Valentine’s Day is almost upon us and The Secret Consultants look at what your listener loves about your radio station. Get the following right and you’ll be moving in with your listener!
by Mic Live & C.D. Case – The Secret Consultants
Valentine’s Day is almost upon us and whilst CD Case arguably goes one step too far by moving in with his better half, we look at what your listener loves about your radio station. Get the following right and you’ll be moving in with your listener!
1. USP: Work out what makes your station unique in your market place and sell the benefits… and your listeners will fall in love with your station. You need to be clear on what your radio station stands for in the listener’s mind. A station with no real difference will never effectively compete. Once you have identified your station’s USP it needs to become the fabric of your station; everyone inside the building including the receptionist (if you’re lucky enough to still have one!) should be able to tell you the USP and detail the benefits. The quickest way to make a competitive gain is to stand for something that your listener will care about.
2. Mornings: The morning show is the foundation of your radio station, and just like building a house, a bad foundation will see your radio station fall over. Build the right foundation and your listener will love you. You need to identify talent that has something to say – talent that are willing to share their lives on the air every day. Your pursuit should be relentless in finding the most interesting and entertaining people you can afford… these people probably aren’t on the air yet, and probably don’t realize the success they could have. If you’ve got the talent never let them go, if you haven’t found the solution never stop looking. Looking costs nothing but your commitment.
3. Music: The secret is instant gratification – your listeners love your station because every time they tune in they hear a song they love. In an ideal world every song you schedule has been tested, and works for both your P1 and P2 listener. Unfortunately the world is less than ideal at the moment, but that is no excuse. Beg, borrow or steal research from another market. If that doesn’t work – do what you should already be doing and immerse yourself in the listener’s world, go to the concerts they go to, hang out in the same clubs and check the charts relevant to your station. A station we know well recently tested songs for the first time in six years, 3 songs out of 80 in one category came back as duds, why? The PD and Music Director had immersed themselves in the listener’s world.
4. Talent: To reach fourth base with your listener they need to love your friends. If the morning show is your listener’s partner then your talent are the morning shows friends. Think about your friends, why do you gravitate to them? It’s because they’re interesting people to be around. Your talent needs to be real, interesting, have stories to tell and be fun. If they don’t have these qualities you wouldn’t spend time with them in a bar… neither would your listeners!
5. Promotions: Your listener loves to be excited. Promotions create that excitement; they are the party trick that keeps people at your party a little longer. Your radio station should have an annual planner of planned promotions including key dates like Valentine’s and July 4th. Thinking of prizes? Think lifestyle experiences. Remember, promotions don’t have to cost you a lot, you can run promotions to just give away movie passes – you just need to make it sound exciting. Having an annual promotions plan will also make you a friend with the GM, as promotions should make you money and market your station.
6. Imaging: Imaging is the glue that holds your radio station together. Whilst your listener doesn’t know it, this is part of the reason your listener loves your station. Creative imaging heightens the image of your station and enhances the mood you’re trying to create. Do an audit of all the imaging running on your station right now? Is it topical, entertaining, emotive and with high production values? If it isn’t, change it!
7. Interaction: Times have changed and listeners want to be involved. Your radio station now needs to enter into a dialogue with the listener rather than speak at them. Your job is to reflect the views and opinions of your target, and the best way to achieve that is to let them do it. Encourage talent to work the phones, encourage SMS, build messenger into your website; listener generated content will help you win. Involve them – they’ll love it!
8. Relevance: You have to know and understand the lives of your listener intimately. What makes them tick? What are their hopes, dreams and fears? Where do they do their weekly shopping? What do they think of Paris Hilton? Use your online listener database to do this research. Hold a listener party at the station and ask them. Regular contact with your target is the secret to a successful station. If you understand them intimately and use this knowledge in shaping your programming elements they’ll stay with you.
9. Topicality: What separates the good stations from the great? The good stations do all the above, the great stations do all the above but make it sound specific to that day. Understand what your audience is talking about in your market each day. Then ensure that your morning show, imaging, promotions and even music reflect the big talking point. Sounds simple, but it takes a lot of work from the PD each day; the time invested will move your station from good to great, and your listener will love you more for it.
10. Consistency: Do all of this every minute of every hour of every day and your listeners will always love you.
And now it’s time to share the love, our Valentine’s present is the F.O.C.U.S programming model. Are you in a small market? Have five different roles and one member of staff? F.O.C.U.S your programming at www.secretconsultants.com
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Mic Live & C.D. Case are partners in Secret Consultants a full service consultancy company that come with proven ratings results. Mic Live & C.D. Case have programmed a number of successful stations in competitive markets, produced morning shows, held group-programming roles and various on air positions. Contact the team at results@secretconsultants.com or visit www.secretconsultants.com
