In numbers, the highlights were:
- Increased monthly unique users on our website from 300,000 to 2 million based on strong increases in readership sourced from SEO, social and email newsletters
- Increased our Facebook following from 250,000 to more than 1 million
- Founded a Facebook video channel that delivered an average of 5 million views per month
- At the same time, the radio station, traditionally associated with an older demographic, saw an increase in radio listeners in the 18-25 age group.
But we did so much more.
I was the managing editor of Classic FM Interactive with responsibility for all digital platforms, including the website, social media, video and apps.
Day to day, we created A LOT of amazing content to improve the reach of the Classic FM brand. We also continuously introduced new technologies and approaches to work. We launched two new apps and two days before my final day, we launched a new responsive website.
One of our most important tasks was to bring to life Classic FM’s many events for the listeners at home. The events included (but were not limited to):
- Seven editions of Classic FM Live (six at the Royal Albert Hall and one at the Cardiff Millennium Centre.
- Two Bristol Proms live concerts
- Two Classic FM Hall of Fame Easter weekend countdowns
- Three Classic FM Movie Music Hall of Fame countdowns
- Three editions of the Nation’s Favourite Christmas Carol.
For the ‘Live’ events, my digital team would cover the build up to the live concerts and the concerts themselves, on social media and the website. The countdowns were public polls, in which listeners voted for their favourite music over several weeks. The results were broadcasted on radio, but everything else – the vote and the results were presented and promoted online.
Gallery
Sir James MacMillan plays piano on the abandoned Scottish island of St Kilda 
John Suchet and Nicholas Owen in the Classic FM studio 
Vasily Petrenko conducts a rehearsal for the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic’s 175th anniversary concert 
Classic FM broadcasting live from the Bristol Proms
Content writing
I also wrote some quite good (and fun) stories. Some of these were aimed at improving SEO traffic, others were aimed at a social media audience, while still others were aimed at promoting new music in an engaging way. Examples below:
We travelled to an abandoned Scottish island to hear ‘The Lost Songs of St Kilda’ >
Listen to a violin made from spider silk >
Cats listen to the album ‘Music For Cats’ and give their verdict >
Has videogame music become unoriginal and Hollywood-obsessed? >
This is an octobass. It’s so low it will turn your insides to jelly >
Tim Edwards 