Source: Inside Radio

Radio has long been recognized as the theater of the mind but more and more it is becoming an interactive medium. New interactive technologies are opening up new and possibly fruitful opportunities for radio stations – but they also require a fresh new approach for salespeople.

Today selling radio also includes online sponsorships, videos, text messaging, online streams, podcasts, display ads, etc. One size fits all packages are not the way to go when you have so many new weapons in your arsenal. To be successful, account executives must create custom solutions that both benefit their clients and the radio station they represent. The perfect ad buy not only brings in fresh new revenue but also drives traffic to the on-air product and reinforces the power of your station.

First you must evaluate your client’s needs and then figure out the best way to achieve an effective campaign that uses only the appropriate technologies. Selling a complicated technology-rich ad campaign to a client that would be more than happy with a simple spot buy creates a lot of unnecessary work with the possibility of scaring the client off. Technology sales work best with clients looking for something new and exciting. The car dealer looking for a fresh way to highlight the latest hybrids on their lot, the clothing store that wants to dress your morning show up in the latest fashions and have them do a pose-off, the coffee shop that wants to use text messaging to give away free coffees to your listeners, etc.

Thinking outside the box is a great way to impress your clients and can get them excited about working with you. But don’t promise what you can’t deliver. Always check with your technical staff to make sure what you want to pitch is possible. If not, your technical staff should be able to give you alternatives that may be even better. You certainly don’t want to get a client excited only to pull the carpet out from under them.

Another important aspect of the technology sale is how you present it. Having the right attitude and dressing sharply can be undermined by handing your client a proposal that looks like someone with minimal design skills created it in Microsoft Word in five minutes. This simple detail can send a very negative message to your client. It says that even though you look sharp on the surface, the product you’re selling may be less than professional. Consider having a designer on staff or outsource your promotional materials to design professionals. This will ensure your station looks like the cutting edge, technology savvy radio station it is.

Lastly, don’t cannibalize your on-air product just because you have shiny new toys to pitch. Selling clients technologies for half the price of an on-air buy is not a good idea. Make your clients happy but don’t lose focus on the bottom line. If your client is happy on-air and that means more money than selling them a technology campaign then don’t remake the wheel.

In this technological age the average person expects more from every medium, make sure your radio station is ready to deliver and reap the rewards.

–Tom Stark, Partner, RadioGlue. tom@radioglue.com – 732.416.0900
Let RadioGlue help you with your new technology initiatives. Contact Tom for more information.

Source: Rolling Stone

Listen to the top (music) radio stations around the country and you will hear a great mix of music for the masses. Experienced program directors know that success hinges on the right mix of popular artists, up-and-comers, and an occasional surprise or two. This intricate balancing act will keep a mass audience coming back day after day, but what happens when that same audience goes online? Music for the masses becomes music for me.

The internet delivers more of a personal experience than any terrestrial or satellite radio station can even imagine. People are like snowflakes and so are their musical tastes. While many people may agree that The Beatles were one of the greatest bands, online they can find other bands similar to or influenced by The Beatles. The may not hear these bands on the radio because, lets face it, these people have more songs on their iPod than their favorite station’s entire music library.

This abundance of content on the internet is being referred to as the Long Tail. Combine the sales of all the non-hits online and they out sell the hits. This goes for music, movies, books, etc. The ease of distribution means that music and books don’t need to go out of print anymore. I searched all over for a book about The Beatles, that my brother once loaned me, only to find that it was out of print. Not anymore, a quick search on Amazon.com shows that it is now available. When you go to a bookstore in search of a title and inquire when you can’t find it, nothing happens. The inquiry is most likely not recorded and it is localized to that store. How many people are looking for that same book at that location? Go to Amazon and they recognize that a lot of people from all different locations are searching for the same thing. An audience is identified and the presses are running again. If distributors don’t want to spend money reprinting the book they make a digital version available for devices like the Kindle.

So what does this all mean for your on-air product? You can’t play every song out there; that will only drive your audience away. Remember, people are snowflakes and you can’t please them all, but even snowflakes have one thing in common. They are all made from water and that commonality is something you can tap into by playing the hits. With that in mind, your online product has a much broader reach than you may even realize. By creating a more diverse experience on your Web site you can tap into your audience as individuals.

Why not highlight your core artists on your Web site with a list of artists that influenced them, sound similar to them, or are influenced by them. Connect this information with an iTunes or Amazon affiliate program where listeners can purchase their music and merchandise and generate a little non-traditional revenue. How about a podcast about some of the unsung heroes and artists on the rise that listeners may not know about or a second online stream with more variety? Of course these can be available for advertisers or sponsorships. Your Web site doesn’t have to be about only the best of the genre, it can be about the whole genre.

Of course there are a couple of caveats. Online content is easily measured and it may take time to generate a large enough audience for advertisers. Also you have to make sure your Web site’s content makes sense to your listeners, unrelated content can scare them away. It’s important to remember that your Web site is not only a potential source of income; it’s also one of your best promotional tools. Seamless integration of on-air and online can be very beneficial to your station and your listeners that are looking for a more complete experience.

–Tom Stark, Partner, RadioGlue. tom@radioglue.com – 732.416.0900
Let RadioGlue help you with your new technology initiatives. Contact Tom for more information.

Source: MediaPost

Source: TechCrunch