Have you ever taken a day to listen to your brand critically and ask, “Why do we do that?”
Two decades back, we would sequester ourselves in a hotel room for a day or two and log everything that came out of the speakers. We get so close to our product that we can’t hear clutter creep or aging imaging day to day.
The follow-up reports had a list of ‘why’ questions. It forced us to hear our brands like a listener while evaluating everything.
Here are a few ‘why’ things we’re hearing on Adult Contemporary radio stations.
Music
Why do we play a few edgy songs that perform well among adults but ignore others?
Here’s a handful of hard rock examples recently heard on Adult Contemporary radio stations:
- Def Leppard – Pour Some Sugar on Me
- Bon Jovi – You Give Love a Bad Name
- Guns N’ Roses – Sweet Child of Mine
Other titles that perform well in music testing that Adult Contemporary brands ignore:
- AC/DC – You Shook Me All Night Long
- Black Sabbath – Crazy Train
- Radiohead – Creep
At a Kelly Clarkson show, the AC/DC song played after the opening act and Kelly’s appearance. Every mom and every kid knew all the words to the song.
After the first 20 seconds, the Black Sabbath tune is softer than the Def Leppard title or the Bon Jovi song listed above. Yet we ignored it because – Black Sabbath.
Radiohead’s Creep is the opposite. The loud guitar only lasts a minute, and it’s a few minutes into the song. Other than that, it’s a well-tested ballad.
The late, brilliant programmer Dave Robbins once shared a quote that sticks:
“The difference between a weed and a flower – judgment”.
Imaging
Why do we place unnecessary sound effects in our imaging with quick, Michael Bay-like edits, along with a high-pass filter on much of the imaging piece? Clear, well-written imaging needs clarity in order to ‘print’ with the audience.
Editing software has hundreds of effects, and your production experts have access to thousands of special effects. No reason to use all of them, yet we hear too many that get in the way of the messaging.
Sponsorships
Why is every client sponsorship ‘Powered by…’ and who started that? If you truly want creativity in a sponsorship intro, have the car dealer ‘Driven by…’, the plumber ‘Installed by…’ or the restaurant ‘Served by…’.
We DO applaud those who move away from ‘Sponsored by…’, ‘Brought to you by…’ and ‘A service of…’ and make the lead line somewhat intriguing.
Jingles
Why do we place rapid, up-tempo jingles into ballads or songs that begin with a fade-in or soft intro? Jingles are transition pieces that aid in ‘scoring’ your brand.
Review your jingle package for appropriate jingle transitions. If you’re fortunate enough to have a fresh package, ensure those spots have tempo transitions for use inside music sweeps. Most music software has the capacity for coding and scheduling jingles in front and out of appropriate tempo changes.
Slogan
Why do we have a slogan when it is important to us, but the audience only hears noise? Worst yet, most AC programmers have their air talent say the slogan positioner, which becomes robotic and gets ‘thrown away’.
Google, Amazon, Apple, Trader Joe’s, Costco, Starbucks, Tesla, Netflix – all without a slogan. However, when you read their name, a different image pops into your brain for that specific brand.
Silent Segues
Why do we drop imaging in between songs three to four times per hour? You’ve JUST aired a four-minute song that the listener enjoyed. We should let the audience know who gave them the experience.
Additionally, imaging properly placed aids in the transition from song to song, tempo changes (see JINGLES above). ID your brand often and consider running ‘countdown’ imaging in longer stop sets.
Prizing
Why do we take caller #10 for a concert event or a select text number when offering a prize? Make the contest intriguing. People love trivia, and those who are passive listeners play along with the trivia question in their own heads.
(Pet Peeve Alert) Why is it a ‘Family 4-pack’ when a number of people listening have more than 4 in their family?
Programmers suffer from Social Contagion – that is, ideas spread from brand to brand without tactical thought.
You know – “THAT station is doing it – why not us?’
We’re certainly not endorsing adding Black Sabbath to your Adult Contemporary playlist or dropping your slogan.
Simply consider every element on your station and ask ‘why’ – or ‘why not’.
As you ‘audit’ your brand this week, ask yourself:
“Why would I listen to that?”
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.
Kevin Robinson is a passionate award-winning programmer, consultant and coach – with multi-formats success all over the country. He has advised numerous companies including Audacy (formerly Entercom Communications), Beasley Broadcast Group, Westwood One, Midwest Communications, Townsquare Media, Midwest Family Broadcasting Group, EG Media Group, Federated Media, Kensington Media, mediaBrew Communications, Starved Rock Media, and more. He specializes in strategic radio cluster alignment, building lean-forward tactics and talent coaching – legacy and entry-level – personalities.
Known largely as a trusted talent coach, Kevin is the only personality mentor who’s coached three different morning shows on three different brands in the same major market to the #1 position. His efforts have been recognized by The World Wide Radio Summit, Radio & Records, NAB’s Marconi, and he has coached CMA, ACM and Marconi Award-winning talent. He is also in The Zionsville High School Hall of Fame as part of the 2008 inaugural class. Kevin is an Indiana native – living near Zionsville with his wife of 39 years, Monica and can be reached at kevin@robinsonmedia.fm.
