Case Studies

Media Research
Content Research / Triple A Radio Format
Triple A (Adult Album Alternative) roots go back to the days of FM Progressive radio and the 1960s. By the 1980s, however, tightly formatted AOR (Album Oriented Rock) and Classic Rock formats were dominating rock radio. Paragon teamed with the early trend-setting stations in this new format, even before the term Triple A was coined.

The critical developments for this new format were based on the concept that “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” In other words, it was more important to parlay a wide mix of rock music styles and eras into a variety proposition that could compete against the narrow playlists of AOR and Classic Rock.

Paragon designed a new form of Market Segmentation research based on listener responses to audio concepts…“format blends” and “music styles.” Prior to this development, audience segmentation research had been based on artist lists, not audio from actual songs. Followed by Music Testing, this 1-2 punch of audience segmentation and music research has become a familiar research process in solidifying the music positions of every music format, not just Triple A.

Since 1987, Paragon has provided audience segmentation research for practically every successful Triple A radio station in America, including WXRT/Chicago, KFOG/San Francisco, KMTT/Seattle, WBOS/Boston, and many others. In 2008, Paragon conducted four separate research projects to launch WRXP/New York City as a groundbreaking new version of Triple A called “New York’s Rock Experience.” Today, Triple A is a one of the highest billing music formats on radio in the markets where it airs.

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