its radio stations that proved radio drove listeners to retail. One-third of people who heard the ad also viewed the companion ad within the app. Of those listeners exposed to the campaign, an impressive 10% visited the retailer.

“Imagine interacting with broadcast radio and brand content on your smartphone. What an inspiration for getting consumers to take immediate action. This capability is now a reality for a quarter of a billion Westwood One listeners who get more control over their experience, while advertisers get massive and actionable insights and results,” said Suzanne Grimes, EVP, Corporate Marketing, Cumulus Media and President, Westwood One. “In addition, NextRadio’s collaboration with industry partners, including Nielsen, further validates this alliance as transformative for our business.”

“The ability to quantify and prove ad exposure and retail visitation provides hard evidence of radio’s impact, and is an undeniable competitive advantage for Westwood One,” said Paul Brenner, President of NextRadio. “We are thrilled to add their scale to our technology. Through this alliance, our rich consumer data is now available for a mass audience reach, allowing us to connect with larger brands and drive new business opportunities through Westwood One’s innovative advertiser solutions.”