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In a recent Myers Report, 2,766 advertising and agency professionals participated in a survey which looked at how more than 30 media industry attributes relate to workplace culture and professional resources. One specific area of focus was the availability of trade publication subscriptions and other resources to keep professionals informed of industry trends and developments. According to the data, satisfaction with access to trade publication subscriptions ranked last among all attributes evaluated in the survey. The low ranking suggested a pressing need for industry-wide action to improve the availability of information resources.
As I read Jack’s article, I thought about our value to media professionals. Do they consider what we’re doing important? If we stopped covering the business and shut down tomorrow, how much would it matter? Thousands across music radio, sports and news media, advertising agencies, tech, podcasting, sports teams, record labels, political offices, and colleges read us daily. Many say they love our website and the insights and information provided, but plenty are unaware of what’s happening in their industry. They get tunnel vision and become so focused on the work in front of them that they lose sight of what’s happening and how it could eventually effect them.
When I see Broadcasting + Cable, All Access, Axios, and TV News Check reduce staff, coverage or completely shut down, it forces me to question how much the industry values coverage of itself. Publishing layoffs have hit Catena Media, Better Collective, Vox Media, Vice, Sports Illustrated, and other print, radio and television entities too. That suggests that no matter how good the writers are, how helpful the coverage is, and how personally invested the owners are, earning attention and support from media professionals and the companies that employ them is tough.
We’ve worked tirelessly to cement our position in the media coverage space. In fact, we just spent the past month on calls and zooms talking to different groups about their 2025 goals and marketing plans, and how we might be able to help. I believe that no trade site offers the complete mix of media coverage that this one does. But if the content created isn’t worth the radio or TV industry’s time or marketing support, and charging to read isn’t an option, then how do trades like ours survive?
Running an independent publishing brand is fun but it’s also hard. People see the content but not the process, time or costs involved. Keeping twenty eight people on point is challenging, especially with everyone working in remote locations. Yet somehow we pull it off. If all breaks right in November and December, we’ll record our best year of traffic since 2015.
But as great as the content end is, there’s also the challenge of growing the actual business. I’ve received tons of feedback since we rebranded in July. I’m aware that many felt there were too many programmatic ads on the site. I prefer a cleaner operation too but business has to be done to invest in writers. To avoid charging readers to consume the content, there’s a necessary trade off. We have removed some of those ads for the short-term but I can’t say they’ll be gone forever. We are trying to run a profitable business.
I have never put content behind a paywall even as other publishers have pursued that path. I’ve thought about it, and wondered if we were making a mistake by not doing so, but I still believe that reaching the masses outweighs connecting with a smaller crowd, especially for a brand of our size. Whether that’s right or wrong, it’s how we run our business. We are thankful to have direct and programmatic advertising partners with us because without them, we couldn’t do this. Speaking of which, thank you to Crankin’ Audio for signing on as a new advertising partner. Be sure to check them out in our Voices section.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned in the past decade, it’s that groups like Point to Point Marketing, Steve Stone Voiceovers, Jim Cutler, Premiere Networks, MRN Radio, Ramsey Solutions, Backbone, Core Image Studio, JJ Surma Voiceovers, and others we’ve been blessed to work with are the real champions of the industry. They invest in supporting the industry much more than larger radio and television companies who earn the majority of attention. We’ll have a few more partners coming on board in 2025. I can’t wait to work with them and help them reap the rewards of a business relationship with Barrett Media. I hope you’ll think of each of these groups when your brand or company has future needs.
We’ve established lots of relationships, and have met and pitched many groups, but far too often radio, TV, and digital companies take for granted what industry trade sites do for them. From recruiting employees to furthering education, highlighting staff, boosting morale, influencing future business, sharing tips to be more successful, and supplying salespeople with content to help close advertising deals, industry folks benefit from websites like ours more than they sometimes realize.
Each year at this time, I do what many executives do. I examine all areas of our business. Are clients and marketing partners happy? Am I? Is my team passionate, creative, and consistently performing? We generate revenue through consulting, website advertising and memberships, newsletter advertising, branded and sponsored content, and conferences. Fortunately, we are profitable in most of those areas but the exceptions are the website and newsletters. It costs a lot to field a team of nearly thirty people, and create daily content. Thankfully we have consulting clients, and advertising partners to help soften the blow, but our goal is to grow, not just exist.
2025 is coming up, and next September marks our 10th year in business. I’m proud as hell to reach that milestone, and we’ve got some special plans for it, but as I prepare to put the past decade in the rear view mirror, I’m trying to figure out what the next one looks like.
Which areas make sense to invest in? Where is our business lagging or overleveraged? Who gives us the best chance to grow audience, influence, and revenue? What can we do to earn more business from companies targeting the media industry? How can we excel across social media when platforms are devaluing written content? I love what I do, and hope to do it for years to come, but just because we’ve survived 10 years doesn’t guarantee anything in the future. The only things certain are stress, disruption, adjustments, and higher costs.
Being fully transparent, our current content approach is not where I want it to be. Our features and original projects are strong, but we’re too reliant on press releases and on-air reactions. Entering 2025, we will continue offering news but we’ll place a higher priority on reporting, features, and original projects. Those stories perform best, are higher quality, and showcase our brand in a better light. I’ve never liked aggregation or low hanging fruit that creates clicks while compromising credibility. There are times when it’s necessary, but I’d much rather publish a Meet The Leaders series, Dave Greene Eavesdropping feature, Derek Futterman interview or BSM/BNM Top 20 series than regurgitate content from other outlets.
I am also bullish on growing our music radio coverage. We launched in July, and have only scratched the surface of what we can do in this space. Transactional news (someone gets hired/fired, a radio station flips format, etc.) has received most of our focus. Though that will remain a part of our content strategy, we will add more creative benchmarks and original projects. Equally as important is strengthening our sports and news media coverage. Many know us in these areas, but I still believe there’s much more room to grow.
Additionally, after spending years writing individual market ratings stories that depended on data being sent in by local sources, we’re finally able to change our approach starting today. If you look up top at the menu on our website, you’ll find a new tab that says RATINGS. Click it and you’ll find data available for the top 200 radio markets. I hoped to have this ready in July, but I’d rather roll something out right than rushed.
We’re able to share the numbers thanks to a partnership with Nielsen. Our goal is to update the information monthly, and showcase how the top 200 markets are performing. A big thank you to Harker Bos Group for supporting the ratings section. If the stars align down the road, maybe one day we’ll add television and podcasting to the mix.
I built our brand by sharing knowledge, telling stories, forming connections, learning what mattered to the audience, serving their needs, and helping clients grow their businesses. I want to continue doing that in 2025, and to do that, we need your help. I’ve created a survey to learn what matters most to you. The more informed we are, the easier it is to deliver a better experience for you. And if our product continues getting better, who knows, maybe one day your colleagues will read it, and your employer will invest in us the way we invest in covering them.
2025 BSM Summit in Chicago
The 2025 BSM Summit is coming to Chicago’s Edlis Neeson Theater inside the MCA on May 8-9, 2025. Our hotel partner for the event is the Westin. Later this month we’ll share details regarding discounted room rates. Day 1 of the Summit will run 9a-5p. Day 2 will go 9a-1p with the annual awards ceremony taking place from 12p-1p. Our annual After Party will take place at the Chicago Sports Museum after Day 1.
There are two more things I’d like to put on your radar.
#1 – Tickets for the Summit go on-sale on Black Friday, November 29th. We’ll have a special sale price for Black Friday weekend. A December sale will follow, with prices higher than the Black Friday offer, but less than the standard ticket price that goes into effect in January.
#2 – We’re sending an email blast today to open up the submission process for speaking opportunities. We’ve done this for our news summit, but never for sports. Please understand that just because you’re interested in speaking, doesn’t mean I’m going to put you on stage. This event connects the industry, and examines key issues facing decision makers. The goal is to deliver information, ideas, and solutions to help brands and individuals. We’re expecting a full room, and a strong group of industry heavyweights.
Coming Soon
I’ll have a separate column later this week which will cover our plans for our annual Top 20 series for sports and news/talk radio. I’ve also got something extra to share, which I’m excited to reveal. Stay tuned for details.
Quick Hits
- Thank you, Bob Costas. Many people today live in the moment and think about being part of social media conversations when something happens. Though there’s nothing wrong with that, they often lose sight of one’s accomplishments and skills from prior years. Costas may not be the perfect baseball announcer for a 2024 audience, but over the past few decades, he was outstanding. The game of baseball was better with Bob in the booth. I’m glad I had a chance to enjoy his work. If you haven’t read Dave Greene‘s column from Friday, check it out. It’s a good read.
- Pat McAfee took a shot at Big Noon Kickoff on College Gameday, which got the attention of numerous outlets. McAfee’s infectious energy and bold personality firing up a University crowd is awesome television. That said, his remark about Big Noon Kickoff lacking people at their set wasn’t exactly accurate. This tweet shows Fox had no shortage of support on gameday.
- The election is tomorrow, and it can’t be over soon enough. The constant noise and attack ads have become exhausting. That said, this creative piece on Joe DeCamara was a brilliant way to connect to election season by Sports Radio WIP. Job well done by Rod Lakin’s team.
- One of the best things I saw last week were a series of tweets from Emmanuel Acho. After winning a $1500 bet from LeSean McCoy over the World Series, Acho took to X and rewarded 10 fans with $100 each. He wrote, ‘When I make money, The Facility viewers make money‘, and proceeded to show proof of payment along with a note that read ‘Appreciate you watching The Facility. Treat yourself to dinner on me.‘ That’s a great way to build fans for a new show. The Fox Sports marketing department could easily create a ‘Win Acho’s Stash of Cash‘ promotion and monetize it.
- Barstool Sports inviting Mike Francesa to the office and streaming his visit during Game 5 of the World Series was perfect. The social media content created from Mike’s appearance generated a lot of traction, and with the Yankees melting down, it became even more must see. When big events come up, Barstool does a strong job of getting people to watch along on a second screen. Local brands can learn something from this.
- Another solid job by Alex Feuz, who had Chiney Ogwumike on his 06010 podcast. Chiney discussed finding her voice, her contract extension, balancing dual roles of playing and broadcasting, and more. I especially liked her three E’s, ‘Education, entertaining, and elevating’.
One Request
Hawk Tua proved that sports teams and media outlets will do anything to steal a few minutes of attention. I’m just hoping that outlets aren’t dumb enough to give the two moronic Yankees fans who grabbed Mookie Betts’ glove their own show. Their fifteen minutes of fame are up. They should never have existed in the first place.
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.
