From the time of Casey Kasem to the advent of PPM, smart programmers have encouraged talent to tease upcoming content and contests. Securing just one more listening occasion from a meter holder is priceless.
Regardless of format, the average listening occasion lasts between 8 and 12 minutes. If your station is at the high end of that range, you are doing something right. Most stations receive three to four occasions per day; increasing that average from 3.4 to 3.9 can easily result in a half-share increase in demo—a sizable rank improvement in a compressed market.
Great teases grab attention, increase time spent listening, and enhance the station’s image across all formats. However, there is a significant difference between a good tease and a poor one.
Poor Tease: “Bill Belichick is not going to the Hall of Fame; details coming next.”
This isn’t a tease; it’s the entire story. There is no reason for the listener to stay through a commercial break when they can find those details on any sports app.
Great Tease: “This may be an historic snub for one of the greatest of all time; details coming next.”
This creates anticipation and drama, and listeners can’t use Google to get the information before the story hits the air. By omitting the subject’s name and the specific reference to the Hall of Fame, you leave the listener no choice but to stay tuned. Using descriptors like “historic” signals that the news is significant.
Talent should write their teases while preparing the story or content break. This is most critical during morning shows, when listeners are distracted by their routines. If you promise specific, compelling details in eight minutes, they will make sure they are back to hear the payoff.
Teasing is the fundamental rule of clickbait and is seen throughout NFL broadcasts. However, unlike the NFL, you should avoid “laundry listing” upcoming elements. Tease one meaningful thing at a time.
While we know the percentage of listeners playing contests is small, we also know that number is dramatically higher among those carrying meters. Still, exercise care when talking about upcoming giveaways. Teasing $10 boat show tickets doesn’t work, but Harry Styles tickets do.
Teasing music can also be effective in certain situations. I would question a CHR station forecasting yet another Sabrina Carpenter song, or a classic hits station letting listeners know one more Michael Jackson song is on the way. However, there are moments when you can genuinely create anticipation. Consider this example:
“The sheer terror of being on stage has kept many potentially great talents from making it, and it almost prevented one of the biggest female stars in the business today. Her story and her latest smash are coming up next.”
The artist referenced in this tease is Olivia Newton-John. This tease was written 46 years ago by Casey Kasem and uses “sheer terror” to immediately grab the ear. It serves as a reminder that the tools helping us in the PPM era were effective long before the meter ever existed.
Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. Sign up for our newsletters to stay updated and get the latest information right in your inbox.
Jim Ryan is a Music Radio columnist for Barrett Media. In addition, he runs Jim Ryan Media LLC, a consulting company which assists major market radio brands and top talent including national radio personality Delilah. Prior to relaunching his consultancy in 2025, Jim spent 15 years with Audacy/CBS Radio, serving as SVP of Programming. Among his responsibilities included programming WNEW-FM and WCBS-FM. His career includes additional programming stops in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Houston. Jim was voted the #2 PD of 2024 in Barrett Media’s Top 20 series in the AC category. He can be reached by email at Jim@JimRyanMedia.com.
