Pandora Surpasses 40 Million Users (and what it means for terrestrial radio)

Posted on December 18, 2009 by Jeff

According to an article in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal, Pandora, the personalized online radio service, reached 40 million users in 2009.

On average, 15 million people stream internet-only radio stations like Pandora every week. That’s not far from matching the number of those streaming terrestrial radio station sites (22 million, according to the article). Think about that for a second. A handful of internet-only radio stations have nearly 3/4 the listeners as do all regular radio station streams combined.

“What’s the big deal,” you say. “Besides, internet-only stations can’t compete with radio’s ubiquity, right?” Guess again. The last real advantage radio has is quickly evaporating.

Here’s the kicker quote from the article: “Unlike Pandora, CBS and Clear Channel don’t necessarily require users to register.” Did you get that? Many stations, mine included, aren’t asking visitors/users to register (the first time) in order to consume the station’s content.

For my company, that’s nearly 50,000 unique streamers every month we’re NOT collecting information on. For Clear Channel it’s 8 million a month. For CBS, 9 million. Want to take a guess at how many Pandora users give up at least an e-mail address for the chance to consume Pandora’s content? I’ll tell you. It’s 100%; as in, all of them. That’s a database of 40 million e-mails.

Remember, back in the day, when your station first put up its streaming player and someone on staff argued against requiring registration for fear your users would find it off-putting? I guess it’s safe to say now that that’s a hollow argument.

Maybe the real problem isn’t the various barriers to entry, but rather the experience (or lack thereof) we’re offering and the content we’re streaming. After all, we’ve removed all the hurdles, yet Pandora and its ilk are still kickin’ our tail.

Filed under: Music Industry, The Future of Radio, WAY-FM | Tagged: CBS, Clear Channel, internet radio, Pandora, streaming, Wall Street Journal | 3 Comments »

Sales and Social Media: PB & J or Oil and Water?

Posted on November 4, 2009 by Jeff

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of delivering a presentation to our company’s Business Development Directors on the benefits of considering certain social media tools to reach their goals.

Mixing sales (or marketing) and social media is, of course, done by companies and individuals all over the world every day. But, if your social media approach is lead by what you’re going to get out of it (ulterior motives) as opposed to shining the spotlight on other people (altruistic motives), make no mistake that people will see right through it.

My main point then was two-fold. If you’re not participating, that doesn’t mean the conversations aren’t happening, they simply go on without you. And, once in the game, are you there for the right reasons? If it’s primarily to add value to whatever community you’re in and to help whenever possible, then the answer is yes.

Thanks to Brian Solis, Olivier Blanchard, John Haydon, Chris Brogan and everyone else who inspires me every day to aide those around me in their quest to make sense of all this stuff. By the way, I tried embedding the presentation here but apparently wordpress.com doesn’t like Prezi. At least they’re not playing well together. Instead, I’ve included the public link. I hope you like it.

Sales and Social Media: PB & J or Oil and Water?

Filed under: Business, Marketing, Social Media, Twitter, WAY-FM, Web 2.0, YouTube | Tagged: Bob Garfield, Brian Solis, Chick-Fil-A, Chris Brogan, Dan Schawbel, Geek Breakfast, JetBlue, John Haydon, Marketing, Olivier Blanchard, sales, Social Media, Southwest, Tamar Weinberg, Toni Birdsong, WAY-FM, Zappos | 4 Comments »

What Gives? Or, Fundraising Made Simple

Posted on August 24, 2009 by Jeff

If you work for a non-profit, chances are you don’t have the luxury of a several thousand watt mouthpiece with which to disseminate your message. Even when you do, as in the case of non-commercial radio stations like the one for which I work, raising the necessary funds to keep the organization running smoothly can often times be daunting, especially considering our country’s economic health over the last year or so.

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At the height of the economic slump last October, our middle-Tennessee group of WAY-FM stations came through one of their worst Pledge Drives ever, reaching only around 80% of the overall goal. However, since that time, we’ve seen them experience two of their most successful fundraisers in the stations’ history (116% and 113% for our spring Pledge Drive and summer fundraiser, respectively). It is my humble belief that, at its very core, that success is due in large part to nothing more than the simplification of the message.

Gone are the days of wiping the slate clean at the beginning of each drive and choosing not to assume those who gave during the last one will do so again (hard to believe we did that up until a few years ago). Gone are the days of communicating separate monthly and single (one-time) goals. Gone are the days of communicating the financial goal on the air at all. Gone are the days of sharing about all the different ways to give and the levels of giving and the names for each and on and on and on.

Put simply, the focus of the goal over our last two fundraisers has moved from the laundry list above to the number of people from whom we must hear. In other words, the goal is not, say, $100,000 or whatever the amount, but instead is “Will you be one of X number of people to respond.”

How can I help you?

Last spring that number was 1,000. Last week it was 500. The only other message we communicate on the air is exactly what we want these 500 or 1,000 people to do. That might be a $100 donation (as was the case with our short, 2-day Race to 500 fundraiser last week). Or, for larger, more critical fundraisers (like our spring and fall Pledge Drives), that might be “$10 a month or more.”

From the moment we turn on our mics, to the moment we end our drives, we track the number of people who have called or gone online and pledged the suggested amount. Sure, some folks will do more, and others will do less (those donations still count in the end, or course), but our focus on the air is on the number of listeners donating (at a modest, minimum amount). We take it a step further and break it down in smaller, bite-sized chunks as we go. “This hour, will you be one of 30 people with a $100 donation?”

This method won’t work for every non-profit, but even if you don’t have a megaphone with which to broadcast your message, you still communicate with your donors in other ways, right? What about your e-blasts, your newsletters or other mailings? Is the message too convoluted? If so, I hope reading this has sparked some ideas for simplifying your messages.

Needless to say, if you’re part of a non-commercial radio station or a commercial station that involves itself in occasional fundraising efforts, I highly suggest you give this simplified method a try. I believe you’ll find that it’s not only easier to communicate for your on-air talent, but that listeners will be more likely to respond because they know and understand exactly what it is you need them to do.

UPDATE:

In my original draft, I gave credit to this idea within our company to Steve Young, General Manager at WAY-FM in Tallahassee. That credit was inadvertently omitted in the final draft.

Filed under: Fundraising, The Future of Radio, WAY-FM | Tagged: donation, fundraiser, Fundraising, goal, non-profit, Pledge Drive | 1 Comment »

All Access Interview

Posted on July 23, 2009 by Jeff

Recently, I was asked by Jackie Chapman (jchapman[at]allaccess[dot]com), the editor over at allaccess.com, to participate in their “10 Questions with” series. All Access is a very useful and informative broadcast and music industry, members-only website.

I thought I’d share my answers here before the interview is published on their site and, in the event you’re not an All Access member, give you the chance to see into my radio philosophies are little more deeply.

In addition to the “10 Questions,” I was given the option of answering 6 bonus questions. My answers to the first 10 are wordy enough, so if you decide there’s not time to check out the whole interview, I’d skip the bonus questions.

10 Questions – Jeff Brown

NAME: Jeff Brown (@thejeffbrown on Twitter)

TITLE: Operations Director

WEBSITE: wayfm.com

STATION: 88.7 WAY-FM (WAYM). Also 88.3 WAY-FM (WAYQ) and 88.1 WAY-FM (WAYD)

MARKET: Nashville (also Clarksville, TN, Bowling Green, KY among others)

COMPANY: WAY-FM Media Group, Inc.

BORN (WHERE AND/OR WHEN): Indianapolis, IN / January 11, 1966

RAISED: Indianapolis

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

Jeff did stints at several Indiana stations (WERK, WLBC and WXIR) in the 80s and 90s before moving to Nashville in 1996 to accept a radio promotions position with Myrrh Records, helping launch the career of Jaci Velasquez. After stops at three other labels, Jeff joined WAY-FM full-time in 2000. Jeff was promoted from production director to program director in January 2005. After co-hosting several award-winning incarnations of the CHRSN Network morning show, he retired from full-time on-air duties in July 2008. Now, as operations director, he is heavily involved in the day-to-day community impact of three of WAY-FM’s middle Tennessee stations with duties encompassing the areas of traditional marketing, social media (including his own music, radio and social media-focused blog at thejeffbrown.me), creative writing and community leadership. He lives in Spring Hill, TN with his wife Annie and their two boys Fritz and Frank (miniature Dachshunds).

1) What was your first job in the industry? Did you have any mentors early on?

My first job was with WLBC in Muncie, IN (Top 40). I did weekends until I pissed off a bunch of high school basketball sponsors with my on-air comments one night (my music-oriented show followed the sports coverage). Seems those small markets are all about the sponsors. Not many mentors back then. It was sort of an every-man-for-himself environment. Maybe a mentor or two might’ve helped me keep the job longer; though I can say losing that job directly led to my salvation, so maybe mentors are overrated.

2) What does your routine for morning prep include?

Not unlike most I would assume. I incorporate a combination of showering, shaving and brushing my teeth along with getting dressed, patting my puppies on the head and kissing my wife as I leave. Apparently the person writing these questions doesn’t realize I haven’t done mornings for a year.

3) What has been your favorite feature/spoof/promotion in the past year at your station?

It would have to be one of the most simple. In March, a neighborhood in the nearby community of Murfreesboro was seriously impacted by a tornado. We teamed with a Murfreesboro church to collect new and partially used gift cards for victims. The response was very encouraging. Because of the time of year this happened, the gift card idea (as opposed to cash) seemed to resonate. Many who had yet to use all or part of gift cards received at Christmastime forfeited them for the benefit of others. Local businesses (which we didn’t anticipate) even got in on the act.

4) Who is your favorite on-air personality NOT at your station?

Since you weren’t specific, I’ll say Brant Hansen. He’s ON my station but not technically AT my station (I like taking advantage of loopholes). Don’t try to hire him away from WAY-FM. If I find out, I will kill you (watch out AIR1). Second would be Scott Smith (apparently, Z88 is a kill-free zone).

5) What does Christian radio need to do to break through to a mass audience on a more consistent basis?

To be brave enough to hire personalities who know how to communicate like real, transparent, fallible, imperfect human beings (a la the aforementioned Brant and Scott, along with Donna Cruz and Wally from Total Axxess), and be prepared to back them up when all the crusaders start coming out of the woodwork who didn’t give a crap about your station when you played it safe. As long as stations are content with “good enough,” “great” will always be just out of reach. Sure, with the top talent, you have to deal with the occasional ego, but I think it’s worth it in the long run. Having said that, I wouldn’t want to be Wally’s supervisor.

6) What are the greatest challenges in your position/job?

Same as everyone else: finding the time to do all the things I want to do. Social media participation, for example, can sometimes be a time suck when you add it all up, but ignoring it or making it one of my ‘back burner’ items is not an option.

7) And what are the greatest rewards in your position/job?

Working for the same company for 10 years, a new personal record, times five. I am blessed to be surrounded by some of the brightest minds in the business (Matt Austin chief among them), as well as up-and-coming talents like Katie Sivyer.

8) If you could have any other job outside radio, what would it be?

I think I’d enjoy consulting other stations/companies on the effective use of the social media tools available to them. At one point in my life I thought I’d be performing in front of arena-sized crowds singing and writing songs that make the whole world sing (or acting, writing screenplays or any other number of creative outlets). Fortunately, radio provides many similar outlets.

9) Any favorite or funny artist run-ins? Highlights from a promotion or interview?

With few exceptions, I’m underwhelmed by most artists. Many are horrible at the interview process (as are most radio people, unfortunately). Even if they’re not horrible, often they so hate doing yet another interview with yet another unprepared, wasting-my-time radio jock that they can’t help but let their boredom and disdain show through. It’s sort of the chicken and egg question though. I’m not sure which came first, the lazy jock or the bored artist.

I’ve already mentioned the on-air talent I admire. On the artist side, I think the true pros are people like Matthew West. If every artist were of his caliber insofar as their ability to communicate minus the instrument, we’d have some pretty fascinating interviews taking place.

10) You’re an active Twitter user. Why? What is your reason?

Anyone who believes Twitter is for idiots (or “stupid crap” to quote David Letterman) has obviously never taken the time to investigate what can happen when you tap into its potential. I often hear the phrase “too much time on your hands” from people critical of those of us who tweet. I don’t know about you, but it takes me about 30 seconds to type 140 characters. I repeat that process anywhere from 5 to 15 times a day for a total investment of about 3 to 10 minutes daily. And, yes, I’ll occasionally dip my toe into the Twitter stream to see what’s happening. But, if you’re convinced that tweeting alone requires much more time than that, I’m going to go out on a limb and guess you didn’t graduate from a respectable college.

In regard to our station’s use of the platform, we have one account dedicated to traffic and weather updates, having recently separated those updates from our main account. Anyone following @WAYtoWorkUpdate on Twitter (or any other account for that matter), can elect to have our “update” tweets sent straight to their mobile device. When you consider cell/smart phones are probably our single biggest competitor for in-car listening, I think getting your listener’s attention (with their permission) on that very device and reminding them of who you are (while providing a valuable service) is a pretty good use of the technology.

Our main account (@wayfm_nashville) is branded with a human face. This face (Katie) happens to handle the local elements for 88.7 WAY-FM during Mornings with Brant (the network morning show) so listeners know who she is. She’s young, hip and right in the demo. She tweets from a personal perspective as well as occasionally about things happening on the air right now or at the radio station in general. Probably most importantly, she’s engaging our listeners in this space on a daily basis and developing relationships, giving listeners yet another “touch point” with the station.

Additionally, I’m contemplating a Casting Crowns ticket give away via this Twitter account. Followers would be instructed to simply write a tweet that includes the hashtag #castingcrowns (or some other specific tag we choose) in order to be entered. These are instantly searchable. I can use a third-party service too if need be to select a random winner. The cool part is it has the potential to be seen by everyone who follows each person who does this. Currently we have 1,800 followers to our @wayfm_nashville Twitter account.

There are pros and cons. If you allow each participant to tweet the tag multiple times (much more “viral” potential and better for us) you may risk ticking off the Twittersphere because you risk filling Twitter timelines with what might be viewed by some as spam if it gets out of hand. Our plan to combat that is to suggest one “entry” per person. It’s not quite as viral, but it’s much closer to a win-win for all involved than is the other scenario.

I’m also monitoring our company’s brand mentions on Twitter (along with blogs and the web in general). Sure, I could monitor our brand on Twitter without an account, but maintaining one allows me the opportunity to engage those who do mention us?

Finally, if you don’t want to invest into it then don’t (time is the only investment, as it’s free). That’s your call. But please don’t criticize those who do. I’m serious when I say that simply “following” key people on Twitter and just “listening,” even without any real engagement on your part, can be a near college education all by itself.

BONUS QUESTIONS:

1) Do you read everything or nothing? Do you have any favorite magazines, books, newspapers?

I read Fast Company & Wired religiously. I try to get my head out of the broadcast-only pubs mindset (are there any left?) and force myself to think about my station existing beyond the terrestrial signal and more as a media company. I think we should be formulating plans for other ways for listeners to consume our content and consistently creating new and compelling content in a variety of spaces and formats (including online consumable, bite-sized audio and video, blogs, social media, etc.). But while you’re at it, make sure you approach everything from a WIIFM camera angle.

I’d also recommend the following books (not a complete list): Tribes, Pyromarketing, Faith-Based Marketing, Good to Great, Made to Stick, A New Brand World and Tribal Knowledge. You might also want to read the blogs of Chris Brogan, Seth Godin and John Haydon to name a few. If you have no idea what I’m talking about when I say Friendfeed, Seesmic, TweetDeck or Google Wave, you’ve got a lot of catching up to do.

2) What music is in your CD player/on your iPod right now?

Not much. I’m a podcast guy. Most 21^st century music has sucked thus far (save for Brandon Heath, Mat Kearney, Fireflight, Downhere and a few others). I have hundreds of songs on my iPod but I rarely listen to them.

3) Cat or dog person?

Cats are of the devil.

4) Describe your favorite meal.

It would involve the killing of some animal and then eating said animal, just the way God intended.

5) What is your favorite quote?

“Revenge is a dish best served cold.” Refer back to answer 4 in the original 10 questions.

6) If you were stranded on a desert island, what three things would you want to have with you and why?

I really don’t know. Stranded in an airport is a better scenario. Strand me on an island and all I’ll be able to think about is how to get off it. Strand me in an airport and give me my laptop or smart phone, my iPod, etc. In other words: any electronic device that can allow me to continue to be productive OR completely waste away the hours. My choice. Islands don’t have electricity. You may as well feed me to the sharks.

Filed under: Marketing, Ministry, Music Industry, Social Media, The Future of Radio, Twitter, WAY-FM, Web 2.0 | Tagged: 10 Questions, 88.7 WAY-FM, A New Brand World, All Access, Brandon Heath, Brant Hansen, Castin Crowns, Chris Brogan, David Letterman, Donna Cruz, Downhere, Faith-Based Marketing, Fast Company, Fireflight, FriendFeed, Good to Great, Google Wave, Jackie Chapman, John Haydon, Katie Sivyer, Made to Stick, Mat Kearney, Matt Austin, Mornings with Brant, Pyromarketing, Seesmic, Seth Godin, Total Axxess, Tribal Knowledge, Tribes, TweetDeck, Twitter, Wally, WAY-FM, Wired | 2 Comments »

88.7 WAY-FM and Casting Crowns Issue Warning

Posted on June 16, 2009 by Jeff

Seems fewer and fewer media outlets are printing media advisories any more. With few exceptions, they’re rarely interactive or involve any attempts at incorporating multi-media, social media or you-name-it media. Often, they’re not much more than words on a page. In a word, they’re “boring.”

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I’ve got a long way to go in my creation of media advisories on behalf of WAY-FM. But it’s my hope that, someday, I too can create media advisories that are memorable and get people talking. I’ve read about them. I’ve studied them, but it seems I just don’t have the time (or maybe the expertise) to make it happen. Heaven knows few can afford to pay someone else to do it for them.

For me, that means that the emphasis, the effort, has to go into the writing itself. So, is it revolutionary? I don’t know. Is it a little cheesy? Possibly. Will it get more attention than the typical media advisory or, at the very least, put a smile on someone’s face or cause a slight chuckle at some point during their day? I hope so.

That’s all I’m really going for. After all, no one prints media advisories anymore.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tuesday, June 16^th, 2009

Contact: Jeff Brown; Operations Director

Phone: 615-261-9293

E-mail: jeff@wayfm.com

88.7 WAY-FM & Casting Crowns Issue Warning

Ticket Buyers Cautioned, “Change” Potential Cited

For immediate release: (Nashville, TN) Nashville’s 88.7 WAY-FM will again bring the multi-platinum-selling band Casting Crowns to Nashville. They’ll perform Friday, October 9^th at the Sommet Center. In an unorthodox move, however, upcoming on-air announcements will come with a warning to 88.7 WAY-FM listeners and potential concert go-ers.

The warning begins; “During the concert, you will be subjected to songs like,” followed by a laundry list of Casting Crowns songs. What follows this list is all but unheard of in the concert world. 88.7 WAY-FM cites recent studies that show the potential these songs have to “not only impact, but even change lives.” The station even goes on to suggest that listeners not purchase tickets if they desire to “leave the same way you came.”

88.7 WAY-FM general manager Matt Austin said that listeners desiring to purchase tickets despite the warning may do so at their own risk at any ticketmaster outlet, the Sommet Center box office, or online at WAY-FM.com beginning Saturday, June 20^th at 10am. He later added that ticket buyers may be asked to sign a waiver, but didn’t elaborate.

When asked for an official statement, Austin said, “Neither 88.7 WAY-FM nor Casting Crowns can be held liable for anyone who may leave the concert spiritually renewed, refreshed, fulfilled, convicted or otherwise changed.”

###

WAY-FM is a 501(c)3 not for profit organization founded in 1987 in Southwest Florida. The mission of WAY-FM is to encourage youth and young adults in their Christian Lives and to introduce non-believers to Christ. All gifts are tax-deductible.

For more information on 88.7 WAY-FM, see also:

88.7 WAY-FM’s Facebook Profile

88.7 WAY-FM’s Twitter Profile

88.7 WAY-FM’s YouTube Profile

Filed under: Marketing, WAY-FM | Tagged: 88.7 WAY-FM, Casting Crowns, Concert, Media, Media Advisories, Sommet Center | 1 Comment »

We Love Your Mom

Posted on June 2, 2009 by Jeff

I never knew something seemingly as simple as adding audio to my blog could be such a frustrating chore. I add images all the time after all. And I’m in radio for Pete’s sake. I work with audio daily. Why is this so stinking hard WordPress.com?

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Turns out audio, WordPress.com and Firefox in particular, don’t get along very well. You see, I’ve been trying to post audio from our Mother’s Day campaign since about mid-May. And while it may now be Dad’s month, I’ll be darned if anything is going to stop me from seeing it through.

Many whom I’ve connected with via Twitter and elsewhere and who don’t live within our station’s coverage area have expressed an interest in hearing what we did. I can tell you that what began as a simple idea to facilitate giving away a Mother’s Day prize package turned into quite a bit more.

Listeners were asked to call a special number and simply share the kinds of sacrifices mom made along the way. As the calls came in, we found that there were going to be dozens more calls than we’d ever be able to air. The initial on-air promo we used told of the specifics of the promotion and what was in store for the eventual winner. Follow up on-air promos added some of the early calls we received.

As Mother’s Day approached and the time to pick a winning call closed in, we realized that, with an edited script, there was no reason why we couldn’t continue with the “celebrate mom” mentality throughout the rest of May. And that’s exactly what we did, which, in turn, gave us the chance to enhance a lot more lives with a few more calls.

While I’d hope to embed a player directly into the blog here, the best I could do was link to an external site where audio from 4 of the calls we received is being hosted. Particularly moving is the call from Kelly. She and her mom also happened to be our winners. Phrases like “limousine ride,” and “hot stone massage” are now permanent parts of their vocabulary.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, I love my mom too. Here’s the link:

Mother’s Day Audio

Filed under: The Future of Radio, WAY-FM | Tagged: audio, Firefox, Mother's Day, Wordpress.com | 3 Comments »

Past, Present and Future

Posted on May 1, 2009 by Jeff

Recently, I was asked to respond to a list of interview questions from HisAir.net’s Ted Kelly. His website serves as a “one-stop shop” for all things Christian radio and Christian music industry-related, complete with station links, job postings, show prep and research, among other things.

Future Past & Present signpost in the sky

I decided I’d post my repsponses to his questions here before they’re actually puplished on the HisAir.net website, beginning with a brief career capsule.

Jeff, born and raised in Indianapolis, did stints at several Indiana stations (WERK, WLBC and WXIR) in the 80s and 90s before moving to Nashville in 1996 to accept a radio promotions job with Myrrh Records, helping launch the career of Jaci Velasquez. After stops at three other labels, Jeff joined 88.7 WAY-FM full-time in 2000. Since that time, Jeff has served in a variety of rolls including afternoon and then mid-day host, followed by six years as co-host of several incarnations of the CHRSN network morning show (Marcia and Jeff, Jeff and Elisabeth, and Jeff and Stace in the morning). Jeff was promoted from production director to operations director in January 2005 and is thrilled that he no longer has to wake up at 2:45am.

How has WAY-FM evolved over the years? I’m not going to talk here about how the company has evolved but instead how the product and content have evolved. There was a time when everything on the air seemed to go through this “let’s clean it up” filter. I had this fear of offending someone and felt the need to homogenize everything I said and did on the air. That has definitely changed. No topic today is off limits. Granted, we might encourage each other to choose certain words carefully, but Wally is offending people every day. I love it, actually. Brant is probably second in line when it comes to who’s offending the most people. He rocks. I don’t know if you know this or not but Christians, as a group, are easily offended.

Has WAY-FM made any changes due to the economic situation, or been affected in any way? You’re kidding, right? Is the Pope Catholic? Is Brant Hansen a hottie? Is Wally a woman trapped inside a man’s body? It’s safe to say we’ve been affected, probably more than most in the WAY-FM family. Business underwriting is way down, though listener giving is actually ahead of where it was last year. Radio, as a medium, has to get better at monetizing content. In the future, that may or may not include “selling spots.”

How is WAY-FM able to connect with listeners on a local level? Several ways actually. A recent example is the not-so-Good Friday tornadoes that ripped through the nearby community of Murfreesboro. We asked listeners to donate new and slightly used gift cards to those affected. This really seemed to connect. People didn’t have to go out and get something. They just looked in their purse or wallet and said, “Oh yeah, I do have a gift card I haven’t used yet.” In one week we collected nearly $3,000 dollars in cards and cash (I’m happy to report that I successfully resisted the urge to sneak a card for myself). We also use social media extensively (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube) for each of the four stations we operate from the Nashville office. This has aided us tremendously, especially in markets we can’t be in every day or every week.

What criteria do you require for a song to be played on your station? WAY-FM is structured such that music decisions are made at the network level (Network PD, Network Music Director). I like this because it means I don’t have to make time for people like Brian Thiele, Tara Stepp, Andrea Kleid, James Riley, Kai Elmer, Grant Hubbard, Josh Lauritch, Mark Giles, Brian Dishon, and Chris Hauser…is that everybody? Sorry if I left you out of my list of people I’d rather ignore. Most of you are on Twitter as much as I am. That’s probably enough.

What kind of promotions work best for WAY-FM? Simple but compelling. Right now, listeners are calling a number we’ve set up to share how their mother sacrificed for them as a child. Some of the calls are pretty compelling as you might imagine. We’re pulling the best of these calls and incorporating them into new promos that prompt more of these types of compelling calls. Makes for a compelling presentation on the air. I like using the word “compelling” in case you hadn’t noticed. The non-compelling calls we just pretty much laugh at and make fun of.

How do you think Christian Record labels can better serve Christian radio? While I ignore most of their calls and e-mails regarding local promotions, give-aways, interviews and such, I think that, over all, they’re doing a pretty good job. Fortunately for me that whole “ignoring” thing just goes the one way.

In your opinion, what are the biggest obstacles facing Christian radio today? Does anyone really care what Jeff Brown’s opinion is about this? I highly doubt it. I suggest, however, that you care about what Mark Ramsey’s opinion is about the obstacles radio faces. If you read his blog and are familiar with Mark then you already know what I’m driving at. If you don’t, it’s too late for you so you may as well begin working on your career “Plan B.”

What do you believe is the primary role of the Christian radio air personality? Did I mention “to offend” already? That one comes pretty easily. What I really mean is when you’re connecting in a truly honest and transparent way, listeners will naturally be drawn to you. I’m fortunate to be associated with three of the best in the business in this regard: Brant Hansen, Donna Cruz and Wally. I’d add Dean O’Neal, Scott Smith and Lisa Williams to that group.

What (if any) Christian radio stations do you consider as innovators today? Not many actually. We’re not innovating nearly enough in my opinion. To me, innovation means remaining relevant. Z88.3 in Orlando is head-and-shoulders above the rest of us in this area. Instead of sitting on their hands and saying, “Well, we can’t be THE severe weather station” or whatever because they’re the Christian station, they said “We WILL be that station and we’ll do it better and more consistently that anyone else.” They made a commitment to it and stuck with it. You can no longer call them a niche format in Orlando. They’re as main stream as any other station in their market. Several hundred radio stations across the country are a few years (maybe months) from becoming obsolete and irrelevant. They continue to do radio as it’s always been done. If you’re content with disseminating your content via a terrestrial FM signal and complementing it with a website and stream, begin now to think about what you might do if it all went away. Because it will.

Where do you see Christian radio in 5 years? It’s no different for Christian radio than it is for main stream radio. Please go to http://hear2.com and familiarize yourself with Mark Ramsey and his way of thinking. He is radio’s best thought leader today and I believe he is dead-on in virtually every way. If you’re working on approaching your station’s future as Mark suggests, I think you’ll have a legitimate chance of existing in 5 years. Otherwise, again, dust off your “Plan B.”

Filed under: Music Industry, The Future of Radio, WAY-FM | Tagged: Brant Hansen, career, Donna Cruz, hisair, interview, radio, Wally, WAY-FM, WERK, WLBC, WXIR | 6 Comments »

The Future’s So Bright (At Least It Can Be)

Posted on April 7, 2009 by Jeff

I was replying this morning to a comment from Robbie Newton on my last blog post. Robbie is a former WAY-FM board member and someone whose opinion I respect a great deal. As I wrote my reply, I realized this was one of those moments where the conversation warranted a blog post of its own.

Basically, the conversation revolves around the question, “Where is radio going?” There are a lot of opinions as to what that might look like. Some believe radio will suffer the same fate as many newspapers recently, while others feel (myself included) that the level of radio’s suffering will be directly connected to its level of willingness to adapt to the changes in listener habits and preferences.

My conversation with Robbie thus far, beginning with his initial response to my post 10 Years Ago Today: My WAY-FM Journey:

I find this post very interesting. As a former member of the board of directors, I observed the ministry up close and personal for over 15 years. I agree that Matt and Bob are two very fine Christian men. I see the current turmoil in the industry as ultimately being a good thing because those with the best ideas and courage to take risks will emerge as industry leaders while the rest will fall by the wayside. I think many inside the industry are realizing that radio was never really about radio in the first place. It was (and still is) about the listener and communicating with them. I sense that you might be a little uneasy with those at the corporate level and what decisions they will make about the future direction of the ministry (to feel this way would be understandable). You mention that you are willing to do everything in your power to ensure the survival of your slice of the pie. What if ensuring your survival called for the sacrifice of other pieces of the WAY-FM pie, would that be okay? How does one decide which slice to cut if there’s not enough money to go around?

You are very wise.

First, I agree that it’s not about radio, but about the listener. Too many in the industry at large fail to realize that. I think it was a very forward-thinking move years ago when the word “radio” was removed from our mission statement. To me, it was a realization by the executive team that, while radio is the medium we use today to reach youth and young adults, it may not be the primary vehicle used tomorrow. I, personally, am striving to be a forward-thinker within the company so that we as a company – not just WAY-FM Nashville – don’t “fall by the wayside.”

As to your question, I hadn’t considered that scenario specifically. All I can do as operations director is try to ensure the station I work for is making an impact in the local community. Hopefully, listenership increases as a result of that along with listener donations. And, I hope to be able to do that for as long as they will let me, meaning, I don’t take anything for granted.

How does one decide which slice to cut? Hopefully it doesn’t come to that, but if it does and it were me doing the deciding, it would be difficult to cut long-established stations if for no other reason than the obligations established within their community of listeners over a long period of time. Other stations though are practically brand new and still trying to find an audience.

Getting back to the reference to a ‘slice of pie’, perhaps it’s time to go back into the ministry kitchen and start cooking all over again. Who would be the chefs? I suggest that they should be current senior management, station managers, other key stakeholders (such as thought leaders in the Christian recording industry), current listeners, post-listeners, and most importantly, pre-listeners. Their assignment would be to bake a brand new pie. The available ingredients would include the current assets of the ministry (staff, facilities, technologies, etc.), and a God-breathed understanding of the current culture in which you have been called to reach. So my question to you is quite simple…what do you think the new pie would look like, especially your slice?

The “ingredients” are limited only by our imagination. As someone within the company who has immersed himself in all things social media the past 18 months, there are several things I see happening in order for WAY-FM, and radio in general, to remain relevant.

Downloadable Audio – Podcasts basically. Not revelatory, but something that’s not happening now no doubt due to limited resources. I, for one, don’t want to wait for someone else within the company to make it happen. Rather, I want to take the bull by the horns and set an example for others to follow. This would include “Mornings with Brant,” “Total Axxess ,” the “Top 20 Meltdown,” etc. I’d like to see each station given the opportunity to monetize it independent of one another. Give us the ability to further localize the content.

Downloadable Video – In essence, video podcasts. However, I want to take this beyond shooting artist visits and behind the scenes goings-on during certain shows. Right now the video that is being shot (during certain shows and at local events) is being pushed out primarily through YouTube. To my knowledge, no one within the company is providing video content in subscribe-able form (apart from what YouTube offers which leaves a lot to be desired). I see this including deliberate, produced video “shows” that serve as an extension of what we’re doing on the air and in the community. They may or may not be hosted by on-air talent. We have a plethora of people on the local level who bring to the table talents we’ve yet to tap into.

Live Streaming Video – No matter who we have on the air in any given year, there’s always a certain level of resistance to this. I believe the future of radio includes nearly 24/7 video streaming (Ustream and/or Stickam among others make this possible). You could even toy with making this kind of content available on a premium member-type basis. Again, give the local station the opportunity to monetize it. But with a paid subscription model, you could award a percentage to the station from which the subscriber originates with the rest going to corporate. This could be invested back into the product.

Twitter – Again, not revelatory, but with just a few exceptions, I’m not sure we’re tapping into this as deeply as we should. I wonder too if anyone within the company realizes that Twitter gives us the ability to text our listeners directly for FREE. Sure, there are limitations with Twitter as a texting model that become a non-issue with most third party texting services. But in light of budget cuts and the current economic climate free is a pretty good alternative.

Live Chat – Sounds so 90’s doesn’t it? Bare with me.

I see the FM radio experience being taken to a new level (a la Leo Laporte) with radio, streaming video, live chat and/or Twitter all happening simultaneously, with phones, of course, still an important part of the equation. We’ve got to allow listeners the opportunity to interact with us in any way they choose. Gone are the take-it-or-leave-it days. Give them a multitude of ways to engage our content both live as-it-happens, as well as on a plane 30,000 feet in the air, during a cross country road trip, or anywhere else they might not otherwise be able to experience our content now.

Questions:

How do you prefer to interact with radio? Phone? Text? Twitter? Not at all/Passive listener?
Does the idea of live, streaming video as it relates to radio intrigue you at all?
Do you like the idea of being able to take your favorite radio show with you wherever you go to listen to whenever you want? Minus the music?
Would you welcome the opportunity to interact with other like-minded listeners live and in real time while listening to your favorite show?

Feel free to answer any or all of the above questions in the comments. You too Robby!

Filed under: The Future of Radio, WAY-FM | Tagged: audio, chat, content, FM, Podcasting, podcasts, radio, Robbie Newton, Stickam, streaming, Twitter, Ustream, video, WAY-FM | 9 Comments »

10 Years Ago Today: My WAY-FM Journey

Posted on March 31, 2009 by Jeff

It was on this date in 1999 when a new season began in my life. I hadn’t even recognized it as such just yet (that would come just over a year later), but I was about to begin a journey that would lead me away from the Nashville music industry – my reason for coming to Nashville three years earlier (to the day) – and back to my first love. Radio.

The WAY-FM Media Group (and I say this in all sincerity) is by far the best company I’ve ever worked for. Before coming to WAY-FM, the longest I’d spent without interruption at any one company was about two years. I’ve now done that five times over with my current employer. No small feat to say the least.

I’m the first to acknowledge how truly blessed and extremely thankful I am for being given the opportunity all those years ago by Matt Austin and Bob Augsburg, WAY-FM’s General Manager and President/Founder respectively. The staff over the years has gone through a multitude of changes, but one thing has remained constant: I’ve truly enjoyed every single individual I’ve had the chance to work with.

Names like Doug Griffin, Karla Lawson, Ace McKay, Kortland Fuqua, Andy Thompson and Jim Turvaville (aka “Turbo”) immediately come to mind when I think of those early days. Later, it would be programming pros like Doug Hannah and Dave Senes that would cross my path; two men from whom I’ve learned a great deal.

As much as anyone, it was sometimes the “non” WAY-FM staff – consultants and talent coaches – I often learned the most from. I will always be indebted to guys like John Frost and Tommy Kramer. Not to mention the more recent and awesomely talented air staff I’ve had the opportunity to work with. The names are many and include stars like Marcia Ware, Jayar Reed, Jeff Connell, Donna Cruz, Wally and Brant Hansen among others.

I dreamed of this job as a kid. I often think back to that Christmas I got that first tape recorder. I’d listen back to myself saying or doing whatever for hours. Then there was the record player/AM-FM radio/8-track stereo combo I cut my DJ teeth on. When I remember those days, it’s difficult for me to believe I’ve been doing this for nearly 22 years.

As I look to the future, I can’t help but wonder how much longer I’ll be allowed to do it. I wonder that, in fact, for all of us in this “business” of radio. I believe if we, as an industry, listen and put into practice the ideas and methods of thought leaders like Mark Ramsey, Seth Godin, Chris Brogan, Michael Hyatt, Fred Jacobs and Jerry Del Colliano, we may surprise a lot of people and actually survive this uncertain future we face.

Make no mistake. It is a future that will include, if radio is to truly remain relevant, time shift-able any-time content (making our terrestrial signals irrelevant if not unnecessary), constant video content creation and distribution, and a complete and total willingness to embrace all things social media, not as a promotional platform, but as a community one (hat tip to Mark Ramsey).

What will that look like for companies like WAY-FM? Will it be driven at the corporate level or will individual stations have the opportunity to build their own communities? When the terrestrial signals are rendered irrelevant, will corporate view individual stations as no longer necessary, or choose to keep them alive, honoring the company’s original mission to impact the local community?

All I know is, with the slice of the WAY-FM pie in which I’ve been entrusted, I plan to do everything in my power to ensure our survival, not for our sake, but for the sake of the community we strive to impact. I hope I can continue to be blessed with that chance for many more years to come.

Photo credit, FrogMiller

Filed under: The Future of Radio, WAY-FM | Tagged: Ace McKay, Andy Thompson, anniversary, Bob Augsburg, Brant Hansen, Chris Brogan, Dave Senes, Donna Cruz, Doug Griffin, Doug Hannah, Fred Jacobs, Gary Wallace, Jayar Reed, Jeff Connell, Jerry Del Colliano, Jim Turvaville, John Frost, Karla Lawson, Kortland Fuqua, Marcia Ware, Mark Ramsey, Matt Austin, Michael Hyatt, radio, Seth Godin, Tommy Kramer, WAY-FM | 5 Comments »

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