If you’ve been following this website the past two weeks, you’ve seen a lot of sports radio ratings stories from different markets. Though we generate traffic from these stories, we didn’t build a brand to chase clicks. We write these stories to try and elevate the sports radio format, celebrate the people producing success, and to educate advertisers and media buyers of the numerous markets creating impact that they may not be aware of. In 2024, we’ll start doing them for news/talk too since our goal is to make a difference and generate greater attention on the two formats we believe are vital to the future of the audio business, sports and news/talk.
If you’ve read any of our ratings stories, you likely came away from them with a higher opinion of the stations and hosts responsible for the results. That’s what happens when brands make an impact and allow others to learn about it. It’s a reflection of the hard work produced by a stellar programming team, a loyal audience enjoying and consuming the content, and the intelligence of management to draw attention to their brand and market’s wins.
I’ve been saying this for years and some have listened, others have not. The program director, market manager, and the executives they report to have not done their jobs if the wins they’ve created aren’t known outside their office or organization. You may think you’re safeguarding state secrets but what you’re actually doing is failing to elevate the success of your brand, the power of your personalities, the passion of your audience, the importance of your play-by-play partnerships, and the reasons why those buying advertising should be connected to you.
Companies spend a lot of money subscribing to Nielsen to have their audience’s listening habits measured. Advertisers and agencies want to feel good about where they spend their money and they’ll want evidence to verify that you’re capable of delivering results for them. The stronger a brand’s results and the better the buzz is surrounding it and the talent that represent it, the more a business wants to be attached to it.
Unfortunately, there are stations across the country who are crushing it in their respective cities yet you’d never know that if you read this website or any other trade or media outlet in the cities they operate in. There are also some who only want to highlight success stories and ignore the times when things don’t line up how they hoped. You may think you’re helping by hiding the bad and promoting the good but those spending money and following you aren’t ignorant. They sniff out the BS.
If you have a good brand and do this long enough, you’re going to ride a few waves. Sometimes you win, sometimes you don’t. When I programmed in SF, I sent out a quarterly email to all staff informing them of our hits and misses. I followed up with a post on social media to let our audience and partners know how we performed. If we rose from 21st to 17th, that was progress. If we went up five rankings year-over-year, that was a story. If we grew with younger demos but didn’t with the older groups, that was shared as well. It wasn’t just about whether or not we beat the competition. Many times we didn’t. It was about being consistent.
You do these things as a leader to highlight your programming team’s progress, give your sales team ammunition to use when chasing business, make your audience feel part of something special, remind advertising partners you’re worth supporting, and to reinforce to the higher ups that your brand and market is on the right track. The job isn’t just coaching talent and making out schedules, it’s making sure that everyone internally and externally knows and feels invested in your brand’s journey.
Too often GM’s and PD’s make the mistake of thinking they’re back in 2003 or 2013 wanting to keep a story hidden but social media changed this game years ago. Combine that with the press frequently painting a dark picture for radio, and it should signal why it’s important to tell your brand’s story and highlight your people. If you’re not, you’re doing them and yourself a disservice. You’re also allowing someone else to control the narrative of how you’re presented.
How would anyone know if your brand, on-air talent, and/or PD is any good if their results aren’t known and they don’t talk publicly about their profession? How does your station earn consideration for awards without external buzz? If you’re inside of a large company and not in one of the top 5-10 markets, do you think your CEO or top executives are watching you as closely as the other brands under their watch?
Go take a look at the brand’s up for Marconi’s each year. They all deliver results AND external buzz. Their executives are more than aware of who’s involved guiding them. Now go look at how consistently ESPN, Fox Sports, NBC Sports, Fox News, Newsmax, WWE, Outkick, Front Office Sports and other digital outlets promote their weekly and monthly wins. They do this for a reason, it connects with people and partners. It’s smart PR, and it starts by having a story to tell, which they do.
Advertisers invest in brands that consistently produce results. If they want information about your quarterly numbers, they’ll get them. More times than not your salespeople will send it their way because they’re going to do what’s necessary to generate business. Are you helping them more or less by sharing ratings and digital data and additional press that highlights the growth of your brand? Do you think media buyers and advertisers aren’t influenced by how they see others publicly and professionally talking about media outlets?
By the way, this isn’t just about sharing your story on BSM. If you don’t want us covering it, get the word out to your local newspaper, put it in another radio trade, heck, post it on your brand’s social media account as a thank you to your listeners and advertisers. There are plenty of ways to inform the world of your progress, and to remind folks you’re worth investing time and dollars in.
If you know your brand’s successful and you’re not taking steps to inform the masses, I’m curious, what do you believe you’re gaining from keeping your wins private? If a day comes down the road and a change of employment is required, do you think you’re more or less attractive as a candidate if people know who you are, what you do, and how your brands perform? If you’re keeping the information hidden because you fear advertisers may use it against you, I’d ask, do you think they won’t get access to it prior to placing a buy?
I can’t make you promote your people, your partners, your listeners, and your market. If you don’t send in your quarterly results, we’ll be just fine. It’s one less story to write. I just wonder if you’ve thought about how much more you gain vs. what you lose by telling your story. It’s no secret that radio ad revenue has been declining for years but those who continue to generate dollars and receive industry wide recognition all seem to have one thing in common, people know their brand, their people, and their success, and they want to be a part of it.
Jason Barrett is the President and Founder of Barrett Media since the company was created in September 2015. Prior to its arrival, JB served as a sports radio programmer, launching brands such as 95.7 The Game in San Francisco, and 101 ESPN in St. Louis. He also spent time programming SportsTalk 950 in Philadelphia, 590 The Fan KFNS in St. Louis, and ESPN 1340/1390 in Poughkeepsie, NY. Jason also worked on-air and behind the scenes in local radio at 101.5 WPDH, WTBQ 1110AM, and WPYX 106.5. He also spent two years on the national stage, producing radio shows for ESPN Radio in Bristol, CT. Among them included the Dan Patrick Show, and GameNight.
You can find JB on Twitter @SportsRadioPD. He’s also reachable by email at Jason@BarrettMedia.com.
