Visiting the studios of New Life Radio 97 three years ago, I was struck by the simplicity. It was a small studio with a petite soundboard running off a universal power supply to protect against the constant surges and lapses of power. Their equipment was basic and simple, but their mission was holy and grand,
To bring the Gospel to the people of the Middle Eastern nation, especially to those who have never heard it.
3 years later their audience has increased both in listeners and in diversity and it wasn’t because of an upgrade of equipment, a brand new 50,000 Watts antenna, or significant increase in advertising.
Four ways New Life Radio expanded their audience for less than $1,000.
They Listened
They realized their original brand made it sound like they were a station for one particular denomination. This greatly limited their potential audience.
Also, as word went out about the station, they received stories of listeners driving up to two hours from their homes to get a signal.
They Rebranded
To reach their full audience they rebranded as New Life Radio and now have a very good reputation with many of the local churches.
They Grabbed Attention
They expanded marketing on social media, especially Facebook . They learned to advertise with specific hash tags on Facebook that are common to their area in the Middle East.
They Found the Right Platform
While significant numbers still access New Life radio through their broadcast signal, they increased their channel offerings to allow people anywhere to have access.
Mobile: They paid $130 to create an Android App (Android has 43% market share in Middle East so this is the best place to start). Now people don’t need to drive two hours to get the broadcast; as long as you have signal you can be connected to New Life Radio.
Streaming: They stream their radio programs online including an archive of nearly 4,000 episodes of their shows on their Soundcloud channel.
[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/130611032″ params=”color=ff6600&auto_play=false&show_artwork=true” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /]
How to Pray
- New Life Radio has listeners from all over the world, including closed countries where it’s unsafe to send missionaries. Pray for those who hear to grow in following Christ.
- Pray for a new executive director that will guide the station to next level of fruitfulness.
- Pray for increasing favor with all the local churches.
- Strong partnerships with others across the Middle East.