He and his partner now do mornings on KDJE-FM (100.3) in Little Rock and syndicate their show to several other Clear Channel radio stations. His first book about the inside world of Radio, “The Cash Cage” was published to rave reviews.

As we progress with the show, Corey and I started talking about the listeners… I thought that he had originally written the following story, but apparently not. I’m not sure who to attribute that to, however, I thought it was fitting to pass along.

Electric Dreams

It was a Monday morning just before 5 a.m. I’m getting ready to go on the air, waiting for the network show we’re running to end. It’s John Garabedian and the Open House Party.

As John is wrapping up, he tells us about a well known New England broadcaster who recently passed away… a man named Sonny Joe White. I wasn’t familiar with Sonny, but my news director hails from Maine and he had heard a lot about White’s work.

John ended the show by playing a song in Sonny’s memory… and he selected the song Electric Dreams, from the movie of the same name. Formatically, it fit the show perfectly because it’s a dancy tune… but more than that… the sentiment couldn’t have been clearer. “We’ll always be together in electric dreams.”

I found myself strangely moved… I didn’t know the deceased… but the idea of a broadcaster continuing to exist to his or her friends and fans in electric dreams appealed to my emotions. Moreover… I absolutely believe it’s true, and I’ll explain why.

As a broadcast professional, there’s a basic job you do each day: play the music, play the spots, read the weather, keep the station on the air. But what you really do goes way beyond those basics.

You make people laugh. You make people think. You make people happy. You provide companionship… perhaps even friendship. You may be a role model for a young person who has been bitten by the radio bug and wants to be just like you. You help make things happen in your community. You’re there when someone needs to talk.

Evidence of this? A listener you’ve never met before comes up to you at an appearance. Right away, the listener feels comfortable in your presence… not intimidated. Does that mean they don’t consider you a star? No. it means they consider you to be a part of their lives… and that’s the mark of a truly successful broadcaster. They’ve let you in!

It’s the listener who invites you to dinner. It’s the listener who comes up to you at a remote and throws their arms around you as if they’ve known you forever. It’s the listener who asks you to come to their daughter’s school play because it would mean so much to her. It’s the listener who did something nicer for you on your birthday than your friends did. It’s the listener who’s sad when you go on vacation, and is so thrilled when you’re finally back.

The bond between broadcaster and listener is a paradox. You’re broadcasting to thousands, yet it’s one of the most intimate forms of communication in the world. They care about you… and they want to believe you care about them. It’s a relationship that exists in an electric reality. And it lingers.

Every once in awhile I’ll get a call or a card from someone who used to listen to me in a different part of the state. They haven’t forgotten a thing! It’s amazing that the time we spent together on the phone or at an appearance made that big an impression on them. So perhaps during my absence, we were already sharing electric dreams.

In the electric dream, we’re always their favorite personality… they’re always our favorite listener. We live on somewhere in their memory whether we move, leave the business or in the saddest case, pass away.

Isn’t it a wonderful feeling to know that our life… our influence… doesn’t end the last time we open the mic? Isn’t it wonderful to know that the most positive part of our essence as a broadcaster… our personality… will live on?

Someday, somewhere, someone who used to listen to you will hear a song and it will spark inside them a pleasant memory of you. And there you’ll be… the listener and the personality… together in an electric dream.

Download audio file (lifeisshowprep_002_031308.mp3)

I used to test-mix everything in mono, having spent a fair amount of time at AM and FM-Mono stations. (Music playback in stereo, spots in dual-channel mono.)

Recently, though I noticed material I do for a regional agency sounding very bad on local TV and radio. I have a stereo TV, so anything I mix on the Advents should sound about the same on the TV. Nope. Absolutely getting mono’d out somewhere in the chain. Huge drop-outs during vocal fx, nasty reverbs where there should be a stereo image, etc.

Mostly on one station, but sporadically on them all. So, I zagged, and am now shipping all TV audio with only the music bed in stereo - all fx,
  vocal elements, etc., in dual-channel mono.

Radio, until now wasn’t a problem, but on Rays stations I started hearing the same thing. He went through his system and still can’t figure out the issue. I ship the radio in stereo (music, fx, and vocal elements), but the playback is being summed. I’m noticing it from time to time on his competitors signals too.

Those of you that do out-of-market work, and can’t listen real-time to the audio being played, would well consider doing a mono text mix before you send your production out to make sure your clients are getting something that sounds right. Due diligence is part of customer service.

And, to clarify, “mono” is single channel audio. “Dual-channel mono” is the exact same audio on the left and right channel. “Stereo” is separate audio on the laeft-right pair.

photo credit: Marcus Vegas

Technorati Tags: mono, stereo

Before television, when there was only radio, we as creative writers and producers did a fabulous job at describing a car enough to make someone want to buy it or at least, visit the showroom.

“Sell the sizzle”.

According to Marketing VP’s from Budweiser and Pepsi, the number one problem with radio is that agencies and station do not provide radio creative that sticks the message in the minds of their customers in a way that stay with them. To them, this is far more important than how many people hear the spot. They say radio creative is the key, along with making ads part of the content instead of an interruption. On the other hand, Business owners and CMO’s don’t want great sounding spots. They don’t want cutting-edge effects. They don’t want something trendy or shocking. They simply want the listener to remember the brand message with a desire to find out more, which in turn should sell product if their message is correct. If great-sounding spots do that, great. If, as in the case of “Head-On”, bad creative does that even better, that’s even better! The Saturn spots didn’t say a thing about the car that made me want to find out more. It did tell me I am wasting my time listening to radio since it won’t do the job…the same job they paid money to be on.

I think plenty of people are still happy with radio, and saying that it doesn’t work or that it’s less than the rest is counter-productive.  Radio still works, bad radio doesn’t. It’s like the industry has become complacent in the shadow of other forms of entertainment. Radio people are throwing their hands up and saying “there’s nothing I can do”, yet they’re not stepping up their game like the pioneers did back when radio was just beginning. Think about how resourceful and resilient people had to be in the early years of radio – now we take it for granted. On-air people and the creative staff are why people listen to radio – you can get your music and ads anywhere from the internet to t.v. to satellite, etc.

Man I love you guys! Let’s roll in the grass!

photo credit: Midnight-digital 

Technorati Tags: art of war

I noticed he didn’t mention good creative.

Andrew passed along a comment that everything is down right now - except foreclosures. We have restaurants that have shut down permanently in this area because people have to hold what disposable income they have to pay the bills and buy groceries - which is another thing getting rather expensive.

Car dealers can think all they want on how to counter-act a sales slump - and they will not ever come up with the magic bullet. Why? People are not buying. Period. You will not - can not - convince them to buy when they don’t have the income to buy. End of story.

Car dealers - the ones continuing to sell cars - are continuing to do what they should do - reach and frequency. Remember - advertising DOES NOT sell product. It introduces and maintains awareness for a product or service. The consumer’s desire for that product or service drives the purchasing.

So these idiots can bring in as much of a circus as they want but it’s not going to sell more cars. Keeping awareness in the marketplace high FOR your cars, though, will slake the need for information when the desire to purchase comes to fruition.

One of the dealerships (locally) headed by the largest single-point Ford dealer in the nation knows this. They’ve slashed through the employees, firing en masse; cut benefits, cut, cut, and cut some more … but their agency has maintained a now ubiquitous presence in the market for the last seven years. You can not turn on the radio or watch television without hearing or seeing a commercial for one of their dealerships. Their advertising is high-creative, very labor intensive, flashy and loud. Everyone hates it or loves it. And it works.

And that’s not going to change. Because they understand that all the circuses in town will NOT make people buy, but reach-and-frequency awareness will keep their name top-of-mind when the consumer or businessperson is in the market to buy.

Thanks for the insight Andrew…

Justin

photo credit: tanjila 

Download audio file (WHO%20CARES.mp3)

There is another factor, however, that may be more important that the message and the production.  Frequency.

You need to schedule a lot of ads to make your production and message work.  All in all, you have to look at each client uniquely and help guide them into what kind of ad and schedule will work best for them.

Radio can set the world on fire. Ask H.G. Welles… or Don Imus… or the missionaries using radio in Africa to change people’s lives.  Until we start telling the story more consistently and effectively, we’ll continue to catch hell from snooty agency copywriters.

Furniture stores, car dealers, retail stores, grocery stores… they are the ads you hear on the radio the most… because they can offer great sales incenetives… and yes they don’t need to run those but for a day or 2 which is why their sale changes every week/month.  But for doctors, car repairs, lawyers, realtors etc… they have to rely on a good ad, TOMA and long term scheduling.

Can’t sell in January - Between the terrible weather and everyone coming back from vacation, how can you expect someone to focus on buying now? I’ll pound the pavement next month.

Can’t sell in February - More snow and more vacation. Way to go, Washington and Lincoln; thanks for President’s Day! It’s such a short month. No one can make a decision in such a short month. Next month is going to be better.

Can’t sell in March - No one is going to make a decision on this with more holidays around the corner. Good time to shop for summer clothes. I’ll just borrow money because I’ll make huge commissions later to pay it back.

Can’t sell in April - Who wants to focus on buying with Spring in the air? And hey, my kid’s birthday is this month. I’m sure my prospects are working on their taxes anyway. Next month will be better for sure.

Can’t sell in May - Great weather in May, and I hear that my prospect may be thinking about being acquired. No problem. I’ll look for better ones next month.  There’s tons of opportunity out there.

Can’t sell in June - Kids are getting out of school. Wow! I almost forgot Flag Day. No one buys in this weather. Besides, July is a better month for sales anyway.

Can’t sell in July - Great time of year to be at the beach and enjoying the outdoors. I think all of my contacts are on vacation…together! Nope, can’t sell this month.

Can’t sell in August - Too hot! Besides, I’m taking my vacation. They probably are taking theirs, too. No selling to be done now. Next month, for sure.

Can’t sell in September - Between the three-day Labor Day weekend and a new fiscal year kicking in, no one is buying anything. I’m feeling good about next month.

Can’t sell in October - Columbus’ birthday; what should I get him this year? I almost forgot Halloween! I’m going to focus on selling hard over the next two months. I’ll finish the year strong.

Can’t sell in November - Thanksgiving, ya know. Very short month. I don’t think any of my contacts have their budget yet. Can’t buy without a budget. Man, December is going to rock!

Can’t sell in December - Everyone is on vacation in December. I know I am! Who can focus on buying with the end of the year so close? What should I do for Festivus this year?

Oh well, maybe next year will be better for sales. Luckily, no one is buying anything from anyone this year.

*Source: *Sales author/trainer Lee Salz http://salesdodo.com  photo credit: rick 

Manipulation is getting prospects or customers to do something for your benefit. Persuasion is getting them to do something for your mutual benefit.

What’s the difference? Manipulation is usually bad. It’s done to serve your own interests without any regard to what you’re doing for the prospect or customer.

Persuasion is good because it’s done for the best interests of you and the prospect or customer. Here are some tips that may increase your persuasive powers:

*Persisting.* Persuaders realize that 80% of sales are made on the fifth call or later. They recognize that one of their most persuasive abilities is the refusal to give up. They understand that more than 75% of salespeople quit after calling on a prospect three times. Persuaders are in the elite 20% of the sales force that close 80% of the sales.

*Personalizing.* Persuaders recognize that a prospect wants to know one
thing: “What’s in it for me?” They add persuasion by personalizing every part of their presentation to meet prospects’ own personal needs and wants.

*Proving.* Facts and testimonials are very persuasive. Persuaders recognize that third-party endorsements go a long way to building credibility. They’re prepared to prove every claim they make with hard data, test results and performance records.

*Positive.* The best persuaders are positive about themselves, the company they represent, the products or services they’re selling, and the prospects they’re attempting to persuade. Enthusiasm is contagious.
They persuade with power because they get customers and prospects feeling the same way.

*Source: *Adapted from /Persuasion: The Art of Getting What You Want,/ by sales trainer/consultant David Lakhani. photo credit: Cyberesque 

** by Graeme Newell gnewell@602communications.com http://www.602communications.com

Take a look around the country and you’ll find that the most innovative and strategic local TV marketing is being done in some of the most troubled markets. Markets like Seattle, Denver, Minneapolis, and San Francisco have absolutely abysmal news ratings. Things got so bad that they were forced to abandon the old model. Many of the stations have redirected their marketing. They have stopped producing promos that bark out long lists of ubiquitous product attributes and started putting their focus on their customer’s connection to the station.

Throughout the life of any product, the branding goes through a typical defined set of stages. Proctor and Gamble introduced the “Swiffer” cleaning mop a few years back, and it was a truly revolutionary product.
The brand position trumpeted the mop’s ability to magically attract dust and dirt with a static charge. Since then, bunches of competing products have entered the market. The Swiffer is no longer unique. Proctor and Gamble had to transition the brand to an emotionally driven strategy, not just a product feature strategy.

FedEx is another classic example. This company invented the overnight delivery business and its “absolutely positively has to be there overnight ” ads became one of the iconic campaigns in advertising history. It was a feature-based brand position and it rocketed the company to its initial success. But FedEx abandoned this brand position. Why? Because it had to. Airborne, DHL, and UPS quickly saw their chance to cash in and swooped in with near identical products. Overnight wasn’t special anymore. FedEx quickly transitioned its slogan line to “why fool around with anyone else ,” the first step in morphing its position to a “trust” brand that has continues to this day.

This is the typical life cycle of most products. You come on to the market with a new product feature. You have a brief window when those product features are unique. Then, competitors rush in and dilute your feature-based brand. Now, your product isn’t much different than anyone else’s product. In order for the leader to remain competitive, it must build an emotionally connected brand position that stands out for its tone and heart, not just its features.

When a new competitor launches a copycat product, many marketers make the mistake of playing the miniscule feature difference game. This is the stalemate trench warfare of branding. Each side trumpets a small feature difference over the competitor’s virtually identical product.
The marketing quickly digresses into a confusing hand-to-hand feature fight between rivals. It becomes a pissing match between two warriors transfixed on defeating the other. Unfortunately, the confused and unconvinced customer often gets left behind in this self-absorbed game of oneupsmanship.

TV news stations will often do this with weather radars. All the dopplers in the market are pretty much the same, but they find small differences and try to convince viewers they are big new features. They will then do research and hear, “They all have dopplers. They’re pretty much the same.” The station then redoubles its efforts and launches a new wave of “explainer” spots.

Advertising is a damned ineffective way to explain anything complicated.

The misguided end game becomes getting the customer to remember names like “super whopper mega doppler XP.” The promos say this name a million times. Through sheer repetition, it sticks in viewer’s minds. The station does research. When asked, viewers can parrot back the name.

Just because they can remember you doesn’t mean they like you. It ain’t about the doppler. It’s about the customers connection with your weather. The doppler is a vehicle. The customer’s connection with your entire brand is the end game.

Their desire for weather information isn’t about an intrinsic love of radar hardware, and the perfunctory promo line “we’ll keep you safe” vastly oversimplifies the complexity of their feelings. Still, most weather branding campaigns spend all their time laboriously explaining the minutia of how their doppler can beat up a competitor’s doppler.

A lot of TV stations are still primarily focused on a fight with the station across town. They are not your primary competitor. Audience erosion is your biggest threat. New competitors like on-line, cell phones and digital platforms are coming up fast. I can get incredibly detailed local weather from weather.com. I can get very detailed local sports information on espn.com. Yahoo is the #1 on-line local news source and is kicking the butts of local TV news sites all over the country.

Cable TV learned this important branding lesson early, and quickly shifted its marketing strategy so it made a personal connection with its audience. Any cable channel that stuck with purely product-feature branding simply died. Cable execs learned the hard way that the only way to win is to hyper-serve a small but loyal base. This audience comes for the shows, but they stay and watch all day because the channel engenders a real sense of belonging. The audience feels like it has found a kindred spirit. The channel has become a friend with values and beliefs that reinforce the viewer’s own priorities.

Channels like ESPN, Fox News, Food Network, Spike, and Lifetime have built their success by making their channels a hangout, not just a bunch of shows. CNN has many more unique viewers each week, but Fox News’s smaller group of incredibly local fans truly love their channel. They watch hour after hour.

Sportscenter has developed its own incredibly intricate system of inside jokes, quirks, and rants.
It is quite literally, the world’s biggest sports bar with the most clever, knowledgeable and fascinating bartender/hosts. You get all this without the hassle of ever leaving your living room. The hosts aren’t just announcers, they are gods with incredibly well defined personalities and endearing idiosyncrasies. Sports coverage is the catalyst, but make no mistake about it, they build loyalty by creating the world’s biggest guy’s club. They have differentiated themselves from other sports highlight shows by clearly understanding men’s emotional needs, and making this show a daily touchstone that fulfills a need for brotherhood and camaraderie.

photo credit: Mzelle Biscotte 

“It would be a great loss if a man or woman who could conquer great mountains settled instead for conquering little anthills.” - Anonymous

This is a plea to everyone who reads these words: Do great things.

Far too many times, we settle for the mediocre. Our lives remain unexamined, unchallenged. We choose the easy way. Our life remains unfulfilled. Our limits remain un-stretched.

We choose to be less than we can become - only because we never try to become better.

We choose a lesser life - because either we never try to attain a greater one, or we are afraid we cannot achieve great results.

It’s easy to choose the lesser life. It’s easy to settle for mediocre results. It’s easy to never push ourselves, never challenge our beliefs, never struggle to learn the great truths and think the great thoughts.

But the easy path is rarely the correct path.

We were made for something better - we were made to become great.

It doesn’t matter where you are now, or where you come from. What matters is where you’re going, and how you’re going to get there.

Since you are going to see the future, one way or the other, shouldn’t you choose to see a great future for yourself and your loved ones?

Greatness calls - and your future awaits.