Building a new show isn’t as simple as it used to be. There was a time where if you sounded good and knew your stuff, you were probably the right guy for the job. All the sales department needed you to do was get ratings and not do anything to get fired.
Now though, sales and programming are so intertwined that when it comes to hiring anyone for the on-air staff, both the PD and sales manager will make time to sit down with every candidate during the interview process.
I wanted to get perspectives on building a show from both sides of the equation, so I spoke with Chuck D’Amico, program director of 97.5 the Fanatic in Philadelphia, and Ken Brady, general sales manager of 1010 XL in Jacksonville.
Chuck is blunt. He doesn’t beat around the bush when I ask him how important it is that he know a potential new hire can play nice with clients before he pulls the trigger.
“It’s actually the most important thing because without it it’s a complete non-starter,” he told me. No idea in radio is a great idea unless it makes a lot of money. A good show that does well in the ratings but won’t play nice with sales or work hard for clients won’t be around long. And with resources (budgets) being what they are (or aren’t) a show that can work well with sales and clients and show a return can also benefit itself immensely.”
Brady completely agrees. He told me that he makes sure that he introduces himself to everyone that comes into the building to interview for an on air role and immediately starts to gauge how they would work with advertisers.
“Obviously the sales manager does not make the final decision on the hire, but making sure the potential new hire or hires will be a good fit with sales is very important,” he says. “I am fortunate that my GM is attuned to this and has introduced or talked about on air hires with me over the years.”
When a hire finally is made, Brady says he is “aggressive from the start.” He wants to put more money in the talent’s pocket and he wants to use the new perspective in the building to open up what is possible for 1010XL.
Brady is adamant that there is no reason to wait. In fact, on day one, every new air talent gets a little assignment from him.
“I have the talent fill out a questionnaire and then I meet with them to review it and brainstorm ideas and opportunities,” Ken told me via email. “Our sales team approaches potential customers from the start so we get a running head start. It may take a few months, but seeding as soon as you can only makes the monetizing process quicker.”
I asked D’Amico how programmers can see that aggressiveness from a sales staff. Is it ever “too soon” to put them in front of clients? Aren’t there things that need to be accomplished from an air-product perspective first?
D’Amico says those are all conversations that need to be had and answers that need to be agreed on before a hire is even made.
“As much as content for on-air matters, you have to discuss and have an understanding for off air efforts and someone’s willingness to work while away from their show. It’s not enough to just be good on the air anymore. You have to bring holistic value to the radio station. Clients as much as listeners have to excited to be associated with the show. On the programming side, we’ve always understood the power of emotional attachment for listeners, but we have to understand that power for advertisers too, and the best shows and hosts do.”
Have you ever heard the old adage that it takes 2 years for listeners to stop thinking of a radio show as “new”?
“I have ‘heard’ that too,” Chuck says. “But I’m of the opinion that you better make a good first impression because once a listener has it decided in their mind what you are, it’s incredibly difficult, almost impossible to change it.”
That is 100% fair, but advertisers are listeners too. If The Fanatic hires a new show tomorrow and locally owned businesses in Philly are still thinking of them as “new” in December of 2022, isn’t that detrimental to the bottom line?
Ken says that from a business standpoint, that timeline gets a lot shorter. The sales team is always working to make sure clients know what they are being asked to invest in.
“It seems to take a solid year for the customer base to get fully comfortable, for some shows and talent it is less, some more, but a year is what I see most often. That’s is why we start the seeding process early. Usually when you get one, others follow quickly.”
The number of months or years doesn’t matter so much to D’Amico. He knows a programmer is only as successful as his product, and as he said earlier, that product is only successful if ratings translate to revenue. D’Amico, like every programmer, wants that to happen as soon as possible.
“New, or perceived as new, really doesn’t matter to me. You have to quickly be perceived as good, or entertaining or funny or all of the above if possible. I wouldn’t bank on too many listeners giving you the benefit of time to ‘get better’ just because you’re new.”
It’s probably safe to say that the sooner you are perceived as good, or entertaining or funny, the sooner you can start making meaningful money for your employer.
Demetri Ravanos is a columnist and features writer for Barrett Media. He is also the creator of The Sports Podcast Festival, and a previous host on the Chewing Clock and Media Noise podcasts. He occasionally fills in on stations across the Carolinas in addition to hosting Panthers and College Football podcasts. His radio resume includes stops at WAVH and WZEW in Mobile, AL, WBPT in Birmingham, AL and WBBB, WPTK and WDNC in Raleigh, NC.
You can find him on Twitter @DemetriRavanos or reach him by email at DemetriTheGreek@gmail.com.
