For just over a month now (the launch took place on 21 June), listeners tuning into Latvia’s FM 101 airwaves been listening to a radio phenomenon which is arguably something unheard of in the context of the history of Latvian radio in just about all of its manifestations. Location – an open space studio in the heart of Rīga; the DJs – inspiring professionals and personalities who quit radio as it used to be and set up something of their own; content – created by themselves and their listeners, and always open to additions and improvements, communication – for first time exclusively so-called new media or social networks. No paid media was used.

When five DJs (Toms Grēviņš, Egons Reiters, Māris Žigats, Gustavs Terzens and Eduards Švāns) decided to do something completely new and launch new radio, at DDB we felt very honoured that we were invited to create the new radio identity and launch campaign.

If radio is revolutionary, then the advertising and launch of the radio should also be revolutionary. Said equals done – working closely together, we decided that we would only use social media and homemade low budget video footage to advertise and launch the new radio. The first news about the launch of the new radio appeared in a Twitter micro blog on 30 April and in just a couple of hours it had been republished by more than 100 of its users.

As a result: here are only a few of the successes shared by Radio 101 and DDB Latvia. With precisely Ls 0.00 “invested” - we achieved Ls 10,000 in terms of media publicity value. On Radio 101’s first day on air, 72% of the Latvian population had heard about the radio station of whom 60% could accurately remember its name. Even though official ratings are only due to be released in the autumn, we already know that the number of radio listeners who listen to the station on the radio or tune into on the Internet has already reached 40,000 which is way in excess of the figures we’d anticipated.