I’m a big fan of Internet streaming. It gives listeners around the world -- and in your own backyard -- the chance to hear what your station has to say. Just like with “regular” radio, though, there are good streams and bad streams, and one of the things that sticks out to me most is what different stations do to fill streaming commercial breaks. The first goal for everybody should be to sell commercials to fill those breaks; to turn your Internet stream into a revenue stream. But if you haven’t sold enough spots to fill all of those breaks, what do you do? You could run the cheesy music beds that your streaming company provides, but those don’t do your station much good. They beat dead air, but that’s about it. I think there are four other great choices to consider:
Artist Content: Talk to your record reps about this. Many record companies have audio that’s specifically designed for streaming. Surrounded by your imaging, it’s a pretty painless way to get some topical artist content on your stream. Lots of those streaming artist segments come in a variety of lengths, so you should be able to find something that works for you. You probably also have a collection of audio from interviews your station has done with artists. See how you can creatively repurpose that audio.
Morning Show Promos: Task your morning show with putting together (or at least giving you audio for) a new promo every day. If you’re not already producing a morning show promo every day, this is a great way to do something for your stream that can also help your over-the-air product. Don’t let any promo run for too many days, but you may be able to run at least some of the pieces for a few days, so that you don’t burn out any one promo too quickly.
Station Promos: Don’t limit yourself to just promoting your morning show. If there’s something from another daypart that’s compelling, create a promo for it. Or if you’re running other promos on the air (concerts, other prizes, VIP club, etc.), make sure you also run them on your stream.
“Oh, wow” Songs: Consider filling some breaks with music that’s just a little bit different than what you usually play on the air. The songs could be slightly older or slightly newer than what you typically play. Just make sure they’re not so far off of your musical focus that they become confusing to listeners or hurt your programming strategies. You could present those songs as “A WXXX.com exclusive.”
Just like with any other “regular” audio, you need to make sure that everything on your stream has an expiration date. It doesn’t matter if a listener hears it on their radio or on their computer, outdated is still outdated.
When you’re putting this audio together, realize that not every interview, promo or song is going to be just the right length for your needs. Make sure you’re armed with opening and closing imaging of various lengths so that you can make every streaming break time out perfectly.
If you have other ideas about filling streaming breaks, whether you’ve implemented them or not, I’d love to hear about them!
Friday, April 11, 2008
Friday, March 14, 2008
Localizing Syndicated Programming
Having spent over eight years working for a radio syndicator (Premiere Radio Networks), I have to admit that I have a strong opinion or two about how best to localize syndicated programming. Or rather, I have a strong opinion or two about localizing syndicated programming, period. As in, you should do it. A lot.
Most Country radio stations run at least some syndicated programming. Maybe it’s a countdown show, maybe it’s a specialty show, maybe it’s sports, maybe it’s a full shift five or more days a week, and maybe it’s all that and more. Whatever it is, it’s a real part of your station and you need to pay attention to it. And since this is just you and me talking, level with me. When was the last time you had new liners cut for your syndicated shows? Was it more recently than you’ve had a haircut? More recently than you’ve been to the dentist? More recently than you’ve had your tires rotated? More recently than you’ve had your house painted? No matter what your teeth look like, if it’s been more than six months since you’ve had new liners cut, it’s time to get cracking.
Your syndicator(s) should have a list of “their” fill-in-the-blank liners that you can use, but don’t be afraid to ask for “your” liners to be cut, too. You know what’s best for your station. Also, as contradictory as this might sound, even though I think you should spend time on these liners, be careful about making any of the liners (“yours” or “theirs”) stick out too much. It’s actually a lot like the imaging that you run during the rest of your day/week: That brilliant sweeper that you wrote 10 months ago was great the first couple of times you ran it. Now, it’s just tired. The same thing applies to liners.
Once you’ve taken care of the liners -- until it’s time for your next dentist appointment -- take a look at your website. Do you have your syndicated show(s) listed somewhere on there? If not, why not? If they’re on the air, they should be on your website. (And by all means have some of your liners direct listeners to your website.) While you’re checking that out, take a moment to make sure you spell the names/shows correctly. Assuming you have them on your site, take a look at the pictures and biographies you’re using and compare those with the most recent ones provided by your syndicator. Are you using up-to-date material? Actually, you should do this with all of your talent photos and biographies.
Finally, do your listeners a favor and take a look at your syndicated music logs and compare them to your local music logs. (If, because of time zones or anything else, you’re not sure which hour is YOUR first hour and which hour is YOUR last hour, ask your syndicator.) If you see that your listeners are going to hear the same songs and/or artists too short of a time frame, adjust your music so that everything flows nicely.
If you keep an eye on these basics, your local programming and your syndicated programming will live together in peace and harmony.
Most Country radio stations run at least some syndicated programming. Maybe it’s a countdown show, maybe it’s a specialty show, maybe it’s sports, maybe it’s a full shift five or more days a week, and maybe it’s all that and more. Whatever it is, it’s a real part of your station and you need to pay attention to it. And since this is just you and me talking, level with me. When was the last time you had new liners cut for your syndicated shows? Was it more recently than you’ve had a haircut? More recently than you’ve been to the dentist? More recently than you’ve had your tires rotated? More recently than you’ve had your house painted? No matter what your teeth look like, if it’s been more than six months since you’ve had new liners cut, it’s time to get cracking.
Your syndicator(s) should have a list of “their” fill-in-the-blank liners that you can use, but don’t be afraid to ask for “your” liners to be cut, too. You know what’s best for your station. Also, as contradictory as this might sound, even though I think you should spend time on these liners, be careful about making any of the liners (“yours” or “theirs”) stick out too much. It’s actually a lot like the imaging that you run during the rest of your day/week: That brilliant sweeper that you wrote 10 months ago was great the first couple of times you ran it. Now, it’s just tired. The same thing applies to liners.
Once you’ve taken care of the liners -- until it’s time for your next dentist appointment -- take a look at your website. Do you have your syndicated show(s) listed somewhere on there? If not, why not? If they’re on the air, they should be on your website. (And by all means have some of your liners direct listeners to your website.) While you’re checking that out, take a moment to make sure you spell the names/shows correctly. Assuming you have them on your site, take a look at the pictures and biographies you’re using and compare those with the most recent ones provided by your syndicator. Are you using up-to-date material? Actually, you should do this with all of your talent photos and biographies.
Finally, do your listeners a favor and take a look at your syndicated music logs and compare them to your local music logs. (If, because of time zones or anything else, you’re not sure which hour is YOUR first hour and which hour is YOUR last hour, ask your syndicator.) If you see that your listeners are going to hear the same songs and/or artists too short of a time frame, adjust your music so that everything flows nicely.
If you keep an eye on these basics, your local programming and your syndicated programming will live together in peace and harmony.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Listener Imaging
There are a lot of great companies out there producing a lot of great imaging tools, and listener drops are one of the handiest things that they offer. Sure, cool sound effects are nice, but without some “meat” in the middle of that imaging sandwich, sound effects are just a couple of pieces of dry bread. But as nice as it can be to get a big pile of listener drops all neatly packaged for you, the generic stuff always leaves me wanting more. I heard a promo on WSOC recently that cemented that feeling. They used Luke Bryan’s “All My Friends” say as the background (and, sometimes, foreground) of the promo. And the promo was filled with REAL LISTENERS saying REAL THINGS about the station and the morning show (“Tanner in the Morning”).
Take a listen to your current imaging. First, do you have any that contains listener drops? If not, get some. Second, how many of those listener drops are really about you and your station? The more specific and local they can be, the better. There is such a huge difference between “I love you guys” and “I love WSOC.” “I wake up with you every morning” vs. “I can’t start my day without Tanner.” “I drive home with you every day” vs. “Charlie and Debbie help get me home every day.” “Nobody in town plays better music” vs. “There’s only one station in Charlotte that I listen to.” If you can work in an appropriate song like “All My Friends Say,” all the better.
But how do you get drops from those real listeners? I realize that your request lines probably aren’t burning up with people giving you no-editing-necessary, air-worthy praise, but that shouldn’t discourage you. First, make sure every jock rolls tape every time they answer the phone. You never know what kind of a gem you might get. Second, if you get somebody on the phone who exhibits the kind of “vibe” that you’re looking for (right demo, fun, excited, etc.), ask them some questions about the station and the personalities: Why do you listen to us? When do you listen? Where do you listen? Who do you listen to? What do you like about us? How do you feel when we play your favorite songs? How do you feel when we make you laugh? Do your friends listen to us, too?
Have fun with this. Make these listeners a part of the “in” crowd. Make them stars and let them know that we appreciate their support. Tell them to listen for themselves on the air very soon. Encourage them to have their friends listen. Heck, have their friends call in and be “stars,” too.
You won’t be able to use everything from every caller, and you’ll need to make sure you don’t run the same pieces too many times, but soon you’ll have compiled a collection that’ll connect you and your listeners and your market in a very special way.
Take a listen to your current imaging. First, do you have any that contains listener drops? If not, get some. Second, how many of those listener drops are really about you and your station? The more specific and local they can be, the better. There is such a huge difference between “I love you guys” and “I love WSOC.” “I wake up with you every morning” vs. “I can’t start my day without Tanner.” “I drive home with you every day” vs. “Charlie and Debbie help get me home every day.” “Nobody in town plays better music” vs. “There’s only one station in Charlotte that I listen to.” If you can work in an appropriate song like “All My Friends Say,” all the better.
But how do you get drops from those real listeners? I realize that your request lines probably aren’t burning up with people giving you no-editing-necessary, air-worthy praise, but that shouldn’t discourage you. First, make sure every jock rolls tape every time they answer the phone. You never know what kind of a gem you might get. Second, if you get somebody on the phone who exhibits the kind of “vibe” that you’re looking for (right demo, fun, excited, etc.), ask them some questions about the station and the personalities: Why do you listen to us? When do you listen? Where do you listen? Who do you listen to? What do you like about us? How do you feel when we play your favorite songs? How do you feel when we make you laugh? Do your friends listen to us, too?
Have fun with this. Make these listeners a part of the “in” crowd. Make them stars and let them know that we appreciate their support. Tell them to listen for themselves on the air very soon. Encourage them to have their friends listen. Heck, have their friends call in and be “stars,” too.
You won’t be able to use everything from every caller, and you’ll need to make sure you don’t run the same pieces too many times, but soon you’ll have compiled a collection that’ll connect you and your listeners and your market in a very special way.
Friday, January 4, 2008
Customer Service
I spent this New Year’s weekend like you may have: I hung out with family, watched a little football and tried to tackle a home improvement project. That project took me to not one, but two, home improvement stores: The Home Depot and Lowe’s. And I had lousy customer service at each store. At The Home Depot, I was buying a storm door and had to talk to someone at the “customer service” counter. We talked about the door and then she handed me her scanning gun, asking me to scan the door and actually saying that she was “too lazy” to walk around the counter and scan it herself. As I scanned the door, she blearily rubbed her face and told me that she had stayed up all night the night before. Since that had been New Year’s Eve, she probably wasn’t the only one who had stayed up later than usual, but I knew they were closing early on New Year’s Day, so I tried to cheerfully add that “at least you close soon, right?” “Yeah, thank God. I can’t wait until Five O’clock,” was her reply.
Over at Lowe’s, I brought my handful of items to the checkout counter, and the cashier asked if I found everything I was looking for. I said yes and she continued scanning my items. As she handed me my receipt, she said, “Here you go.” It still strikes me as odd when customers aren’t thanked for their business, but I thanked her and then wished her a happy New Year’s. She was unfazed. She didn’t blink, she didn’t smile, she didn’t say anything.
Both of these experiences got me to thinking about our customers and our customer service. What kind of message are we sending to our customers: our listeners? How many calls do you answer during one show? Several? Dozens? Hundreds? Even if you do have hundreds of “customer” calls that you answer each day, you should treat each call like it’s your only call, because for a given listener who calls you, they’re (probably) not calling you hundreds of times a day, they’re calling you once. If you have one bad call in 100, you can say that 1% of your calls were bad. But if they have one bad call, and it’s the only call they made, that’s 100% for them.
And what about face-to-face interaction: remotes and personal appearances? How many hands do you shake and babies do you kiss? Each interaction could be leaving a lasting impression. Sure, you’re human. Maybe you’re sick. Maybe you tossed and turned all night last night. Who hasn’t been there? But, for the most part, listeners don’t care that you may be having a bad day. They’ve got their own problems. On some level, some listeners may be empathetic, but what memory is going to stick with them longer? The fact that you’re human and weren’t 100% when they talked to you, or the feeling they got when you let them know they’re appreciated and valued as a customer?
Will every listener you talk to end up being a lifelong friend and fan? Probably not. But negative impressions have a way of sticking around. What kind of message are you sending to your “customers”? By delivering good customer service and making each one of your listeners feel important, you’re setting yourself up for success.
Over at Lowe’s, I brought my handful of items to the checkout counter, and the cashier asked if I found everything I was looking for. I said yes and she continued scanning my items. As she handed me my receipt, she said, “Here you go.” It still strikes me as odd when customers aren’t thanked for their business, but I thanked her and then wished her a happy New Year’s. She was unfazed. She didn’t blink, she didn’t smile, she didn’t say anything.
Both of these experiences got me to thinking about our customers and our customer service. What kind of message are we sending to our customers: our listeners? How many calls do you answer during one show? Several? Dozens? Hundreds? Even if you do have hundreds of “customer” calls that you answer each day, you should treat each call like it’s your only call, because for a given listener who calls you, they’re (probably) not calling you hundreds of times a day, they’re calling you once. If you have one bad call in 100, you can say that 1% of your calls were bad. But if they have one bad call, and it’s the only call they made, that’s 100% for them.
And what about face-to-face interaction: remotes and personal appearances? How many hands do you shake and babies do you kiss? Each interaction could be leaving a lasting impression. Sure, you’re human. Maybe you’re sick. Maybe you tossed and turned all night last night. Who hasn’t been there? But, for the most part, listeners don’t care that you may be having a bad day. They’ve got their own problems. On some level, some listeners may be empathetic, but what memory is going to stick with them longer? The fact that you’re human and weren’t 100% when they talked to you, or the feeling they got when you let them know they’re appreciated and valued as a customer?
Will every listener you talk to end up being a lifelong friend and fan? Probably not. But negative impressions have a way of sticking around. What kind of message are you sending to your “customers”? By delivering good customer service and making each one of your listeners feel important, you’re setting yourself up for success.
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