Radio Twit Bloggers

The Next Game Changer?

noreply@blogger.com (CAB Radio) — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 20:34:00 +0000

What do you think will be the next game changer for radio? Is it Social Media? Or is there some other technology on the horizon? As you know, a lot of people are talking about the necessity of using Social Media, but few actually explain ways how. It is one thing to tell radio stations to connect with listeners via Twitter or Facebook, which is what the "consultants" and "experts" are telling you right now. But few can do it successfully without a budget. After all, it takes manpower to create the accounts, then follow or friend people and respond to messages. Small and medium markets may have more of a challenge to maximize their Social Media presence. Problems I imagine some of the smaller stations encountering are having an intern or weekend person take on the Social Media responsibility, only to leave the station with no back up plan.

The other aspect is revenue. Engaging with your listeners is not really generating revenue. Telling your listeners that you are at a remote can get them to come, but will it get them to buy? It depends on a few things, obviously. And this is not about the anatomy of sales. But there are things you can do to engage your audience with your sponsors to encourage a sale. But in order to make sure you can make some revenue, you need to be sure you are set up properly to manage your Social Media accounts.

How can you use Social Media without hiring a full team to manage your brand? You start by using some of the free tools that exist. When you learn how to use them to generate some revenue, you can then move up and use better tools that have premiums to use them, and maybe hire someone to manage it for you. But how do you get started? What tools are essential? I will cover three today. As you read this you may already be advanced past these basic tools. There are many more that I will be writing about, but felt I should build the foundation to a strong Social Media management strategy. I hope you'll agree and choose to share this with your colleagues.

Email - I know you already have this, as so much communication is still transmitted via email. And yes, email is still relevant and always will be. When you create your Social Media Accounts, you should use a "manager's email". I prefer using GMail because of some of the features that are easy to use, such as being able to forward, tag and archive messages automatically. So, in this "manager's email" account you would "forward" the social media messages to an employee or intern to handle, but you can also archive a copy in your email. This way you can also monitor the incoming messages, or at least have a record should the need arise. Using email allows you or your community manager to make sure the station doesn't miss any interaction with your followers. When you sign up for any Social Media account, make sure all email settings are checked. Yes, this means your email flow will increase which is why you need a unique account specifically for Social Media use, or at least a way to filter the messages to a specific folder or tag (as GMail uses).
A Social Media Friendly Web Browser - This is a time saver in many ways. If your station wants to keep up on pop culture and share that with your listeners through some Social Media sites, having a Web Browser that has Social Media elements integrated makes it easy. If your morning show is keeping up on Lindsay Lohan, it is so easy to pop onto Perez Hilton's site, and select the latest Lindsay Lohan gossip and share on your station's Twitter or Facebook page! If you are a sports station, you can click on any sports website and easily share the latest scores with the click of a mouse. These are just a couple basic examples. If you have a unique station, feel free to contact me and I'll show you what you can do.
There are 3 browsers that I recommend: Chrome, Firefox and Flock.

Chrome is Google's web browser. It is very fast and now offers quite a selection of add-ons, or extensions that make Social Media management easy, such as the share button.

Firefox is created by Mozilla and has been around for many years and there are hundreds of thousands of add-ons. This is probably the most widely used browser for those into Social Media.
Flock is also created by Mozilla but was created for the Social Media butterfly. It integrates many tools right into the browser to make sharing easy. They recently made some changes and have a Chrome engine running it.

A Blog - Ideally, each jock or announcer on your station should have a blog that is updated regularly. It does not have to be done daily, but weekly is good. What do you use the blog for? Simply put, it is written communication to your listeners of what is happening at your station. If you are a small station and don't have much going on, then talk about what's going on in the community. It can be your Public Service portal. Your announcer or jock blogs should be an extension of their personality on the air. They should be giving their listeners the information they want, such as concert updates, artist news or even artist history. Some thought should be put into the blog, and it should not just be ramblings, or mundane updates. All the blogs can then be automatically fed to your Social Media channels such as Facebook or Twitter, through a service like TwitterFeed or Ping.fm. This will bring traffic back to your site, which is what you really want. There are numerous blog sites that are free, and you can easily add a tab on your stations website to open up the blog page. Or you can use software like Word Press or Blogger to build your website.

There are many other tools that I plan on writing about. I will also delve a little deeper into some of the Social Media sites that are out there and where you should have a presence. Hopefully you already have a Twitter and Facebook Page. Please understand the difference between a Facebook Profile and a Facebook Page. You'll want to set up a Page for your station, not a Profile. One reason is the limitation on the number of people that can follow a Profile (which is currently at 5000). Also, Pages were set up specifically for Pages. See this post I wrote for more info: http://blog.cabradio.com/2009/04/social-media-101.html.

If you can't wait for my next post here, don't hesitate to contact me. Find my contact info here: http://contact.charlieprofit.com. I'm happy to give you a free consultation with ideas you can implement immediately.

Don't forget to click to share and tell your colleagues to follow this blog. It only takes a minute, and you'll feel good about it! Comments are also welcome!

Originally Posted at http://blog.cabradio.com/2010/07/next-game-changer.html

The Great Intern Debate - Are Unpaid Internships Illegal?

noreply@blogger.com (Eric) — Mon, 10 May 2010 03:23:00 +0000

I recently came across a discussion on the Connecticut Board of Radio-Info calling internships into question. Why should radio stations not pay interns? This is, of course, relevant to other industries. But I'm going to stick with radio here for the most part.

A little of my history... I got into radio at the age of 24, which is actually kind of late to get started in the industry. I was a student at Southern Connecticut State University in New Haven. I was a part of the college radio station, WOWL, and absolutely fell in love with radio. Part of my curriculum as a Communications major was that I had to do an internship. There were 2 major radio stations in the area... WPLR (99 Rock), which was a rock station, and WKCI (KC 101) which was a CHR. I always preferred rock, so the natural inclination would have been to go to WPLR. However, I knew a number of people who interned at both stations, and the folks that went to WKCI seemed to always get hired out of their internship, while WPLR gave them a handshake and sent them on their way (for the most part). So I gritted my teeth and went to 'KCI. And 3 months after I started interning, I got hired part-time to run the board for the "Rick Dees Weekly Top 40". After that, they started giving me weekend airshifts, and I eventually got hired as the Full-Time Assistant Promotions Director. And it happened because I worked hard in the internship. When I wasn't at school, I spent my time at the radio station. Doing anything I could to learn what was going on. Since then, I have worked as the Marketing & Promotions Director at stations such as WTIC-AM, WTIC-FM (96.5 TIC), WRKO-AM, WRKI-FM (I-95), and WDBY-FM (Y105). I have also had the good fortune to be an air personality at WKCI-FM, WQGN (Q105),WDAQ-FM (98Q), WTIC-FM, WRKI-FM, and WDAQ-FM.

In order to write this post, I wanted to see what others thought. I conducted a very intense, focused, and expensive survey. OK, I posed the question on my Facebook account and let my friends comment.

To begin with, interns receive college credit for their internship. Essentially, it's a class. You don't sit through a history class in college and collect a paycheck at the end of the hour. Interns are going to their radio station to learn about the business and whether or not they even want to get into radio as a career. Anne said, "I loved my internship at WPLR.. was there for 4 years,
learned all kinds of good things... like I didn't want to work in commercial radio! Very valuable information when your still in college trying to figure things out!"

And Gina points out that, "My college internship at Z100 in NYC was a fabulous experience, both professionally and personally. I lived with a cousin and his family for the summer. This type of experience forces you to be resourceful, responsible and teaches the value of hard work. Too many young people today expect everything to be handed to them...entitled to be compensated for merely existing! There's no need for a person who's not even left college with a degree yet to be paid...they have no experience to hang thier hat on and they are there to LEARN, not to be paid. Payment comes when you've earned a hired position there. Internships are a great way to get there."

The problem becomes that people view interns as unpaid labor. I suppose, in a sense, that it is. I know that when I was running internship programs, I completely depended on them. But, again... college credit. They have to be there AS IF IT WERE A CLASS. And when the time came that I needed to hire a new staff person, guess who I hired! Think about it... wouldn't you rather hire someone that you already know than someone from the outside? When I was at Cumulus in Danbury, I probably hired 50% of my promotions interns into part-time promotion coordinator positions. My Program Director would also hire them as part-time board operators and personalities. Not bad for your first real radio job! Greg mentioned, "Unpaid internships are like getting a clunker for your first car - you need to be humbled before moving on to better things." It's true! I've seen too many people walk into my radio stations thinking that they could do (and deserved to do) whatever they wanted!

The first rule of radio is that you're not nearly as good as you think you are. The second rule is that commercial radio is NOT anything like college radio. Do you think you're going to come in, start off in Afternoon Drive, and get to play whatever you want? Think again... You're most likely going to start off in the promotions department, helping us to set up remote broadcasts, hanging banners, giving out prizes, and LEARNING TO TALK TO THE PUBLIC! You see... it's more than just hanging banners. You need to get out and learn who the listeners are. The station is more about them than it is about you. Why are they fans? What do THEY want to hear? What do THEY want the radio station to be? After that process, you may get the chance to run the board for a syndicated show or get a weekend overnight shift (some stations still put people on at 3am), and for that... you will be paid. Probably minimum wage, but paid, nonetheless.

Wherever I worked, internships were primarily in the promotions department. Simply, it's the place that needs the most help. Unfortunately, in this day and age with automation, there is not really anything for an intern to do in the studio. I would encourage them to go into the studio (with the DJs permission) and just sit there and absorb. Todd made an intersting comment,"I believe a good internship allows for the intern to embrace the roles that peak their interests and shape their long term credibility. They should also be allowed to avoid what disinterests them. For instance an aspiring radio news reporter intern should NOT be assigned to assist the sales department. Chances are this model of freedom could only exist if the intern is NOT on the payroll. Once you are compensated by someone else, you are under an obligation to meet their requirements and expectations" I actually don't agree with this. A good internship is going to give the intern a well-rounded vision of what goes on. Maybe they thought they were interested in news, but after getting exposed to the sales department, maybe they would decide that perhaps that is the direction that they want to go. The cool thing about interning in promotions, is that it is one of the only dpeartment that interacts with every other department in the station.

Most radio companies require that that the internship exchange for school credit. Therefore it's NOT illegal because the student is actually receiving something. As Samantha points out, "If interns are getting college credit or trade school credit, they don't need to be paid and that should be legal. But if you are hiring an "intern" and not requiring that they are getting credit, the company should pay at least minimum wage or else it is free labor. Too many companies are trying to save money by eliminating paying positions in favor of having interns do the work." I actually see both sides of this argument. When I was running the internship program at Cumulus in Danbury, I was allowed to hire interns who were NOT doing it for credit. And the simple fact is that they were, for the most part, better interns. These were the people that wanted to do it because they loved radio and wanted to get their foot in. Interns doing it for credit were sometimes there only because it was a "blow-off" class.

Kirk feels that interns should be paid based on what they do, "It depends on the quality of the program too. Most of what I did was marketing, not broadcasting. No one asked to hear a sample hour of me on cassette or explained a format clock to me. That all happened at WXCI in college. My coop was at WTXX (a television station) in Prospect and that was much more hands-on. The GM and I had to meet every week to see what I was doing. That never happened at RKI. So, I should have been compensated at the "I" but not at TXX." This raises a good point... my question for Kirk would be did he ask anyone to listen to an aircheck or ask to have clocks explained? He may have... I didn't know him at the time. But to get the most out of an internship, the person has to ask. You will only get out of it what you put in. If you show the Program Director that you are interested in these things, I'm sure he/she will go out of the way to help. Corey, who is a chef and not in radio (but certainly knows about it second hand because he is my brother) mentioned "For my industry, I think a short unpaid stage is OK...but not a full internship....with this said...once hired, it is the Chef's responsibility to train you for your station...the other stuff you want to learn....that's up to you to make yourself available and pay attention too."

Kirk takes a different point of view than me... "It really depends on the internship. College students should be paid a stipend. Back in the 80's, I Interned for I-95 (WRKI). I mostly drove all over Fairfield County delivering I-95 Gazettes to advertisers without being compensated for gas and mileage. I accepted this because I knew that it was an opportunity. Bruce Goldsen and I did a Remote at the New Milford Burger King once and I did the Oyster Fest. What I got out of it was some concert tickets and T-shirts, Bart Gannon would let me fool around in the Prod Room while he was on the air. What I learned is that there was no way that I'd be on the air without experience; which is why I enrolled at WestConn for WXCI." I don't believe they should be paid a stipend. I DO believe that hey should be reimbursed for expenses such as gas. Or better... they should be allowed to drive the station vehicles. Get the logo out on the streets! But some insurance companies don't allow it because technically, an intern is not an employee. When I was with I-95, interns WERE allowed to drive the station vehicles.

And then there is the question of the fact that owners are laying off people by the thousands. If they are not paying the experienced, why would they pay the people trying to learn? As Andrea says, "If radio stations have to pay for interns there won't be any. Radio stations are too cheap to even keep seasoned part-timers on staff, do you really think they would shell out any cash for someone with NO experience?"

I think what it comes down to is whether or not you really want to break into the business. If the person is trying to learn the industry, there is no better way to do it then through an internship... whether it's paid or unpaid. Like I said before, if you are doing it for credit, it's a college class. I also believe that if you are doing it as a "volunteer" (not for credit), it's your choice. I volunteer for the American Cancer Society handling publicity for a local Relay For Life. Should I start insisting that the Cancer Society pay me? Of course not! I do it for personal reasons, and truthfully, for professional reasons, as well. I have been very open in that the Cancer Society is an organization that I would someday like to work for. My hope is that they would take my work as a volunteer into consideration when deciding whether to hire me. If a radio station hires an intern for credit, it's not illegal. And if they hire a volunteer, I don't think it should be considered illegal. That person is doing it for a chance to gain experience in an industry that they might have no hope of breaking into otherwise. And besides, they are getting all kinds of perks like concert tickets and t-shirts!

"Best of (YOUR Community)"

rod@gracebroadcast.com (Rod) — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 23:40:00 +0000

Monday, March 29, 2010 - repost from Rod Schwartz's blog, RodSpots.

First, take a look at this website. (Right-click on the link and choose "Open in a New Tab" or "Open in a New Window")

"The Best of the Palouse" is an online enterprise just now getting started and attempting to gain traction in our local marketplace. It's an individual enterprise. I know nothing about the fellow who's launching it, other than what I might infer from poking around the site, which as a template seems robust and well thought out. Whether the effort sizzles or fizzles will depend entirely on his ability to market the site effectively, and as a 37-year veteran in the advertising and marketing arena I can tell you this is easier said than done.

I understand that this individual has entered into some sort of partnership with the local newspaper, which is a good choice, but not the best choice. He first should have explored working with our local radio stations, based solely on the pervasiveness and intrusiveness of radio, as opposed to the inherently passive nature of print. In my opinion, working in partnership with the radio stations would give this new site a better chance of making a big splash and sustaining it.

A year ago, I blogged about why radio stations should pick up the ball and spearhead a "Best of _____" promotion in their communities. The article was later picked up by Radio World. As I explained in that article, the idea has been around a long time and, in my experience, has most often been the province of a print medium. Up in Spokane, the hugely successful regional alternative newspaper, The Pacific Northwest INLANDER, just completed their annual readers' poll. You can bet they'll be picking up new advertising dollars and enjoying a great deal of free publicity themselves as a consequence.

I share this with you now in the hope that, if such an opportunity exists in your market and you are inclined to jump on it, you're able to seize the moment before a competitor does.

If you do, please come back and share your story.

Is the Radio Performance Tax Reverse Payola?

noreply@blogger.com (Eric) — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 19:47:00 +0000

According to Merriam-Webster, the definition of payola is "Undercover or indirect payment (as to a disc jockey) for a commercial favor (as for promoting a particular recording)."

There are two bills in congress, H.R. 848 and S.379, that, if passed into law, would levy fees against radio stations for playing music. Wait... WHAT??? Isn't that one of the things radio is supposed to do? Play music so that people will hear it and then go out and BUY it?

To listen to the record companies and the artists themselves, you would think that radio is stealing their product. Since the dawn of entertainment-based broadcasting, radio has been used as a means to help promote music and artists. You hear the song, like it, and purchase it. Payola was even used as a mans to get radio stations to play songs more often because, say it with me... MORE AIRPLAY MEANS MORE SALES!!!

Now that the record companies are having trouble staying financially in the black, they are looking for new streams of revenue. Hey... let's charge the people that are helping us a fee. Keep in mind, that radio stations ALEADY pay a licensing fee for the music.

Radio is already in enough trouble. The major groups are all starting to file for bankruptcy protection, literally thousands of employees are being laid off, and syndication is becoming more the rule than the exception. Let's face it... from a financial standpoint, it's cheaper to have Ryan Seacrest host 100 of your morning shows than to actually pay for 100 morning shows. I'm not saying radio is innocent in all of this. Consolidation has more or less killed the industry. But... that is a different issue. If these bills pass into legislation, even more people will lose their jobs, and the small radio operators will probably disappear altogether. You will see a good majority of stations switch to talk/news/sports formats. In a lot of cases, it will be cheaper to just shut the transmitters down and call it a day. College radio? forget it... it will completely cease to exist.

And of course, the artist themselves are up in arms over this. "How dare radio play my music without compensating me?" Ummm... let's go back to paragraph #1. Airplay translates into sales. It's promotion. You provide the content, radio turn that into sales. And NOT just sales of music. We're talking ticket sales for concerts and merchandise... both multi-billion dollar industries. Bono has been one of the most outspoken performers in support of the tax. And he's one of the richest people in the galaxy! Click Here to read what the NAB had to say in response to Bono. I certainly understand that Bono does a LOT of charity work. I appreciate that. But if it wasn't for media airplay from early MTV and radio, U2 wouldn't be around today and Bono would probably be a bartender in Dublin instead of owning half of the city! Why do you think artists like the Grateful Dead, Phish, and Dave Matthews ENCOURAGE people to record and trade their music? They know that they might lose some music sales, but they are gaining in merchandise and ticket sales. And The Dead have been around in one form or another for almost 50 years! Sounds like they know what they are doing!

The only music you would probably hear on the radio is that of the biggest artists in the world... the U2s, Rolling Stones, Britney Spears... If you were a new artist trying to get heard, it wouldn't happen. Whatever happened to the thrill of a new artist hearing their song on the radio for the first time?

Yes... the musicians have a right to be paid for their material. I'm not disputing that. But it is the responsibility of the record companies to pay that. NOT the people trying to help them sell more records. If more artists were to examine their contracts BEFORE they signed them, or learned to negotiate better deals, then this wouldn't be an issue.

And how would radio pay for these fees if passed? Well, other than laying off even more people, advertising. I think that most "casual" listeners of radio would agree that there are too many commercials as it is. I think that a good average would be 12 to 13 commercials per hour split into 3 commercial "stopsets." If these laws pass, I have no doubt whatsoever that 20 minutes of commercials per hour would become common.

The record companies know they screwed up big-time when they didn't jump on the digital bandwagon. And now they are trying to make up for lost time. Piracy is rampant and it's because the music industry DIDN'T see digital music as a viable platform. For the record (no pun intended), my iPod currently has well over 28,000 songs on it, and it fits in my pocket. How many CDs would I need? The music industry needs to learn to embrace new platforms, not just decide to stick with the old ways of doing business. If they did this back in 1997, there would have been more safeguards against music piracy in place BEFORE it became a major issue.

So... back to the original question. Is this tax a form of revere payola? I think the answer is "yes." even though payola is illegal, record companies embraced it for years as a way to get their artists more "PROMOTION" by getting records more spins on the air. Now they are asking, no... demanding that radio pay them for the right to promote their music.

I would encourage people to take a look at this website... www.noperformancetax.org to get more information.

"Secret" Moneymaking Formula for The Recession

bp@slowburnmarketing.com (Blaine Parker) — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 14:05:00 +0000

In light of the emphasis being made here on Web 2.0 and Social Media (and we at Radio Twit are nothing if not both of those), it seemed like a good idea to introduce an item I've shared elsewhere. So, if your one of my faithful readers and you've seen this before, forgive the redundancy. If you haven't seen it before, it's germane to you--and you might also want to share it with any sales people who need a little boost.

THE ECONOMY SUCKS--BUY MORE ADVERTISING?

No, it's not just the claim of sales people who want more business.

Yes, historically speaking, buying more advertising in an economic downturn really does work.

Of course, I can sit here, talking about theories all day.

And it's easy for me to say, "The economy sucks! Buy more advertising!"

Slow Burn Marketing don't presently have any clients with ongoing traditional media schedules. (Right now, all our clients are either engaging in web and guerilla marketing, or are just getting their marketing off the ground for the first time--which means we're embroiled in devising strategy and creating branding materials--which is a whole other kind of insanity.)

So, I'm relegated to citing proven historical facts.

AND TODAY, WE HAVE A NEW, RECENT HISTORICAL FACT TO CITE

It comes courtesy of David McBride, a radio account rep in Los Angeles.

David has always been very happy to bang the drum for increased ad spending in an economic downturn. That's why, last week, he was able to say this:

I just met with a client of mine that INCREASED

advertising in 2009 (what a nut, huh?); this company

had their best year ever... This client increased their

advertising budget in 2009 and hit a business goal

that has been eluding them for the past four years.

YA KNOW WHAT'S SO COOL ABOUT THIS?

It's not just that this advertiser had their best year ever.

It's that, by increasing ad spending, they reached a goal that had until then been utterly elusive.

To paraphrase William Wrigley, the chewing gum magnate who famously advertised his gum all during wartime when it wasn't available to consumers, advertising is an engine that drives the business.

To paraphrase John Wanamaker, the department store magnate who famously created advertising as we know it, half of all money spent onadvertising is wasted--the trouble is, you can't know which half.

I've espoused Wanamaker's philosophy before.

HERE'S WHERE I'M GOING TO SAY WANAMAKER DOESN'T APPLY

For the small business who has increased advertising and finally reached an elusive sales goal, I don't think ANY of those ad dollars were wasted.

I doubt he will either.

And that advertiser is not the only one of David's clients who's doing well. He has "a few others [who] did the exact opposite of what the conventional wisdom told them to do and they flourished. Many, passing some of their biggest competitors in the process."

WHAT'S DAVID'S MAGIC?

It's not so magical.

It's merely candor--candor of the kind that so many readers to his pathetic weekly screed already possess:

I tell them the truth regarding their advertising

whether they want to hear it or not... I'm not the

typical media rep that tells them what they want

to hear. This is why I can discuss success

stories in the middle of a recession when others

are crying the blues.

Apparently, if telling his clients the truth hurts, it hurts so good.

Special thanks to David McBride, who had no idea he was going to be quoted so liberally in this screed. I had no choice. He inspired me.

A radio advertising Creative Director in Los Angeles for over a decade, Blaine Parker is a principal in Slow Burn Marketing LLC, a small and feisty marketing agency perched on a mountaintop outside Park City, UT. If you'd like to see more of his pathetic weekly screeds, feel free to visit www.slowburnblog.com

Don’t “get” Social Media? Think like a Musician.

noreply@blogger.com (Nathan Richie) — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 19:06:00 +0000

2009. The year of the Social Media explosion. Thanks to Facebook and Twitter primarily, the world has found a new way to stay connected, interact and experience each other.

Of course, businesses and marketing types have noticed the power of these new fangled tools and the great ways they’re influencing both the masses and products.

One of the hottest new jobs in 2010 will be for people who know how to harness the power of these tools for individual companies and brands. Seminars are popping up everywhere with “experts” and “guru’s” willing to help explain this new landscape, why it’s important and what it all means. I’ve attended quite a few over the past year. Some have been worth attending. Many have just been common sense.

DISCLAIMER: I’m not an expert. I’m not a guru either. But I like to think I get it.

I like music. Like most people, it moves me. It’s been a part of me all my life, thanks largely to my Dad. I’ve personally interviewed at least a couple hundred certified Rock Stars over the years (real Rock Stars…not to be confused with the Social Media standouts claiming the title per their awesomeness). The beauty of musicians is their willingness to expose themselves to an audience. Their words are intimate, if only to them. They’re more so than not, authentic in their personality and not everyone gets them because of that – but that’s ok. They have a tribe of fans who do get them and are willing to do anything to champion the success of their star.

Musicians are tied to community. They’re passionate about cause and the human condition as it often feeds their inspiration. When they write (just like Twitter and Facebook status’s), their words reach out and relate to someone else who sees things as they do. It creates a connection and apparent conversation. It’s personal between the artist and listener.

U2 360

I had the pleasure of seeing U2’s 360 Tour at Carter Finley Stadium this year. From the minute I walked into the stadium Bono was speaking my language.

“Do you like our stage? We call it “The Claw”. We built it this way to get closer to you…to be more intimate”, he said. It reminded me more of a giant spaceship come to take us all away. I dare say by the end of the concert if Bono had said “climb aboard”, we all would have. He was that good.

He had me. Not only did he just drop a concept right out of the Social Media handbook, but the stage was set up like the popular island exhibits you see at conventions. At trade shows, it’s routine, but out of the numerous concerts I’d seen, this was the first for me. U2 accomplished what I’ve been telling my exhibit customers since the early 90’s. Use the structure to stage the tone and message, but get rid of obstructions and allow free flowing traffic. Remove the barriers. Allow access (if only in perception).

Throughout the show, Bono connected. He delivered the pillars that make Social Media so appealing; community, engagement, conversation, transparency, authenticity, content, intimacy.

Another one of the most well rounded shows I’ve ever seen ranked right up there with U2 is jazz musician and trumpeter Chris Botti. The show was flawless. It was just a great ride. It rocked. It swooned. At times, he made it big. Other times, he brought us in nice and close. It was an experience.

One of the more disappointing shows this year was blues guitar phenom Joe Bonamassa. He only said one brief thing the entire night…at the beginning. His performance on the guitar was breathtakingly impressive not doubt, but it was a one-sided show. He lacked content so he never engaged or connected…at least with me. The blues are chocked full of stories and emotions to draw on. I never felt his.

Sting

“If On A Winter’s Night” is the latest project from Sting. This past Sunday morning, CBS’s Sunday Morning with Charles Osgood featured an interview with the virtuoso. Sting talked about how playing in a church or pub is very different than playing a large stadium full of people. It’s a different mindset.

“In a large stadium event, your goal is to make it an intimate a setting as possible. In a small intimate setting, the goal is to make it an event.” [paraphrased]

Experienced musicians know how to connect. They make it personal regardless of the venue or transaction.

As your company moves into 2010 and considers implementing Social Media into its marketing and branding mix, keep this in mind. It’s not rocket science. It’s just personal.

We’ve all gotten comfortable over the years doing business a certain way and for the most part it worked, right? The barriers for your customers have been knocked down now. They have access to more information, education, choices and people now more than ever. They trust status updates and their friends more than what we as businesses tell them is good for them. We all can be replaced by something faster, better and cheaper in an instance.

The good news? It’s still all about the way you treat your customers. Remember the email and website explosion of the 90’s? This is so much cooler. Once again, you’ve got a new set of tools to play with…to stay connected, interact and experience each other.

The bigger the transaction, the more intimate it should be. The smaller the transaction – it’s still a big deal to them.

The world’s a stage. Go play.

Crazy Radio Stalker Story #2

noreply@blogger.com (Eric) — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 19:43:00 +0000

Last month I told you about "Linda"... one of our stalkers. Now I'm going to tell you about "Bob."

I've worked for a lot of radio stations in all formats. I've found that the rock format not only has the most loyal fans, but it also spawns some of the craziest fans. "Bob" technically lived outside of our market, but certainly within listening range. And he was one of our most rabid fans. Here's a few stories:

"Bob" really thought he was one of the group. He liked to call the listener line and talk to us about... well... really nothing. There was one time when on of our weekend jocks received a call, and recorded it. "Bob" went on and on about his personal life, his love life, his money issues, etc... and after about 20 minutes, our DJ finally interrupted him and said he was sorry about putting him on hold, and could he please repeat what had been said. Of course, he was never really on hold. And yes, it was a little cruel. But that recording kept us in stitches for weeks!

There was a time when our morning jocks were lamenting on the air about how they wish they had remembered to record a bit they had run. "Bob", who lived an hour away showed up at our doorstep an hour later, cassette tape in hand. He told me that he called in sick to work in order to drive that tape up to us. Nice thought... but really... who does that? It's certainly not worth taking a sick day for. Especially because our morning jocks really didn't care. They were just making a comment on the air.

"Bob", like any good stalker, liked to come to as many radio appearances as humanly possible. There was one weekend when my station was set up at a fair that lasted 3 days. Being the promotions director, I was there pretty much the whole time. On Saturday, I had gotten there around 6:30 in the morning. It was the middle of August, and admittedly, by 9:00pm, my patience was pretty much shot. I was hot, tired, sweaty, and all I wanted to do was go home, take a shower and climb into bed. This is when "Bob" showed up. He literally cornered me and talked at me for 1/2 hour. I hated to do this, but one of our weekend jocks/receptionist was about 20 feet away. Kelly is one of the nicest and sweetest people you could ever meet. And a very good friend of mine. And I completely threw her under the bus! I asked "Bob" if he had ever met her. He said he hadn't, so I introduced them and made my escape! The next day Kelly told me he talked at her for over half an hour! Years later, I'm STILL apologizing!

And here's the capper... my phone rang one day and "Bob" was on the other end. He had a GREAT idea that he wanted to run by me. As I mentioned earlier, he lived out of market. He was telling me that he noticed that we didn't have much of a presence in his city. I explained to him that we were concentrating on our market and it didn't really matter that we didn't have a visual presence where he lived. He completely ignored me. His idea was that he wanted to get his car logo'd for us! Um.... NO!!!!! I understand, and appreciate radio fans, but he was really taking it too far. Thankfully, I was able to talk him out of it. Nothing like having your station's logo on a beat up 1985 Dodge Aries!

The point is that you have to be careful about the fans of you radio station. NEVER eat cookies that a fan baked and brought to to you. NEVER give out personal information. ALWAYS find somebody to walk to your car with late at night. "Bob" and "Linda" were harmless... but you don't know when one of these fans could just snap. Just ask my former night jock who had an angry fan show up at the station with a loaded gun...

Hope you all have a very Happy Thanksgiving!

DON'T JERK AROUND YOUR ADVERTISING

bp@slowburnmarketing.com (Blaine Parker) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 17:26:00 +0000

I hopped in the car last night, and immediately heard a commercial for a local car dealer.

The entire premise of the 60-second message was "We won't jerk you around."

Granted, there was some valuable sales pitch in there, like how they really do work hard to approve people with credit challenges. But those few real carrots were wildly overshadowed by the constant assertions that "we don't jerk you around" and repeated calls to action that involved a URL and a phone number, both relying heavily on the word "jerk."

JERK IS AS JERK DOES?

I would love to know how this guy's radio commercials are working. Because from the standpoint of an automobile consumer, I was left totally cold. The entire advertising message was a protestation of something that (a) hadn't been on my mind and (b) reinforced the idea of being jerked around.

Were this advertiser my client, I would have asked hm to stop telling me what he wasn't going to do, and start telling me what was so great about shopping there.

WHAT'S THE BETTER REALITY?

I've done a lot of car dealer advertising, and one of the most gratifying things you can find out about such an advertiser is that people love shopping there. Then, it's a matter of tapping into the customer experience, and using that glowing light of happy customers to elevate the car dealer's brand.

I've NEVER let an advertiser say, "We don't screw you like the other guys." And the reasons are simple. One, it's a reinforcement of the idea you don't want prospects to consider. And two, in pointing an accusing finger at the competitor, it also points the finger right back at the advertiser.

RADIO IS A DANGEROUS MEDIUM--HANDLE IT CAREFULLY

Unfortunately, we hear "we're not like those other jerks" all too often in radio advertising--the one medium where making such accusations can backfire the worst, simply because radio advertising can be so emotionally charged, so potent, and so emblematic of the notion that people do not pay attention to advertising in any specific, intellectual way but in a generalized, emotional way.

Back when my wife first started working in New York ad agencies, there was a copywriter she worked with who said, "If you're ever in a meeting and my name comes up, never say 'Don't fire John.' Because people never hear the word 'don't.' They hear only the words, 'Fire John.'"

This is a sage piece of advice for any radio advertiser: if you don't want your prospects to know you for something bad, don't reinforce the bad. Emphasize the good.

As Always,

Blaine Parker

A radio advertising Creative Director in Los Angeles for over a decade, Blaine Parker is a principal in Slow Burn Marketing LLC, a small and feisty marketing agency perched on a mountaintop outside Park City, UT. You can find out more about him at www.slowburnmarketing.com

DJ Gets Paid In M&M's

noreply@blogger.com (Dominique) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 02:27:00 +0000

A lot of people out there have a huge misconception about the pay rate of your favorite local DJ. A lot of people seem to think that they pay for such a cool job is somewhat outstanding. This is far from the truth.

A easy way to break it down would to describe it as either good or bad. There isn't really a in between. Any given part-time DJ usually makes hourly. That hourly rate usually depends on several things such as talent, budget, or market size. It is the full-time DJs who usually make the most. However this also varies.

If you are a full-time DJ in a very big city such as New York or Los Angeles you are easily pulling in six figures annually. This does not include endorsements. Working in NY or LA is the dream of any on air personality. If you are a full-time DJ in a small town it is easy to say you aren't making six figures. It is highly likely you are also making hourly rate as well as the part-timers. So in reality the city you broadcast in makes a huge difference on your pay rate. The bigger the city, the bigger the paycheck.

A lot of us live check to check just like you do and normally we are doing this on payday.

I came across a story written in Sept of 2008 about a 5 year old boy who does 2 minute sports recaps on the "Jones & Heather" morning show at WWLI Lite Rock 105.1 FM in Providence, R.I.

As a joke his father one day had his son record a sports recap of the weekends football lineups. One member of the "Jones and Heather" morning show decided to run it on the air and it became a huge hit with the listeners. They had asked him to return and by the time this story was written the 5 year old had been on the air for over a year.

This was in Sept of 2008 and if he is still doing it the now 6 year old has been in radio for almost half his life. A statistic not everyone in this industry can boast about. And what is his compensation for doing this you ask? Candy. Yes the young lad receives M&M's every time pay comes around.

Now I know this is a great industry to be in and I thought this was a feel good story that I wanted to share with all of you. Personally I would never work for M&M's but then again I am not 6 years old.

Since Sept 2008 the economy has hit the radio industry very hard and I hope the little guy is still on the air. But in a plus in his situation, his pay doesn't take much out of the annual budget.

Source: http://www.dailynewstribune.com/news/x2032138507/Hes-got-game-Local-5-year-old-a-veteran-of-sports-radio

Crazy Radio Stalker Story

noreply@blogger.com (Eric) — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 19:10:00 +0000

We've all seen them... they come out to every remote your station does. They call in constantly on the listener lines. They show up unexpectedly at the radio station at all times of the day. Yes, I'm talking about the crazy P1 stalk... er... listeners.

While I've never had one of my own stalkers, I have had the experience of sharing one with the rest of the airstaff. We'll call her "Linda" for the sake of argument and to protect the guilty.

I was working for a rock station, and "Linda" was a huge fan. She was "39 year old heterosexual female, liked to smoke Marlboro cigarettes, and drink Budweiser Beer." How do I know this? She put it in the letter that she sent to one of our morning show hosts. I should also mention that the letter wasn't written on stationery or even on a nice sheet of paper. No... it was written on a series yellow post-it notes that also included a crudely drawn map for said morning host to find her house! "Linda" also sent every single one of our jocks a letter that day. Each one personalized, and written in a different form. Aside from the post-it notes letters arrived written on paper, 3 x 5 cards, and even one written on an envelope. Not all of us received maps to her house, though.

"Linda" also had the habit of showing up at remotes to just hang out. The first time I met her, we were doing a remote at a Quiznos. It was also the day of our annual listener halloween party. She was the first person at the remote and proudly told me that she was coming to the party that night. I had no idea at this point who she was or how I was inviting a world of crazy upon our doorstep. I politely thanked her for listening and wound up giving her a t-shirt. But she stuck around for the entire remote to help us "promote" the radio station, and by that, I mean scare people off! And true to her word, she showed up at the Halloween party that night. In fact, she was the first on line! While we were still setting up! At this point, she had integrated herself into our lives and thought she was one of us.

There was one particular day when I decided to go to one of my favorite delis for lunch. I took one of the station vehicles (get the logo out as much as you can). As I was leaving, I heard someone call my name. I looked up and "Linda" was standing on the porch of the apartment over the deli. I didn't know until then that that was where she lived. "I saw the van and thought you were coming to visit!" Ummm.... no. Now I can never go to one of my favorite delis ever again!

Coming soon, I will tell you about "Bob"... who is even crazier!

One Insight Can Beat Up all Your Ideas

bp@slowburnmarketing.com (Blaine Parker) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 15:27:00 +0000

EVEN THOUGH YOU HATE TO ADMIT IT, YOU KNOW...

Much radio advertising is inadequate. It’s blather. So much of it is built on the theory that if one has a clever idea and fills 60 seconds with words, one has a commercial. This is a reality anyone who loves radio is forced to admit.

When I’ve created a spot that blows the doors off response rate, I’d always assumed it was simply because somehow, my ideas were better.

Turns out, mere ideas are not at the core of big advertising success. I was unaware of this. I required enlightenment.

That enlightenment came from between the pages of Phil Dusenberry’s book, One Great Insight Is Worth a Thousand Good Ideas: An Advertising Hall-of-Famer Reveals the Most Powerful Secret in Business. (Originally published as, Then We Set His Hair On Fire.)

LEGENDARY ADVERTISING

If you don’t know Dusenberry, he worked his way up from the bottom (starting in radio) to become Chairman of BBDO. If you don’t know BBDO, you might want to get out of the radio station more often. Founded in 1928 and now recognized as the Most Awarded Advertising Agency Network in the World, BBDO has 17,200 employees in 287 offices in 77 countries. BBDO gave us the Pepsi Challenge, GE’s “We Bring Good Things To Light,” and Fed Ex “When it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight,” to name just a speck atop the tip of the iceberg of BBDO’s iconic and wildly successful output.

What is so intriguing about Dusenberry’s book (terrific anecdotes about the likes of Ronald Reagan, Michael Jackson and Don Johnson aside) is his assertion about the overwhelming importance of insight-the power of it, and how it differs from mere advertising ideas.

GOOD IDEAS ARE USEFUL, FOR SURE--BUT INSIGHT CHANGES THE GAME

Our experience with a recent Slow Burn Marketing client illustrates the difference between idea and insight. The client is a Lasik surgeon. Our idea was to execute a series of five commercials culled from casual interviews: three patient testimonials and two doctor-voiced spots.

As we began travelling through this process, a little light went on. This person was no mere Lasik surgeon. This surgeon was truly different. These patients loved their doctor. The doctor loved the patients, and knew things about them personally.

Our original idea was, “These are patients happy with the experience. Let’s do three happy patient testimonials and two doctor-voiced spots.”

The insight was, “Holy cow-what a surgeon! No ego overdrive. This surgeon is humble and practices medicine from a standpoint of servitude.”

We threw out the original idea.

Instead, we acted on the insight inspired by really listening to all these people. In each commercial, the patient describes his vision challenge, and how much he was thrilled by the Lasik experience. These sound bites are intercut with the surgeon discussing the patient’s personal challenge, and how much she enjoyed working with him.

THE RESULTS ARE QUIETLY EXPLOSIVE

More than one person has heard these commercials and cried. (No joke. Real tears.)

We’re just a little bit astonished at the rabbit that we pulled out of the hat.

And all this was possible because, instead of being enamored of our original, pet idea, we allowed room for the reality of the client difference to infect us and push us toward something greater.

Here now, the irony: this same doctor has since had the opportunity for some station-created spots. The station-produced material is bogged down in clichés and executional ideas about how a radio commercial should sound, without exhibiting any honest insight into the patient experience or the client uniqueness.

This so vividly illustrates the challenge presented almost every time someone asks me, “Why isn’t this commercial working?” Nine times out of 10, the spot we hear is a product of ideas about how to advertise and entertain-rather than the being result of insight into the advertiser’s product or service. For instance:

A message about a sensitive medical problem is laden with bad, insensitive comedy about the problem. It demonstrates no insight into the advertiser’s truly enormous difference, or the prospect’s emotions about this sensitive issue.

A commercial for high-end replacement windows gives a condescending lecture to homeowners about all the things they’re likely to do wrong when buying new windows. It demonstrates no insight into either the advertiser’s difference or the psyche and ego of the upper-middle class prospect.

A mortgage message (yes, another one) uses idiotic, banal and insipid slice-of-life dialogue about no-fees re-fi. It demonstrates zero insight into either the advertiser’s difference or the prospect’s feelings about the single biggest financial investment of his life.

These are just three of the myriad ineffective concepts that have crossed my desk in an attempt to find out why the advertising isn’t working.

THE PROBLEM IS IDEA-ITIS

These commercials are bogged down in the swamp of clever ideas, often ego-driven, with no genuine insights.

Don’t get me wrong: ideas are important. Without ideas, Motel 6 wouldn’t have 20-plus years of Tom Bodett leaving the light on for us. But the ideas that propel possibly the biggest juggernaut in the history of radio advertising are inextricably linked to key insights about what Motel 6 is and what matters to the prospect. (Just for instance: when first approached about being in the commercials, Tom Bodett asked why they wanted him. The answer: “Because you sound like a guy who would stay at Motel 6.” The First Commandment of Advertising: Know thine customer.)

It seems that one of the challenges of radio advertising is that it’s often executed by people who love radio without necessarily having a love for advertising. And the more budgets are slashed and people who don’t Get It are put in charge of it, the worse it’ll get.

MY EXPECTATIONS ARE TOO HIGH--HOW ABOUT YOURS?

This is going to be expecting too much, perhaps. But anyone who wants their clients to thrive on radio must get past mere ideas. There must be an endless quest for insight.

One way to start this quest is to study effective advertising and the insights behind it-not just radio spots, but any genuine, US Grade A Fancy, historically proven advertising, from “Everyone laughed when I sat down at the piano,” to “Think small” to “Think different” to “Just Do It” to “AFLAC!”

The resources are there. Many are free. One of my personal favorites (which is not free, but often affordable even though it’s out of print) is a 1984 retrospective of the golden age of Madison Avenue. It also has a somewhat prophetic title: When Advertising Tried Harder. If radio as we know it and love it is to survive, radio advertising needs to try harder. The only way we will thrive is if our advertisers thrive. We have to get better. And that’s an insight we can all count on.

An advertising Creative Director in Los Angeles for over a decade, Blaine Parker is a principal in Slow Burn Marketing LLC, a small and feisty marketing agency perched on a mountaintop outside Park City, UT.

A New Way To Broadcast On Location

noreply@blogger.com (Dominique) — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 18:48:00 +0000

How many times have you done a remote and the Marti or ISDN line sounds completely horrible? I am going to guess, a lot. For you people who do callins from a cell phone, aren't you tired of the crappy quality your cell phone makes you sound?

Well a new way to make your remote sound excellent has been discovered. This method can make your voice sound much better than any marti or ISDN unit. So how is this done?

With the iphone. (The newer iphones not the older ones) We had gotten into a bind because our marti units weren't getting good signals on one of our remotes. So at the last minute the jock recorded their callin with the iphone and emailed the audio to the studio. When the person in the studio downloaded it, it was in M4A format. A free M4A converter was found for free online and it was converted into MP3.

Initially when it was first heard it didn't sound spectacular. It just sounded very normal. But once the callin ran on air the station processing made it sound completely different than how it sounded when it was initially converted.

So if you attempt this don't say "It doesn't sound all that great". Because remember, the station processing contributes to how it sounds when it finally airs.

It has gotten to the point where a lot of jocks at the cluster are now using their iphone instead of the regular broadcasting equipment.

WHAT YOU NEED:

A newer iphone
M4A converter (found free online)
email address
station processing

Has A DJ Ever Made You Angry?

noreply@blogger.com (Dominique) — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 21:42:00 +0000

My last blog got under some peoples skin.

Here is a link http://voices.mysanantonio.com/dominiquegarcia/2009/09/kanye-west-lady-gaga-concert-c.html

So I wanted to clarify things. That was NOT my intention. I have always been known to have radical opinionated views and not a lot of people can handle or accept them. But that is irrelevant. Some people were trying to put my head on a pole.

Just because I do not like Kanye, does that make me a bad person? If you said yes I feel sorry for you.

So making some people upset with my blog got me thinking. It reminded me of a time when I was apart of a situation where I helped make a LOT of people angry.

Rewind to December of 2006

I was one part of the KXXM Mix 96.1 night show hosted by Mo Bounce and interned by Bobby "Bandcamp" Baiza in San Antonio, Texas.

To make a long story short we made a huge deal that on Friday of that week we were going to make a huge announcement. We even promoted it for a couple of weeks telling people to tune in at a certain time. That Friday we said that our huge announcement was that Santa was not real. Being how we said this between 8pm and 9pm on a Friday night 3 days before Christmas did not sit well with a lot of people whose children had head the announcement.

We had people call into the radio station cussing us out. Some people even contacted the station management etc. After it was all said and done I asked myself...

"What if my kids heard on air that Santa wasn't real?"

I acknowledged I would have been angry as well.

Which brings me to the point of this blog, "Has a DJ ever made you angry?"

This seems to be a very touchy subject with a certain select few. I've once heard one DJ give a shout out to a guy who's woman he stole from him. Not very cool. Needless to say when that guy heard one day that DJ was at so in so remote location broadcasting, the guy went to pay the DJ a visit. You can only imaging the confrontation that had happened. And yes someone did go to jail for assault.

There have even been reports of radio DJs being murdered for angering people.

Okay killing a radio DJ who has made you angry is definitely taking it over the line. But what would you do if a radio DJ made you angry? Would you do nothing? Would you never listen again? Would you contact the station management? Or are you that type pf person who would wait in the parking lot waiting for that DJ to come on out? (By the way if you do that you are going to jail so don't do it)

DOMINIQUE'S OPINION

If someone on air makes you angry the best thing you could do is not to listen again. That and or contacting management. But at the same time people need to understand that the DJs are looking for content to talk about each day. It is obvious that content is not always going to agree with everyone.

Also think of it like this, the DJ is trying to do one thing. ENTERTAIN! That in turn gets ratings. Very good ratings pretty much almost ensure that DJ will still have a job. If he or she makes you mad and enough people do not listen...

they go away.

Also, stop taking what you hear on air so serious. If you do not agree with the views and opinions of what is being said that is perfectly okay. So unless what is said is racist or equally stupid, is it really worth time out of your day to get angry? I can certainly understand if something racist or sexist is said but if its just a DJ saying Kanye West is a dirt bag (dirt bag is the PG version) or if so in so is pernicious (also a PG version of the word I wanted to use) who cares?

I guess what I am trying to say is that the opinion of the person on the air should not alter your day. If someone makes you angry.... TURN THE RADIO OFF.

For the most part most DJs are well aware of what will make people angry and most respect and do not cross that line. However there are always those bad apples who do not respect that and say what they will regardless if it makes people angry.

Community Relations & the Radio Station

noreply@blogger.com (Eric) — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 19:16:00 +0000

In this world of focusing on generating income from advertising, voice-tracking, and cutting of staffs, I'm always afraid that radio will lose sight of it's involvement in the community. Specifically in being there for all of the non-profits that are also feeling the pinch of the economy. I have always been a big believer in the fact that radio needs to be a part of as many non-profit campaigns as humanly possible. Part of this comes from having worked in the non-profit world as a fundraiser for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, but also from my sense of wanting to do the right thing.

Now I understand that fielding all if the calls for help can be a daunting task. the way I always liked to handle it, and take it for what you will, was that if was working with the big charities such as the American Cancer Society, Muscular Dystrophy Association, The National MS Society, The Red Cross... you see where I'm going with this... is take on those causes. No questions asked. Whatever they need, we were there for. PSA's, participating in events, helping to recruit teams, interviews... you name it.

Unfortunately, for the smaller groups like the church holding a book sale... we had to cut back. We would run PSA's and put them in the community section of the web site. If time and staff allowed, we would send a street team and a van.

I'm not saying to ignore the smaller groups, but you have to allot for time and resources.

Here's a personal example of what being involved in the community has included. I'm a cancer survivor. At my last radio job, I wondered why we weren't involved in any of the local "Relay For Life" events in our area. I called the Director of Communications for our region and arranged a meeting with her. She told me that they had been working with our competitor for years, and the Cancer Society wasn't particularly happy with them. But the volunteer committees that actually ran the events kept insisting. I asked her what they did and she replied that they would run some PSAs and show up with a van for a little while. I laid out my plan for her which included not only the PSAs, but they would be on all three of my radio stations, interviews on 2 of them, assistance in recruiting teams, web site inclusion (a whole page dedicated to Relay), showing up for the events, having our jocks do the kick-off and in one case singing the National Anthem, help in recruiting entertainment, and so on. When the person I was speaking with asked me how much this was all going to cost.. well, I was caught off-guard. My response was "What do you mean cost???" Apparently, our competitor charged non-profits. this is a HUGE no-no in my book. When I told her nothing, I thought she was nearly going to faint.

As it turned out, this was a huge win for my radio stations. Not only did we do something for the good of the community, but it was a win-win for everybody. It gave the American Cancer Society some much needed publicity and gave the stations that "warm-fuzzy" with the community.

We not only under-promised and over-delivered, but we were awarded the ACS' award for Best Media. One of the accomplishments I'm most proud of in my career.

If you're radio station has a minimal involvement in the programs like this, consider taking a more active role. It will only reflect well.

Stealing Advertising Secrets From The Big Boys

bp@slowburnmarketing.com (Blaine Parker) — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 20:12:00 +0000

FOUR POINTS THAT WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE

This is an abbreviated version of something I sent out this morning in my weekly Hot Points newsletter. I liked the concept so much, I wanted to share it with all the Radio Twit Heads (or whatever it is we’re calling ourselves these days). If you work with people who create radio commercials, and you find yourself often frustrated with the results, lay this on them.

I've recently stumbled upon an arcane bit of philosophy from ad agency giant BBDO.

It's an operating philosophy that will leave you reeling in its simplicity.

It helps create advertising that blows prospects away, makes them rush to the phone, flock to the customer's store, and possibly even change the course of mighty rivers.

It's known as The Four-Point Process.

Here now, this earth-shatteringly simple way to profitable advertising.

Ready?

(1) Know your prime prospect

(2) Know your prime prospect's problem

(3) Know your product

(4) Break the boredom barrier

Hmm, you say. Feeling a little let down? Were you expecting more? A genie from a bottle, perhaps?

Perhaps the genie is before you and you simply don't recognize him.

Let's dissect this for a moment, shall we?

KNOW YOUR PRIME PROSPECT

Too often, people try to put the horsing around before the cart. They attempt Step 4 without ever considering 1, 2 or 3. And foremost is knowing who's buying your stuff. Who is the advertiser's main customer? Age, sex, social position, attitude, perspective, concerns, hopes, joys--everything that makes this typical customer who they are.

The Trader Joe's core customer is described as an unemployed college professor who drives an old Volvo. That one simple description says volumes. You can break that one line open to find all kinds of modifiers about who that man is and what he likes.

KNOW YOUR PRIME PROSPECT'S PROBLEM

It’s said that, "Good advertising is problem solving." Every prospect (as defined in step one) has a problem the advertiser can solve. The ad is a promise to solve that problem.

But how many times do you see or hear an advertisement that doesn't address the problem?

Instead, it addresses some very clever comedy scenario, sidestepping the real problem?

When I get in the car, I often turn on the biggest station in town--which means the advertisers are paying top dollar for the air time--and I'm hearing commercials that make no sense. They act like they're solving a problem--but it's often a problem that shouldn't even be on my mind. Like, "Our fully background checked employees won't steal drugs from your medicine cabinet and aren't on the sex offender's registry."

Dead serious. That's a line from a commercial for a local air conditioning contractor.

My problem as a prospect for air conditioning is not that I've got ex cons traipsing through my house and stealing my Zoloft. My problem is I can't afford to upgrade my AC system in this lousy economy and it's costing me money. Or any of a dozen other potential problems.

KNOW YOUR PRODUCT

This point that is often avoided entirely.

Our San Diego Lasik client could do what so many Lasik doctors do--stand on the street corner of radio with a sign, yelling, "Laser vision correction for just $500 per eye!" Instead, she offers intensely personal service unlike any other Lasik provider, and specializes in helping individuals for whom perfect vision is mission critical, like pilots and military officers. We figured this out by spending an entire day talking to the doctor and her patients--and none of this became clear until several hours into the process.

Until we got to know The Product (the doctor and her service), all we had was just another Lasik surgeon. But now, we have something truly special because we took the time to get way down in there. (If you haven't heard these commercials, feel free to visit www.waittilyousee.com )

BREAK THE BOREDOM BARRIER

This is so often the first step people want to take. But 99 times out of 100, the hard work of 1, 2 and 3 must be done first.

THEN we get to be creative--and relevant. Relevance is key. There can't be 15 seconds of creative comedy about the prospect's messy yard, then 45 seconds of unfocused bullet-point announcer blather about landscaping and construction.

This isn't an exercise in filling up 60 seconds with words. It's an exercise in finding one essential truth that excites the prospect to take action.

I frequently point to Motel 6 as an example purely because it works so well.

The essential truth about Motel 6 is it's the single best cheap motel in America. We all know that. We all know Tom Bodett. And if there's one thing that Tom's monologues prove, it's this: their agency (The Richards Group) knows the Motel 6 customer, knows the customer's problem, knows the product, and they've been breaking the boredom barrier with every single commercial for that last 20-plus years.

Put the Four-Point Process in your hookah and smoke it, inhaling deeply.

Bomb Threat, Now What?

noreply@blogger.com (Dominique) — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 15:33:00 +0000

So I was talking to a friend of mine earlier when we were talking about messed up things that has happened in our radio career. All of a sudden I remembered a memory that came back to me that I had forgotten about for a little while now.

Okay I won't say what station I was at nor will I name drop my former program director, but looking back at this situation it is pretty messed up. This happened early in my career one late night when I was on the air and I got a strange call from the listener line. Granted I was still a rookie DJ but even I knew how serious this was. I pick up the phone and I hear a mans voice on the other end. He then tells me three words. "There's a bomb" His voice was very low and sounded very serious. Almost instantly it made me think of every exit/entrance door in the building and if the doors could be penetrated.

I admit my initial reaction was this....

And all I could think of was....

So instead of going into full on panic mode I responded with the first word that came to mind. "Where?" He then said another three words. "In the building"

He then hung up the phone and probably went to sleep for all I know all while I stood there beside myself for a moment to think about what had just happened. In another radio station in the same building we had a manilla folder with the words "BOMB THREAT" on it. It was basically instructions on what to do if a bomb threat occurred. Keep in mind this is around three o'clock in the morning when this all happened and I made the decision to skip the instructions and just call my boss for how I was to handle the situation.

Here was a guy who would sleep with a tiny radio under his pillow and next to his cell at all times. The one time I really needed him he doesn't answer the phone. I didn't care and blew up his phone until he finally answered. Finally I told him what had happened not knowing if my life could end at any moment. I am sure he could clearly hear the concern in my voice not knowing if it was real or not. I didn't want to take any chances.

His response came as a surprise. "Well, do you think he was serious?"

WHAT THE HELL???

I told him I had no idea if he was serious or not. I also told him if the station was going to be blown up, I preferred to not be inside it. He then tells me that the man was probably screwing with me and not to worry about it. What he said next was something that simply amazed me. He says "I'm going back to bed, call me if something happens"

I was shocked....

I could not believe how nonchalant he was about it. Plus how he made me out to be as if I was overreacting. Needless to say I don't think I over reacted. If our sister station had a folder with instructions on what to do during a bomb threat, then that alone says that the situation needed to be taken serious. I obviously did not die that night and yes the man was in fact screwing with me. But at that time I was upset because I wanted him to had done something, ANYTHING! And yet, he did not.

Now so many years later in all honesty, it makes me kind of angry to think about it. To think that my life was taken into such a small regard is flat out insulting.

Harness the Power of a Five-second Commercial

rod@gracebroadcast.com (Rod) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 19:28:00 +0000

(repost from June 24, 2009)

I sold my first five-second radio commercials back in 1975. (For the record, that's thirty years before Clear Channel would proclaim "Less Is More" and with great fanfare begin offering five-second "adlets" or two-second "blinks." Twitter founder Jack Dorsey had not yet been born. Heck, Al Gore hadn't even invented the Internet, though he may have been toying with the idea. But I digress.)

I started selling five-second ads because a legendary radio sales trainer taught me how effective they could be. He wasn't alone. The Radio Advertising Bureau also reported that some stations were having success with what they called "eight-word ads."

There are at least three advantages to shorter ads:

1) They force the ad writer to craft a clear, concise message. There's no room for "fat" in a five-second ad.

2) It's much easier for a listener to comprehend, retain, and recall a short message in its entirety. It's in-and-done before the listener can even react to it! (Stick around and I'll share with you a powerful technique for demonstrating this effectively to a prospect.)

3) Because five-second ads cost less than :30's or :60's, the advertiser's budget buys him greater frequency (more repetition of his message).

Short ads can be deployed to trip the recall switch, reminding the listener of something he's heard about in greater detail in a longer commercial. Think of this technique as "clutter busting" - referring not so much to the other ads on your station as to all of the messages that bombard us daily everywhere we turn, from computer monitors and cell phones to the chatter of our co-workers, from in-store POP to ads on public benches, buses, billboards, and buildings, television, newspaper, magazines. While there may be disagreement as to how many advertising messages we see or hear in each day, we can agree that there's plenty of competition for a listener's attention. We live in an age when distractions are plentiful.

So, let's say you've sold your client a schedule of :30's or :60's to get the word out about his big store-wide sale. His commercials include a number of price-and-item illustrations, maybe a special financing offer, prize drawings, and so forth. Let's imagine that he's running ten commercials a day for ten days, and these ads are scheduled to run between 6:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. Assuming even distribution, he's running one ad every 78 minutes.

By adding just ten five-second ads per day to his schedule, you've doubled his frequency, cutting the time between exposures in half. Add another ten and now your listeners are being reminded about his sale every 26 minutes. The marginal cost of the additional five-second ads has tripled his frequency!

All other factors being equal, this advertiser is going to enjoy better results from his buy on your station, which ought to bring him back for more.

Sometimes longer ads aren't even necessary. It's quite possible to build an entire campaign around five-second ads exclusively. I have a client who for many years has sponsored the weather update following network news at the top of the hour. His five-second message - usually a positioning statement, but occasionally a call-to-action - runs once an hour, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. For all intents and purposes, his advertising message reaches the station's entire audience.

Every listener, every day.

Think about that. How many of your advertisers can claim with reasonable certainty to reach every single listener on your station during the course of a day or a week, let alone all year long? It's terrific exposure, and much easier for an advertiser to achieve and afford with a five-second ad.

The proliferation of satellite-delivered syndicated programming has all but eliminated the flexibility most stations once enjoyed when it came to scheduling commercials. If your station does all its own programming, consider yourself fortunate, indeed. You still have the freedom, or at least the potential, to schedule ads of any length, in any combination, at any time. The world is your oyster. Go for it. Stations whose programming comes via a bird in the sky have little choice but to fill fixed-length breaks with fixed-length ads at fixed times, with few opportunities for deviation from the :30/:60 standard. It might be worth sitting down with your Program Director and asking him to identify any possibilities for running short ads (such as the :05 weather sponsorship mentioned earlier).

If you are able to identify and secure the appropriate inventory, and you're ready to put it to work for an advertiser, here's a technique you can use to demonstrate to your prospective client the power of a five-second ad:

First, write the copy. Create the actual message that you're going to propose the client run for this campaign. Take the time to make it a good one. (I recall this Jim Williams classic: "Don't Make a $500 Mistake. Bob's Used Cars.")

When you're sitting across from the prospect, tell him, "I'd like you to help me with a little experiment." Pause. Make sure you have his undivided attention. Then, read the five-second copy aloud, with appropriate feeling.

Read it a second time.

Read it a third time.

Then, ask him to repeat what you just read.

In most cases, he'll repeat it verbatim without hesitation.

"You've just demonstrated the power of a five-second ad. I read it to you only three times and already you have it memorized, the whole thing."

Rehearse the advantages of the five-second ad with him:
1) forces lean, concise copy;
2) more easily understood, retained, and recalled by the listener (as he just demonstrated)
3) allows more frequency within a given budget

Then, present your proposal. Make the sale. And enjoy the results.

More than three decades ago, I used to drive the 55 miles between Winona and Rochester, Minnesota, two or three times a week. One Sunday I tuned in to Chicago's WGN (720 AM) and kept it there to hear what was happening in my old hometown. I don't remember the name of the host (though as I recall he had the most wonderfully soothing rich bass voice), but to this day I do remember two ads that he read live, several times each, during the course of my commute:

"Seven-Up, the Uncola. Chicagoland's Number One Refresher."

"Chapped Lips Need Blistex. Buy Blistex."

I swear, I never intended to memorize them. It just happened.

Like magic.

Will There Ever Again Be Joy In Mudville?

bp@slowburnmarketing.com (Blaine Parker) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 16:27:00 +0000

Disheartening, for sure. Unfortunately, not surprising. From AdWeek, September 10, 2009:

“Many of the country's largest national broadcasters are on the verge of bankruptcy, and the Radio Advertising Bureau announced that Q1 2009 was the industry's worst-ever quarter in terms of ad spending.”

Something sad and pathetic has indeed happened to radio at large. (Though certainly something high and mighty is happening at Radio Twit.)

I was recently sitting at a conference table with the great air personality Bobby Ocean, who posited, “The problem with radio is it’s no longer run by broadcasters.” I would agree, and take it a step further.

Radio is no longer run by broadcasters, and if advertising is the lifeblood of radio, the commercials are no longer created by anyone who Gets It or gives a damn.

For years, I’ve watched helplessly as radio professionals create little globs of self-pleasuring audio, thinking they were creating sales messages. I’ve listened to everything from local spots to national campaigns and wondered, Who on earth let this crap have life?

For sure, there are radio people and agency pros who understand how to create great radio advertising.

But too often, radio advertising is a victim of wholesale ignorance. The writing is weak and sloppy. The production is uninformed and self conscious. And at every level, from local to national, all is presided over by people gleefully leading advertisers down the merry path to Hell.

How did this happen? And how can it be corrected? Is it even correctable?

I only know that it pains me to have to write this. And I have no answers. But if this industry doesn’t undergo some serious self-examination and implement some extraordinary self-correction, our favorite broadcast medium (and arguably the most powerful advertising venue in history) is going to become a vast wasteland that pales by comparison to anything Newton Minnow could dream up.

Of course, I mean all this with love.

Intro from Dan Walker Smith

noreply@blogger.com (Dan Walker Smith) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 11:57:00 +0000

Hello, just a quick intro from me: I'm Dan, I'm a journalist from London. I started out in radio, like so many before me, with a show on college radio in Edinburgh, before moving down to London to be a broadcast journalist.

I had various freelance jobs in broadcasting before moving into print journalism, though I kept a couple of shows going on community and college stations. A year or so ago I won the Alistair Cooke Award for Journalism, which led to a Fulbright Scholarship studying at Stanford. This gave me the chance to get my teeth back into proper broadcasting - I had a couple of shows on KZSU and I wrote my MA thesis on how podcasting is affecting traditional radio. I love radio, I'm fascinated by podcasting, and I'm keen to see the audio format thrive.

So what you'll get from me is a British perspective on what's happening over here. It'll all be quite light-hearted, and chances are it'll be general commentary, rather than an inside scoop. If you've got any questions you want me to consider, just drop me a comment, and I'll see what I can do. Cheers, DWS.

Oh, and this is what I look like:

The Radio Promotions Director - An (abbreviated) Job Description

noreply@blogger.com (Eric) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 17:59:00 +0000

I've spent the better part of my career in radio promotions. I've worked in small markets (Danbury, CT), large markets (Hartford, CT), and major markets (Boston, MA). The one question that seems to be a constant throughout my career has been, "What exactly do you do?"

That's actually not an easy question to answer. The thing that most people expect is that I'm the guy that just goes out and hangs banners and balloons. And yes, while that is a very small part of the job, there is so much more.

I guess the best way to start this discussion is that the Promotions Director is the person in the radio station that directly interacts with every single other department. From programming to sales, production, traffic, business, engineering, even reception. I also like to describe it as the person that the receptionist sends all the phone calls to when he/she has no idea where they are supposed to go.

Even though the jocks are the "faces" of the station, the promotion director is generally the mouth. When the jocks don't want to answer an awkward question, it usually comes to the Promotions Director.

The Promotions Director generally works very closely with the General Manager and the Program Director to plot the marketing course for the station. Everything from how to brand the station, logo design, web presence, and so forth. You also have to work closely with the sales department to develop promotional programs for station clients. This is actually tricky because you have to make these programs fit in with the aforementioned branding and presence of the radio station. Here's a simplistic example... You are a classic rock station, but your client wants you to give away tickets to, say, Britney Spears. How do you do this? Well, you don't. This annoys not only the client, but the sales rep who already promised the client that we would do it. NOTE TO SALES... Please do NOT promise anything to a client until it has either passed through promotions or programming.

Most of the time, though, I've enjoyed putting together sales promotions. We usually have really cool prizes to give away, make much needed revenue for the station, and can look larger than life. While I was the Promotion Director in Danbury, I worked closely with a local travel agency who got us lots of trips to give away... cruises, Rio, a private concert with Jimmy Buffet in Anguilla. Plus we've given away backyard makeovers including new patios, grills, hot tubs, landscaping. Cars are always fun prizes to give away.

Sales promotions could also be very turn-key programs. The client places a buy and wants to give away tickets to their event. Simple enough. Divide the tickets up throughout the day. Usually with an emphasis on AM Drive and PM Drive. Have the jock take caller 9, include the :10 second tag and you're done.

The problem with sales promotions is that in a lot of cases, the sales rep is focused on getting the sale and will promise the client things that are impossible to pull off, or are, quite frankly, not worth putting together based on the amount of the buy. Not true in all cases... I've certainly had my fair share of salespeople who "got it". Who would sit down with me and discuss possibilities and what would work best for not only the client, but also the station. But it seems that at every station I've worked at, there was the one sales rep that made my life a living nightmare. Ironically, the one from my last station is someone I still keep in touch with and she will still come to me for ideas. Which I like. It helps keep my unemployed brain active.

Events: This is where a promotion director can really shine. I would say that about 80% of the events are pretty turn-key. Usually remote broadcasts where the station will show up at the client with the van, a tent, some prizes, and a jock who will do a series of 1:00 minute live spots imploring you to "Come down to XXXX Honda for Midnight Madness. The best deals of the year are here now!" But there are other events... festivals, consumer shows, seminars. I've loved working on each and every one of them.

Public Relations: Somebody has to get the word out to people outside of your listenership. My job consisted of writing press releases, being the station spokesperson, being interviewed, etc.

Community Relations: This warrants an entirely different blog post which will hopefully be coming soon.

Staff management: Weirdly enough, when I worked in a major market, I had an assistant. That's it. And he split time between my station and the other AM station in the cluster. In the tiny market of Danbury, I had a full-time assistant, 8 per-diem part-timers, and at any given time 5 to 25 interns. Go figure. My job was to hire, in some cases fire, train, schedule (though I usually delegated that to the assistant), and try to keep everybody happy.

Vendor relations: I was responsible for seeking out and growing relationships with all kinds of vendors. People who made our t-shirts and premium items for giveaways, graphic designers, auto body shops (station vans get dinged), etc... Most of the time with little or no budget to work with. Advertising trade was my savior!

There is so much more to this job that I can ever put into one post. I'll add more in the future. In the meantime, I'd love to hear what you have to say. Please feel free to leave a comment.

Dan Watts Introduction

dwatts@starcincinnati.com (Dan Watts) — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 14:38:00 +0000

Welcome to the week after Labor Day...home stretch for the Holidays.

My name is Dan Watts and I have been in the Radio Industry (mostly) for more than 20 years. I have been on both sides of the hallway as we like to say.

Started out on the air at the campus radio station for Anderson University as well as a commercial station in town. The commercial station was Oldies and the first night I was on the air and allowed to play music I played a cut by Boston that was not on the playlist. Not surprisingly the PD was on the phone to me within :60...whoops.

I transferred to Eastern Kentucky University for my last 2 years of college. I worked on the air at the campus station there too and a commercial station in town.

After college, it was out into the "Real World" and doing mornings in the metropolis of Leitchfield, KY. I was LIVING making $15k per year and living in a tiny apartment. I couldn't believe it that I was actually making a living being on the radio...it was a dream come true. My career idol as a kid was Johnny Fever from WKRP.

Then I met this girl... (this is the point where most stories take a really big turn) and long story short I ended up in Washington Courthouse, OH doing weekend air work and learning sales during the day. That was 18 years ago and radio advertising has been my life ever since!

Radio Advertising has been a very rewarding career for me....not only financially but in many other ways as well. I have moved around the country (Columbus, OH...Wheeling, WV...Scranton, PA...back to Columbus...and now in Cincinnati.) I have had periods where we have made lots of money and periods where it was all rice and beans. I have worked with some wonderful Radio people like Tim Stinson, Dave Robbins, TJ Holland and Donna Gamblin....and some certifiable idiots who shall remain nameless. To have gotten to go to a lot of great concerts for FREE and have eaten at a lot of fantastic restaurants on expense accounts.

At this point in my life, I have gotten to the point in my career where it is more about what I can do for others and less about what I can do for me.

About two years ago, I started working with a radio station called WAKW FM in Cincinnati, OH. We are a Contemporary Christian Music radio station. I was asked to created a Business Development Department (essentially selling advertising on the station) from scratch. When I started here, they we doing a just a little bit of underwriting billing. We recently finished our 2nd full fiscal year and we finished at over $1 million in revenue. Our goals for this fiscal year are to exceed $ 1.5 million and we are on pace to do so.

So that's a little bit about me...my blogs on here will be from the advertising view of things with a focal point on Christian Radio.

I was thrilled to be asked by Charlie to be a part of this blogging team and hope that I can make meaningful additions to the blog. If you see something on here that you like (or don't like) please feel free to post a comment...would appreciate your feed back.

Blessings,

Dan Watts

DJs With Big Egos

noreply@blogger.com (Dominique) — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 20:06:00 +0000

Before I begin this blog I am going to start out with quotes I have heard egomaniac DJs say over the years. Enjoy.

"He's just mad his girl wants to go home with me instead of him"

"What? We have to wait in line and pay cover charge?"

**On Air** "Yes have no fear, I have arrived"

"This entire station would crumble if it weren't for me"

**On Air** "To all the people calling to haggle me, I don't go to your job at McDonalds to haggle you"

"It was obvious he didn't know who I was and who he was dealing with"

"People would much rather hear me crack jokes than listen to music"

"You must have forgotten that I am the talent and you carry and setup my equipment"

Wow, just wow. I assure you each of the above quotes are real. I consider this to be the flaw of the industry. DJs from all over seem to think they are someone special just because they are on the radio. Granted only a handful of people in any given city get to do what we do and yes it is a cool job. But that does not give anyone the right to think that they are better than the average Joe. I have seen certain DJs who will remain nameless think that once they walk into a room that everyone should basically drop what they are doing to acknowledge them. Please allow me to attempt to put the DJs who seem to think this way in their place.

**Ahem**
I am not trying to be a traitor to the people in my industry. But if you think you are better than other people and have a big head, you are no one important. You talk on the radio. You do not contribute a huge chunk to society except give the people that do something to listen to.

Now I might get some backlash for this blog but this is an issue that really bothers me. But then again those who might feel the need to backlash me might be the insecure ones who assume I am directing this at them. In fact this is their ego inflating all over again. I am directing this at no one. This is a broad generalization at any DJ that tends to act this way.

Radio DJs On The Death Star

noreply@blogger.com (Dominique) — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 17:22:00 +0000

Okay I am prepared for the backlash of being called a Star Wars nerd. I am one. I am not one who would go as far as dressing the part but still, a Star Wars nerd.

Before I go any further with this blog I would like to provide you all with the inspiration that made this come together.

Okay, now THAT is nice. Megan Fox is a beautiful woman but that picture right there makes her a goddess.

Where was I? Oh yes. So I decided I would attempt to enter the Star Wars world and imagine what it would have been like to be a radio DJ on the Death Star.

It is obvious they would have had to import radio DJs in from elsewhere because there is no way the average Storm Trooper could pull off a single show. They have horrible aim when they shoot their laser guns. Hell, they could barely even walk.

Talk about a crappy gig. Not only do you have to move to some remote space station in the middle of nowhere, but the majority of your listeners are mindless clones. Now most djs know that no radio job last forever. If they did in fact fire someone, what did they do with them?

Then there is always the fear of saying something wrong, you get choked to death by an invisible hand? The pay would have to be spectacular in order for me to take that job.

Then there is the infamous Rebel Alliance. Imagine you are sitting in your studio minding your own business when a group of left wing militants attack. What do you do? Do you break in the music with a special announcement? Do you continue to play the music as nothing is happening?

I mean seriously? Who has time to listen when most people are scrambling to kill the enemy at hand? Then on top of all that there is a major battle where space fighters are shooting each other and crashing onto the surface of the Death Star. What happens if they knock out the tower that allows you to stay on the air? Do you hop in a ty-fighter and try your luck at shooting people down?

Then just as you are gathering your thoughts the rebel alliance shoots a laser into a exhaust shaft no bigger than 2 meters wide and...

Most of the station is destroyed. And with destruction like that it is almost impossible that a new radio station will be within the rebuilding budget. Man... djs on the Death Star must have had it rough.

Hi... My Name Is Eric. And I'm a Radio-Holic.

noreply@blogger.com (Eric) — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 15:23:00 +0000

Hi there! My name is Eric Seigel and like many of my radio brethren, I'm currently unemployed. OK, not completely. I serve people coffee at Starbucks. But I'm otherwise unemployed. I have a long history in radio...

Here's a quick resume... I started in 1992 as an intern and Assistant Promotions Director at WKCI (KC 101) in New Haven, CT. Did some on-air there as well. I spent the summer of 1995 at WQGN (Q105) in Groton, CT on-air. From 1995 to 2000 I worked at WTIC AM&FM in Hartford in several positions including on-air, Promotions Director, and National Sales Promotion Director. Somewhere in this time frame I also worked on the client side as an Account Director for a radio promotions agency called TMPG. In 2000, I got a call out of the blue inviting me to interview for the Promotions Director job at WRKO-AM in Boston. I took the job and stayed a little less than a year. After a stint of unemployment, I got out of radio and became a fundraiser for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Although, I wasn't out of radio completely. I started doing weekend airshifts at the radio station that I grew up listening to. WRKI (I-95) in Danbury, CT. When the Marketing Director left, they offered me the job. Which I promptly turned down. 5 times. Realizing how much I missed the business, I eventually took the job overseeing marketing and promotions for both I-95 and WDBY (Y-105). 3 years after that, apparently it was time to "make a change". 2 years after that... well, I can make a mean 1/2 caf grande non-fat sugar-free vanilla extra carmel carmel macchiato.

I'm looking forward to blogging about my experiences. A lot of my posts will be about radio through the eyes of a promotions person. I hope that you find them interesting and leave comments. I have a personal blog (which sorely needs to be updated) where you can see my resume (you know... if you're hiring) called Blogged Down.

Welcome to Radio-Twit. We're glad that you're here. Please don't forget to tip your waitresses.

Dominique's Introduction

noreply@blogger.com (Dominique) — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 04:23:00 +0000

Hello, my name is Dominique Garcia.

I first entered the world of radio on May 30th, 2000 and fell in love with it from the moment I first walked through the door. I like to dub myself as someone who has held everything from the most insignificant job in radio all the way to a full time on air slot.

My entire career has been spent in Texas. I have worked for such stations such as 550am KTSA, the legendary 102.7 KTFM, XHTO 104.3 Hit FM, KNDA 102.9 Da Bomb, and KXXM Mix 96.1

I would go more into depth on what my career has entailed but it can all be told in a short cliffnote that goes like this...

Got job as a AM talk board op. Wanted to be a jock on CHR sister station. Joined the street team and busted my tail and eventually landed as a board op on that CHR station. Hiring freeze and people were fired and I begged my boss to give me a shot and he did. After a while on air I eventually got offered a position as a night jock in El Paso. After a year in El Paso I returned to San Antonio. I was out of work for a few months then landed a morning show in Corpus Christi, TX. When that was over I was out of work for over a year. During that year I begged one local program director every single week to hire me. After 11 months of harassment, he finally did hire me. Been there ever since.

I am also a blogger for the local newspapers website and I blog about radio related events, music, or local artist or venues. I would like to acknowledge that I am still young. I think my blogs will be slightly different than the others here on this blog since I work in the CHR format. I humbly admit I do not know everything there is about radio, but am pleased to be sharing my knowledge and insight with you.