Last month, WrestleMania and WWE fans invaded Las Vegas. A city that is known for its glitz and glamour. Where LED billboards assault your senses, advertising everything from AC/DC at Allegiant Stadium to Barry Manilow at Westgate and 3/2 single deck blackjack at the Palms.
And yet, the WWE managed to cut through all that noise. It did so with a mighty assist from every hotel and resort that wanted a piece of the action. And of course, a taste of the money brought to town by 124,693 fans that attended and the others that just came to be close to the action.
Driving down the strip, walking Fremont or driving through Summerlin, it was impossible to miss that the WWE was in town.
Radio could learn a lesson from WrestleMania.
Launching a new radio station or a new morning show means cutting through the noise. You cannot succeed by simply borrowing the famous line from “Field of Dreams,” “If you build it, they will come.”
They won’t. Launching any product requires building awareness, creating interest and creating FOMO.
When I launched Jeny 107.3 in Cleveland, I was especially proud of the rollout and awareness campaign we put together leading up to the format flip.
First, we had billboards all over the city that simply stated “#WHOISJENY?” It didn’t take long for the TV stations, other news outlets, and entertainment publications to bite and start the speculation.
It ranged from a wife seeking revenge on a cheating husband. To the name of a prostitute that a well-known local person had recently been caught with.
After fanning the flames with the billboard, we took it to phase two.
Campaign-type signs that you stick into the ground started going up at every on and off-ramp in the city. And at high-traffic surface streets and around downtown.
We purchased sidewalk chalk and stencils, and #WHOISJENY started appearing on sidewalks downtown and the flats. And even on the sidewalks in front of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Bumper sticker-type stickers we plastered on traffic light poles, in the bathrooms at popular restaurants and clubs. Even inside the Cleveland Guardians’ (then Indians) stadium. Caution: In retrospect, this might have been borderline vandalism, so be careful.) 5×7 sheets were tacked to every grocery store billboard, coffee house community board and in convenience stores.
Don’t forget the social media sites where you can seed the message and drive the curiosity.
It was a lot of work. But we had a staff that was into it and often tried to top one another where they could get the message.
It was a great setup. We waited as long as we felt we could to register the URL, walking the fine line of someone squatting on the jeny domain, and knowing that as soon as it was registered, someone would catch it and the news would get out.
In the end, it did, but by then the campaign had served its purpose.
There is one word of caution. If you are going to create such a build-up, then you have to have the station as close to perfect as possible on day one. After all that buildup, when you get that audience sample, be ready to hook them, because you will likely get only one shot.
Have your imaging perfect and your music rotations very tight so that you are presenting your best songs when they tune in. You can slowly let the playlist breathe over time, but launching with 100-125 songs is a solid strategy.
Don’t listen to the people in your building who are in your ear about hearing Morgan Wallen every 40 minutes. They are NOT your normal consumers. You cannot go wrong launching with a tight tight list.
Here’s the flipside to that. When I worked for Entercom (now Audacy), we put together two people to create a new morning team. They had never worked together, and one was a stand-up comic who had never done radio.
I rolled out a pre-launch campaign that started two weeks before the show launch. I remember the counsel of then Entercom head of programming Pat Paxton, who told me “that show is not going to be great on day one, and you are setting an expectation they won’t live up to. You have to build a foundation before putting a nice fancy roof on it.”
In that case, it makes sense because no matter how much you try, the show will probably have some rough spots on day one and probably day ten.
However, when launching a station, you can strive to make it as close to perfect as possible, and a strong setup will lead them to your door.
So, whether you don’t know the difference between Triple H and Triple A, take a lesson from WrestleMania. Dominate the market with your message.
Let them know you are ready to rumble.
Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.
Jeff Lynn serves as Editor of Barrett Media’s Music Radio coverage. Prior to joining Barrett Media, Jeff spent time programming in Milwaukee, Omaha, Cleveland, Des Moines, and Madison for multiple radio groups, including iHeartMedia, Townsquare Media, NRG Media, and Entercom (now Audacy). He also worked as a Country Format Editor for All Access until the outlet shut down in August 2023.
To get in touch with Jeff by email, reach him at Jeff@BarrettMedia.com.
