Not to mention they pissed off a lot of their audience when they dumped the heritage name of “4GR” for an FM name “Triple M”
I really think SCA have lost their way with some of there decisions over the last few years
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No they have just had idiot sales people who have been clueless and have no idea how regional radio works and what is important.
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Totally. It just astounds me they went with the rebrand of AM stations like 4GR. Somehow it’s even worse than losing FM stations like 4TO-FM. I can only put it down to extreme arrogance mixed with cluelessness.
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And $$$$$
Cheaper to have one logo and just change the location and the frequency at the bottom and easier when networking programs.
I can see why they’ve done it but at the same time, their approach has been a bit ham fisted and not thought through very well.
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I agree. The network-wide re-brand of HIT and Triple M was very rushed through in 2016 when in hindsight a more sensitive approach to local brands and a slower transition could have been more appropriate.
In some cases, keeping local brands but simply adjusting logos/colours. Changing on-air ids to be something like “4TO, Townsville’s own, part of the Triple M Network”.
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That’s all they needed to do.
Locals just want to be able to refer to their stations by the name they know. Not a wanky city name. They actually feel silly saying Triple M. It’s true, I have regional relatives.
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To be fair, they did do that, but only in larger markets (Gold Coast, Newcastle, Townsville and Central Coast). The Big Brand Flip Completed
They didn’t transition over until around 18 months after the others. And in their opinion, it was likely easier to “rip the bandaid off” in smaller markets where there was little (or no) competition. 
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I just spent a week in Coffs Harbour. Hit was as boring as. It sounded like any other CHR station on Planet Earth. CHY was a great station and that was my choice for the week.
When I listed to Triple M I was so confused. I imagined someone from Sydney who listens to MMM tuning into the station in Coffs. The music ranged from Madonna to Cher. Steve Price was talking all morning and mainly to older listeners who sounded as if they were over 70.
Triple M in the regional areas is a strange mix of 2GB, WSFM and smooth. KFC in the regional areas is still fried chicken. I suspect if SCA bought KFC, the Coffs Harbour outlet would sell pasta and not chicken.
Triple M is branding at its worst. It uses the same brand name, but for a range of different products. Branding is about conformity. Triple M should stand for something, instead it stands for just about anything and everything. Triple M has lost its “soul”. And its soul was rock. Uncompromising rock music.
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I feel its even worse for places like the Gold Coast where listeners can also receive the metro Triple M station. Having two stations with the same branding is crazy.
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How about the NSW Central Coast, you’ve got Triple M local, Triple M Newcastle & Triple M Sydney.
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How I would have done it is I would keep the call signs and have a standardised logo in each region. I in the past used to listen to 2GZFM in Orange way before the rebrand. It will always be 2GZFM to me never Triple M
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100% agree. I did a mock just like you suggested, back in early November in the Random Mocks thread.
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Yes you nailed it. The branding approach taken for Triple M actually demonstrates that SCA doesn’t understand the core concept of branding. That is a brand should indicate a consistent product that consumers recognise.
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I don’t see what was wrong with just having the TOH mentions (e.g. “2GZ - part of the Triple M Network”).
Listeners knew they shared content and were part of the same network, whilst still being a proud heritage brand.
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Agree. I think what SCA have never understood is that “the local” station’s brand is so much more important in regional areas than in metros. Metro listeners have always had station choice and are used to changing stations, but many regions have long histories with one or maybe two local stations. Regional communities in general have more affinity with their local media, or have until recent years. It’s more important to them. I remember even years after TV aggregation in the region I grew up in, my mother still referred to what had become the Channel 7 affiliate as “the local” station as opposed to the 2 new stations in the market.
I just don’t know why SCA in particular don’t get this, and capitalise on it! They can have their cake and eat it too if they were smart and still leverage a national network brand to advertisers, while retaining the local identity. Everyone wins.
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I could not agree with you more mate.
I thought the exact something when I had a listen to both regional SCA stations on the weekend. I actually found Triple M unbearable to listen. It seems like they have canned all the rock music and swapped it with all this boring soft pop crap from the 80’s and 90’s.
I’ve lost the number of times that the regional Triple M stations have flipped formats over the last four years.I swear they want to piss listeners off by going from one extreme to another.
I’ve also noticed that the regional Hit stations don’t play any rock anymore either.
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They seem to understand with television, until you figure out it is probably because they don’t have to lift a finger to achieve it.
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This is what happens when a regional gets the keys to a metropolitan network. They cheapened the business overnight.
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Who’s on 92.5 Triple M this afternoon?
Sounds a little older.
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Mal Lees
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