Case StudyBBC
Creating audience-first formats for one of the UK's leading media organisations.
ENGAGEMENT: In-house Editorial & Digital Transformation
STRATEGIC ROLE: Editorial & Digital Strategy Lead
Strategy At A Glance
Client
1
BBC - Radio 1, 1Xtra, BBC Music, BBC One and more…
Sector
2
Public Service Media
Engagement
3
In-house Editorial & Digital Transformation
Strategic Focus
4
Audience Development • Social Strategy • Editorial Innovation
Strategic Shift
5
From broadcast-first commissioning to audience-first digital storytelling.
Before founding Forward Slash, Keturah spent six years at BBC Radio 1, 1Xtra and BBC Music, working across editorial, digital and strategic leadership roles during one of the organisation's most significant periods of audience transformation.
As audience behaviour shifted rapidly towards social platforms and on-demand media, the challenge was no longer simply distributing broadcast content digitally. It was rethinking how public service content could be conceived, commissioned and experienced through the lens of audience behaviour from the outset.
Working across Radio 1, 1Xtra and BBC Music, Keturah developed audience-first editorial formats, led cross-functional strategic projects and introduced new ways of working that helped digital become an increasingly integrated part of editorial thinking rather than simply a distribution channel.
Many of the principles that would later define Forward Slash were developed during this period: audience understanding, editorial systems, cultural insight and strategy designed for execution.
Overview
The Challenge
The challenge wasn't becoming more digital.
It was becoming digitally led without losing editorial integrity.
The BBC wasn't simply adapting to new platforms.
It was navigating a fundamental shift in how younger audiences discovered music, consumed media and participated in culture.
Traditional commissioning and broadcast planning alone could no longer sustain engagement.
The organisation needed new editorial formats, stronger collaboration across departments and a more audience-first way of thinking that balanced experimentation with the standards expected of one of the world's most trusted public service broadcasters.
Perceived Challenge
Keep up with digital.
Create more content.
Promote radio online.
Distribute broadcast across platforms.
Real Challenge
Change how editorial decisions are made.
Design for audience behaviour, not broadcast schedules.
Build formats that earn attention.
The Strategic Shift
Rather than treating digital as a place to distribute existing programmes, the work repositioned audience behaviour as the starting point for editorial strategy.
New formats weren't designed around broadcast schedules.
They were designed around how audiences already discovered, shared and participated in culture.
FROMBroadcast -first Commissioning
Radio output
Programme promotion
Linear audience journeys
Platform distribution
Editorial silos
TOAudience-first Editorial Innovation
Digital-native formats
Original storytelling
Cross-platform participation
Audience behaviour
Connected editorial ecosystems
Strategic Approach
The work centred on one core principle: Digital shouldn't simply extend editorial thinking - it should shape it.
This translated into five connected areas of strategic focus:
Audience Insight
Using audience behaviour and cultural signals to identify opportunities early.
Editorial Innovation
Developing new digital-first formats that complement broadcast.
Cross-functional Collaboration
Connecting editorial, production, digital, commissioning and marketing teams around shared objectives.
Creative Experimentation
Building repeatable frameworks that allow teams to test ideas while maintaining BBC editorial standards.
Capability Building
Embedding new ways of working that strengthen long-term digital thinking.
Execution & Delivery
The strategy came to life across a wide range of editorial products, campaigns and organisational initiatives.
Projects included developing original digital formats such as My First Bars, leading the end-to-end strategy and delivery of My Mind & Me, contributing to Hot For…, supporting Sounds Like Friday Night, and shaping digital editorial thinking across Radio 1, 1Xtra and BBC Music.
Alongside individual projects, the work extended into playlist strategy, live events, major music moments and cross-platform audience development spanning brands including Radio 1, 1Xtra, 6 Music, Radio 1's Big Weekend, Glastonbury, Radio 1 in Ibiza and the Radio 1 & 1Xtra Academy.
Rather than isolated campaigns, these projects collectively helped demonstrate how audience-first editorial thinking could influence commissioning, planning and delivery across one of the UK's largest media organisations.
Strategic Impact
The work helped accelerate the BBC's evolution towards audience-first digital publishing while creating formats and frameworks that continued to influence editorial thinking across multiple brands.
Reach for My First Bars
7M+
Reach for ‘Big Shaq Invades 1Xtra Live’
6M+
Multiple
Original editorial formats commissioned
Radio 1 • 1Xtra • BBC Music • BBC One & more
Across BBC
Broader Impact:
Audience-first editorial formats adopted across BBC brands.
Stronger collaboration between editorial, production and digital teams.
New approaches to commissioning digital-native content.
Contributed to the long-term evolution of BBC Radio 1, 1Xtra and BBC Music's audience strategy.
Digital transformation doesn't begin with technology.
It begins with changing how organisations think about audiences.
The most effective organisations don't simply publish on new platforms. They redesign how ideas are developed, commissioned and delivered around the behaviours of the people they exist to serve.