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Congrats, Now Train Your Replacement

Columns

March 20, 2015

Working in the sports radio industry is a privilege that some of us often take for granted. We get to play in the toy department of life and engage in spirited discussions that are often referred to by industry types as “soap opera for men” and have access to people that most of our friends would pay large sums of money to spend 2 minutes with. We’re not digging ditches or ripping shingles off of roofs and we’re not heading home after each shift talking about how much we dislike our jobs. Face it, we’re pretty lucky….and we get paid to do this!

Over the past 10 years of my career I’ve taken road trips with Dan Patrick, talked about coaching and motivating people with Tony LaRussa and Rick Venturi, attended a barbecue at Steve Spagnuolo’s house, sat with Billy Beane and listened to his views on the business of baseball and shared a stage with former Raiders Head Coach Dennis Allen. To say I’ve been treated to some special experiences would be a massive understatement but that’s what you become accustomed to when you work in this industry.

While all of that may be fine and dandy and it showcases the extra perks of working in this industry, it’s not as rewarding as making an impact on the people you work with every day. Sure it looks sexy and it sounds cool when starting a conversation with your friends but in the grand scheme of things, does it really matter? Not really.

In my opinion, one thing that matters a great deal is something that not everyone is willing to do – pushing people to get better and to take on bigger career challenges! Not every relationship will be positive but I try to make sure that wherever I work, I leave behind more people who felt like they learned something from me than those who didn’t. If a few friendships are made along the way, that’s icing on the cake.

I’m aware that my personality and style isn’t everyone’s cup of tea and every strong leader with strong opinions is going to have critics and fans. I don’t worry about whether or not I’m liked or disliked or if people care to have beers with me outside the work place. My job is to coach people, make them better, deliver results, make sure they’re prepared for the next step in their careers, fight for the brands I represent and by doing that it often leads to earning the respect and trust of those I lead. When I head home each day, that’s what matters to me.

In this industry so many of us are conditioned to compete and it becomes very easy to fall into the trap of worrying about ourselves. We worry first about our own needs, our own paychecks, our ratings, meeting our sales budgets and how we’ll personally be impacted if something around us changes. It’s much harder to think about a co-worker and how we can play a larger role in helping them take the next step in their career.

Case in point, when I left the Dan Patrick Show to become the first Program Director for SportsTalk 950 in Philadelphia (now 97.5 The Fanatic), Dan wasn’t initially excited for me. He was concerned about how my departure would impact his show and I didn’t blame him. He had a very successful program on the biggest sports radio network in the country and as a team we were starting to gel. Once the smoke cleared and Dan saw that everything would be fine (and probably better, haha) he was able to genuinely wish me well.

That reaction out of people is natural but I believe that each of us sometimes need to be reminded of the bigger picture and how important it is to help someone take steps in their career rather than focus negative energy on how it may impact our own situations. If we’re good at what we do, we’ll be fine regardless of who’s around us. If we use our talents to grow those around us, it speaks even higher volumes about what you stand for as a professional and more importantly as a person.

That leads me to the headline of this column and how I personally relate to it. In 2002 I was working in Poughkeepsie, NY paying my dues for radio station 1340/1390 ESPN Radio. We had one local afternoon show and I was producing and doing updates on it for about a year. I was making strides inside the workplace and enjoying my role and it led to my Operations Manager Scott Carlin and General Manager Bill Palmeri taking a liking to me.

One day I was called up to Scott’s office and he wanted to talk to me about how we could improve the radio station. Our PD/Afternoon Host had been let go earlier in the day and Scott was of the opinion that if I took on the PD role and afternoon host position we’d get better. I was honored that he and Bill believed in me enough to trust me leading the radio station and I saw it as a great growth step for my career and I gladly accepted the opportunity.

Right after Scott informed me of the salary and shook my hand, he uttered the following words “congratulations, now start training your replacement“. I was confused and asked him if he was referring to making sure we had a new producer and update guy in place to fill my old spot. He smiled and said “No. Make sure you get the next Programmer ready for us“.

Considering I had worked hard to earn this position and had just been offered the job, I wasn’t thinking straight and the thought of getting someone else ready to do the job wasn’t sitting well. Scott then explained his rationale and once he spoke his piece it all made perfect sense. He told me he knew I’d one day go on to do bigger things and when that opportunity comes my way, it’ll be important for me to make sure that the place I leave behind is in capable hands. The building in Poughkeepsie wasn’t going to change locations so it was my responsibility to prepare others for future opportunities with the company.

I then told him I’d do my best to make sure we had great depth at the radio station and I’d focus my efforts on making sure I made those around me better. That conversation that day made a major impact on me because it taught me that what you leave behind matters and it also influences how people measure you and talk about you long after you’ve left a situation.

Since that day, I have taken great pride in trying to help people advance their careers. When I worked at ESPN Radio as a Producer, I pushed my intern Amanda Gifford to become great. She had natural talent and a great way of communicating with people and she loved being challenged. While she was new to the business I wasn’t going to let that be an excuse to not make an impact. Because she worked her tail off and impressed those around her, she kept moving up the ladder. Today she’s a Program Director for ESPN Radio Network.

In St. Louis, I spent 5 years working with Chris “Hoss” Neupert at two different radio stations. I challenged him to showcase his creativity and manage people and collaborated with him on numerous events and ideas. When I left 590 The Fan, KFNS he was named as my replacement and when I left 101 ESPN he wasn’t initially put in as PD but he’s in that position now and nothing makes me happier than seeing him kick ass and take names and knowing I played a small part in helping him reach that level.

In San Francisco when we launched 95.7 The Game, I knew I needed a partner who understood my way of doing radio and had the passion and desire to run a station in the future. I convinced my former ESPN Radio colleague Jeremiah Crowe to leave Bristol and join me as the radio station’s Executive Producer. Over the next 4 years I challenged him again and again and it helped put him in position to earn a promotion to Assistant Program Director. He’s now ready to become a Program Director either here in San Francisco or somewhere else in the country.

Additionally, some of my former producers have made great strides professionally. John Semar who worked for me at 101 ESPN in St. Louis and 95.7 The Game in San Francisco is now the Executive Producer of CBS Sports 920 in St. Louis. Ben Boyd who produced for me at 101 ESPN is the Executive Producer for KMOX in St. Louis. And my former afternoon producer at 95.7 The Game Kyle Englehart, now holds the Executive Producer title at XTRA Sports 1360 in San Diego.

In each of their cases, I’ve pushed for them to take on bigger challenges. When Ben came to me at 101 ESPN and asked what he should do when Sirius XM put a bigger opportunity on the table, I told him to take it, even if it meant leaving us where he’d done remarkable work. As it turned out, the Sirius XM situation didn’t last but Ben gained valuable experience from it, and that combined with his strong track record in St. Louis earned him a bigger role with KMOX.

In John’s case, I not only encouraged him to leave St. Louis and join me in San Francisco to take on the challenge of a different show and market, but when he decided St. Louis was where he wanted to live and work and his current boss Tim McKernan asked my advice on hiring him, I told Tim he’d be improving his company immediately by adding John. Tim elected to take my advice and hire John and their partnership has turned out to be very positive.

When my fellow PD and good friend Brian Long reached out and asked for suggestions on strong candidates to become his right hand man in San Diego, I suggested Kyle without hesitation. Kyle was surprised when I called him to my office to tell him I recommended him for a job back home in San Diego and he was very appreciative that I had done so. While selfishly it would have benefited my station and afternoon show to have him stay, I had to think about what was best for his career. I had faith in my own abilities to create a solution that would keep the station and show in strong shape while allowing Kyle to take the next step in his career and everything has since worked out great for both parties.

Some of my staffs have heard me use the line “graveyards are full of irreplaceable men” and whether that’s ignorance or cockiness on my part can certainly be debated but I believe in the “next person up” mentality. You hear it often in pro football and I believe it translates to radio too. Find me an organization without depth and talented people ready to step up and I’ll show you a losing organization.

Nobody is impossible to replace. However, you’ve got to develop your key people and your bench because if you don’t then you’ll never be your best and you won’t help your people reach their full potential. I can accept losing an employee to another company because they did great work and were presented with a growth opportunity. What I dislike is having to part ways with someone because they either didn’t get the job done or conducted themselves unprofessionally.

I remember when I covered the NY Jets early in my career and I had a chat with Bryan Cox who told me that Bill Parcells was dogging him after he had an outstanding game. Parcells walked on to the practice field with two gas cans, one which was full and one which was empty. Bill told Bryan “you started as one of these, now you’re the other one, you figure out which one you are“.

Cox was pissed because he was coming off of a great game but the trick worked because he went out that Sunday and played a great game and the Jets won. The following week Bryan told Bill he could kiss him where the sun didn’t shine for suggesting he was on empty and Parcells loved it because he knew he had pushed his player to perform. However, he also gave Bryan some words of wisdom that stuck with me and I use when developing my radio teams.

He told Bryan “never lose sight of the fact that every single day you’re competing for your spot. What you did last game doesn’t guarantee a strong result in the next one. If a day comes and I think your backup, his backup, another teams starter or another teams backup can do the job better than you, you’re not on this field. It’s your job to make sure you bring it every day and give me no reason to look for other alternatives“.

The point of those examples above isn’t to showcase how they’ve each had success in their careers nor is it to pat myself on the back for helping them. It’s to emphasize the importance of looking out for what’s best for your people and doing your part to help them be their very best, even if it means having to lose them at some point. I believe that when you do that and you show people that you care about them and their future, you get more respect and buy in from them. It also sends a strong message to the rest of your employees and other professionals that you’re the type of person worth going through a wall for.

We sometimes forget that people in this business go to work for other people, not companies. Life decisions are made based on who we like, trust, respect and feel we will gain something from. It isn’t just about money, although that sometimes blinds us when accepting positions. When someone comes to work for me, they enter into a partnership with me and the radio station I oversee. Yes the company has certain standards that need to be met and they issue a paycheck and benefits but the day to day decision making comes from the person you work for. That relationship normally dictates how long you stay in a position and whether or not you enjoy the experience.

Not everything I’ve done over the years has been endorsed by the companies I’ve worked for but the majority of my employers have respected and trusted my approach and I’ve been lucky more times than not to work for good companies and good people who empower me to make decisions. It’s then my job as a manager to make smart choices that are best for the brand and our people. I take both of those priorities very seriously and I treat them equally important.

Even when I’ve parted ways with people in this business, it’s never personal unless someone wants it to be that way. In many cases I’ve worked with people multiple times. Case in point, the late and great Bryan Burwell worked for me twice in St. Louis. Bob Ramsey, Chris Neupert and Sara Dayley did as well. In San Francisco the same holds true for Mychael Urban, Dan Dibley, Drew Hoffar and Matt Steinmetz. If I believe someone can help the organization and they’ve conducted themselves professionally, regardless of the prior situation it’s my job to do what’s best for the radio station. If I think they can help us get better, I don’t hesitate to re-open the door.

If there’s something to take away from this article it’s that I hope if you work in this industry that you recognize how important it is to make lasting impressions on people and lift them up to your level (and hopefully beyond it) rather than keeping them stagnant. A disruption is never ideal and maybe the solution won’t be as good but it’s not the end of the world or your career. If you’re smart, talented, willing to put the work in and help people improve, you’ll be just fine!

If you value those around you and challenge them to get better, they will. When they do, they’ll likely get scooped up or they’ll rise inside your company. Their job is to make sure they’ve prepared their replacement. Because as I learned in 2002, the building doesn’t relocate!

How Do You Define Success?

Columns

Jason Barrett

March 13, 2015

In the radio industry there is a constant pressure to succeed. Whether it’s a boss stressing the importance of increasing your ratings, a sales manager pushing you to meet and exceed your sales budget, your host demanding you step up your performance on booking better guests or your digital team challenging you to grow your brand’s social media following, the bar is constantly high and the internal and external pressure to achieve higher results is always hanging above our heads.

But what is the real meaning of success?

By definition it is the accomplishment of an aim or purpose. Many people seek success for their brands and themselves but not everyone can describe and explain what the process and result looks like. Anyone can walk into a room and say “we’re going to be the #1 destination for sports talk radio in this city” but is that goal realistic? Is there a plan of attack to achieve it? What’s the timeline necessary to achieve that goal? What are the smaller wins along the way to keep the team on track? There are many factors that have to be considered before one makes that bold statement.

Over the years I’ve been asked this question by hosts, listeners, consultants, general managers and corporate bosses and I usually say that success depends on what you’re trying to accomplish either individually or as an organization. While I have my own set of goals and strategies and am going to push my teams to reach a certain level of performance that I believe they’re capable of, for each individual and company it can have a very different meaning. Rather than leave it to interpretation, I believe it’s important to outline what success should look like and how you’re going to achieve it before a plan gets put into action. That allows others to absorb the message and get behind it. It also needs to be reinforced every step of the way so the team doesn’t lose sight of the goal.

I can recall one time during a staff meeting asking my crew to list on a sheet of paper what matters most to them when it comes to the job we do. Some people were motivated by money, some by being #1 in the ratings, some by getting to go to games for free and building relationships with teams and players and others by other things. While everyone has different needs and desires and performs based on helping themselves achieve that point of personal happiness, they also need to know the team goal and do their part to help achieve it. It’s ok to have players on the team who want to be seen as the MVP of the club just as long as they understand the team goal and do everything possible to help the club achieve it.

This subject has always fascinated me because it means so many different things to different people and departments. I’ve been lucky enough to identify, measure and achieve a lot of success in my career because I’ve had the chance to build brands from the ground up and help them reach their ultimate destination. That’s only happened though because I was surrounded by the right people and we had a collective understanding of what we were trying to accomplish and which roads we’d need to explore to help reach our goals.

Case in point, in St. Louis, when I was part of the group which helped build 101 ESPN, the focus was to become a top 5 rated radio station with Men 25-54. The feeling was that the revenues would follow if we built a strong brand which delivered powerful numbers. We started out by partnering with ESPN to provide instant credibility and branding to the radio station. We then signed a few local personalities to help us start off on the right foot with local listeners. Next we secured the rights to the St. Louis Rams to help us add cume, marketing, access and a big brand feel that we felt was necessary to make the radio station a destination in the marketplace.

As we grew the radio station, every step we took was taken with the intent that we were creating an amazing product that was capable of being a top 5 ratings performer and could consistently stay in that space. Every meeting we had internally, we reinforced our goals and examined where we were and what the next steps had to be. If certain things weren’t working and were holding us back from reaching our goal, tough calls had to be made.

Because the on-air talent, sales team, digital team and contributing members of the radio station felt valued and supported and understood what we were trying to accomplish and how important it was to the company, they were willing to work hard and invest themselves in helping us reach that goal. Once the radio station hit its mark after its first year on the air, things never slowed down and to this day it’s one of the top performing stations not only in the St. Louis market but throughout the entire sports radio format.

Using a different radio example, during the 2000’s, sports radio station 790 The Zone in Atlanta was a great brand which didn’t deliver ratings. The talent on the air was excellent, the promotions and events that the radio station created were top notch yet the Arbitron numbers were miniscule. The lack of numbers was attributed to a poor signal, the market not being a passionate sports town and having a solid competitor in 680 The Fan.

While I’m sure everyone involved with The Zone wanted to deliver bigger numbers, the brand’s success wasn’t measured by the highs and lows of Arbitron. Instead they focused on being a dominant sports marketing company that used content, events and creative campaigns to deliver results for clients which led to large revenues for the radio station. By taking that approach, the same radio station with very low ratings billed over 14 million dollars annually. If the company’s definition of success had revolved around ratings despite their signal challenges, competition and a weaker sports climate, the brand would have been seen as a failure and people inside the building would’ve felt defeated. Because they concentrated their efforts in a different way, they had an exceptional run.

One of the toughest challenges in my opinion is defining success for a national show. When I worked on “The Dan Patrick Show“, one day we’d receive praise for being up in the ratings in Dallas and Los Angeles while the next day we’d be answering questions for why we were down in New York and Chicago. That’s not easy to understand or explain at first but when you perform a show for hundreds of cities each day, you’re going to receive mixed reviews because not all markets are the same.

That said, on a national level you’re also going to have certain people who define your show’s success by how many markets you clear. Others are going to measure success by how much inventory was cleared so advertisers were satisfied. Some folks will care more about your ability to deliver strong ratings inside of the top 10 markets and others will determine your worth by how well you juggle multiple roles inside the company. There are numerous messages to digest and it’s not easy but that’s why Mike and Mike, Dan Patrick, Jim Rome and Colin Cowherd are in those spots because they can handle and excel at it. I have a lot of respect for all of them because they’re able to constantly adapt to a line that’s always moving.

If you spin it outside of radio to professional sports the same principles apply. For example, every NFL team wants to win the Super Bowl in 2016 but while that may be realistic for teams like the Patriots and Seahawks, if you’re the Browns, Buccaneers or Jaguars that’s setting yourself up for failure. Should they want to reach for the top of the mountain? Of course! But going from 2-3 wins to a championship in one year isn’t realistic.

Should the next step be to double or triple the team’s win total from the previous season? Is it contending for a playoff spot into December? Is it winning the division? Each of those teams has to have a realistic sense of where they are today and how they can improve tomorrow before they can take those next steps and start talking about a championship. For the Patriots and Seahawks they can expect to chase the ring next year provided no major injuries occur but for those other 3 clubs, that title opportunity is likely a few years away, assuming they continue making the right moves to put themselves into that conversation.

In my opinion, before you have success you must know your identity, the likes and dislikes of the marketplace and where the opening is to carve your niche. Once you do, then you can craft a realistic game plan and timeline to help your product achieve the goals you desire. You’ve also got to be willing to adjust your plan as you go because what looks good on Day 1 isn’t always the path you take on Day 366. The look of a team at the finish line is always different than the group you started the race with.

If you look around the country today, some listeners, colleagues and individuals involved with certain stations measure their success based on whether or not they beat their competitor. While our ego’s are large and the thought of losing to someone else drives all of us nuts, if the goal is to be a top 5 station and you’re #2 and your opponent is #1, does that not mean you’re successful? If you’re working for a station that can’t generate strong ratings yet your company is crushing it in revenue and everyone’s making a great salary, earning bonuses regularly and receiving an annual raise, is that not a success?

Nobody hates losing more than yours truly. I want to be #1 every single book but when you think of the two examples I just provided in the last paragraph, it’s very difficult to say those brands wouldn’t have been described as being successful. There are many different ways to skin the cat and depending on your position, department, brand and company, the word success can have a very different meaning, including to many people inside of your own building. Make sure everyone involved in your organization knows and understands what you’re trying to achieve and how they can support you in your quest to have success and before you know it you’ll be on your way to hitting your mark!

In bringing this column to a close here are 10 things to think about when it comes to setting goals and creating success:

Outline The Vision & Timeline – Make sure the goal, game plan & process is clear to all & get confirmation that it’s a mark that can be hit
Be Realistic – Don’t oversell, it’s better to start slow & ramp up than to create a set of expectations that can’t be met, know what’s real
Set Short-Term & Long-Term Goals – Measure your growth, the more challenges you conquer along the way, the more confidence you gain
Review Your Strategy – Examine where you are, if the plan is working & if adjustments are necessary, don’t be afraid to change if it feels wrong
Re-State The Goal – Pound the message home repeatedly & keep the team focused on the task at hand, the goal should be known by everyone
Reinforce The Positives – People battle harder when they’re acknowledged for achieving small victories along the way, praise their progress
Eliminate The Excuses – Don’t apologize for expecting success & don’t accept excuse making, winners keep on working & overcoming obstacles
Celebrate The Wins – We get caught up in the process & forget to enjoy it, often feeling unfulfilled when we reach our goal; allow the excitement in
Be Proud, Stay Humble – Don’t let the wins inflate your ego beyond repair yet recognize what you’ve done & appreciate it, make it easy for others to root for you
Keep Raising The Bar – Success is never final, with each win comes an opportunity to do something bigger, keep challenging yourself & see where your ceiling is

Is Sports Radio Ready For Its Future?

Columns

Jason Barrett

March 9, 2015

A few weeks ago I announced on this site my intentions to leave San Francisco as Program Director of 95.7 The Game in the upcoming months. After making that announcement, I had little desire to write. Some of that was due to being gone for a few business trips and some of it was due to needing to focus on some conversations about my future.

But then last week happened.

Two discussions in particular stuck with me and have had my mind racing for the past few days. First, I was in Dallas for the Radio Ink Sports Conference and during my time there I had the chance to moderate a panel which focused on the mind of millennial listeners. I was on stage with three college students. Two were 21-years old and the other was 26.

Over the course of 45 minutes, I hit all three students with a barrage of questions on their perceptions and interest in sports radio and I along with the rest of the room learned that they live in a different world where content is only king if it can be consumed quickly. If it requires sifting through your podcast to find it, waiting through a commercial break or needing to wait for a host to finish rambling off-topic, they’re gone. Even the big name guest means little if it doesn’t include a hook worth sticking around for.

In their words, Twitter and TV provide the result they desire and sports radio puts up too many road blocks to get what they want. In the case of television, they like the sidebar which tells them when certain stories will be covered and that allows them to use their time more efficiently while still getting what they desire from the program.

In the case of Twitter, the information is out there immediately and can be consumed in a matter of seconds and they don’t have to wait for other stories or commercials to finish or for hosts to get back on track. They follow who they want, when they want and they get the information they desire quickly so they can alert their friends and look smart, informed and continue the conversation.

In each of their cases they were drawn to stories that revolved around drama and conflict and when I probed on why they start their day with Twitter and not with radio, they held up their phone and said it was where they check first. When they were reminded that sports radio stations were also on the same device and could also be listened to on the same device, they pointed out the flaws with radio’s apps and said that until the experience was comparable to other forms of media they wouldn’t be going that route.

It wasn’t what many in the room wanted to hear but it was helpful because the only way we improve our products is to understand why the consumer does or doesn’t use our brand. It sounds cliche but we only get one chance to make a first impression and the 25-34 year old audience that awaits us in the next 5-10 years is very different and less likely to use our form of media. They get bored fast, they prefer audio on demand and they’re not loyal. We either serve them on their terms or we risk them not associating with our brand.

In the room I pointed out 4 key words to 4 key industries to make a point of what we could be facing if we don’t stay alert and ahead of the curve. Those 4 words were Music, Movies, Print and Phones. If you asked an executives of each of these industries 20 years ago about their future I’m sure many of them said they were well prepared to succeed. They learned fast though that if you don’t improvise and stay alert, you get knocked off.

Think about it, home phones and pay phones have been replaced by cell phones, social networking sites and app messaging software. Video stores like Blockbuster and Hollywood Video have been replaced by your cable company, Hulu, YouTube and Netflix who serve your needs right inside your home. Music went from cassettes and CD’s to digital downloads, Youtube, Pandora, Spotify and iHeart and the newspaper has been replaced by the web and social media. You’re more likely today to find your next apartment or home on Craigslist or through a website than you used to do through a newspaper’s classified section.

While the panel I conducted with those three millennial college students was interesting and informative and made me think about where we’re headed as an industry in the future, there was a second conversation about the past that also stuck with me.

If you haven’t had the chance, I highly recommend reading Fred Jacobs’ interview with Jeff Smulyan of Emmis. Jeff was the founding father of WFAN in New York City. While we all know how powerful The Fan is now and we see the boom that has happened to the sports radio format, there was a time when many thought Jeff was crazy to entertain a format around sports. Many of his closest friends and peers lost faith and trust in him and there were numerous times when the plug was nearly pulled on his experiment.

Two things Jeff said really struck me and I believe he’s 100% accurate on both accounts. The first was that it takes staying power to be successful. Too often people attempt things and if it doesn’t hit right away, they change it. This doesn’t mean everything deserves to last forever but if you truly believe in something or someone and have evidence to show that you’re making strides, you’ve got to stay the course and battle for what you believe in.

The second thing Jeff said that hit home was the quote “The world is never changed by doing the same things everybody else does. It just never is. It’s changed by doing what is different.” For someone like myself who loves Steve Jobs quotes and everything he stood for professionally, I felt the connection to that quote because once again there’s a lot of truth in it. If Jeff didn’t take the chance launching an all-sports station and absorbing the wrath from his bosses and everyone around him, this column may not exist and neither may our entire industry.

The ironic thing is that every year I head to various radio conferences, read numerous articles on our format and talk to numerous executives in our industry and there’s this plea to continue taking risks, trying new things and not following the same patterns. Yet we’re also the first to put up a stop sign and slow down our own momentum when we enter these murky waters.

The reality is that we all like to speak that language and sound bullish and smart but most people don’t like to do the unpopular thing especially when it puts their own body of work and future in question. Ask yourself this if you’re a programmer or talent, what is the one thing you want to do that you believe will make an impact on our industry but you’ve been hesitant to do it because of the fear of failure? Do you believe in it enough to bet your career on it?

When I launched 101 ESPN in St. Louis and 95.7 The Game in San Francisco I did so with the mentality that we’d start off by not taking phone calls and focus instead on providing a stronger content experience filled with more passion, opinion, insight, strong guests and entertaining banter between co-hosts. It wasn’t exactly the most earth shattering idea in the world but given that both markets had done sports talk forever and relied heavily on phone calls, the jury was out on whether or not I was taking the right approach.

While I love caller interaction myself and the passion of one’s voice over a text or tweet any day, I knew we had to create our own point of differentiation when establishing our brand. I also knew their was a difference in the caller entertainment value in places like NY, Philadelphia and Boston as compared to St. Louis and San Francisco.

After the first year at one of my station’s, we conducted a focus group with a number of listeners. Many in the room were waiting to hear that we were missing the boat by not being caller driven and when the question came up and 35 out of 40 said they preferred the content and lack of calls they were surprised. After the session finished I was asked if the company should take the same approach in other markets. I said no because what worked in my current location wouldn’t necessarily work in another one. The main thing I wanted understood was that just because it wasn’t what we were all used to didn’t mean it couldn’t work.

As the years have passed, each of those stations take more calls but they do so with a stronger emphasis on content and directing the conversations with our audience. I’ve also pushed for the use of tweets and texts inside of content because while it may not be as entertaining as hearing the voice of a listener, it’s the way people interact today. They don’t care how they get through, just as long as they’re part of the show.

It’s no different than the way television has adapted their standards of video. 10 years ago you’d put on ESPN television and every guest was on camera. Today they’re equally as active with guests who appear by phone. Look at your local news and you’ll find video from viewers used to compliment a story whereas 10-20 years ago they’d never have touched it. The point has been made by the consumer, give me the content now and I’ll deal with less production value.

Let’s turn our attention though back to sports radio. How many stations do you turn on and hear a traffic report, weather report, stock report or time check? Are they really needed? We say we want to target younger demographics and have supported that position by shifting brands and content to the FM dial yet then we deliver benchmarks that are targeted to the upper end of the demo. Does that make sense?

In some locations maybe it does but I bet the radio station would go on just fine without them. I can’t recall ever hearing a 25-34 year old male get upset over not hearing a stock or weather report. The sales department may not like that because it’s change and those are extra opportunities to attach sponsors to but if you don’t provide a strong content experience to generate ratings (which also helps the sales team), you’re going to lose your audience’s interest.

As we look towards the future, what are some things that you think will change? What trends will be different? Who will innovate and lead the charge to make our format stronger? Social media is becoming the place to talk about sports just as sports talk radio became that destination the past 10 years after surpassing the print industry.

While I’m not Nostradamus, here are 10 things I think could take place in the future.

1. Minority Voices Will Increase – The format is dominated now by white males 25-55 and I think there will be stronger balance over the next 10 years. We’ve already seen a number of female hosts begin to invade lineups and I expect you’ll see more Black and Hispanic talents on the air too. With many major market stations broadcasting to audiences which are more than 50% non-white, I think there’ll be a bigger push to reflect each market more fairly.

2. Sports Updates Will Be In Danger – While they’ve been a fixture in the format since its inception, I see them being eliminated or reduced in the future. In many markets there has already been a shift to having on-air hosts do them. I can see some stations adding branded team reports or created content pieces in breaks and I believe the anchor’s future role is going to revolve more around reporting, contributing to talk shows and through the involvement of social and digital media. The need for information and talented people won’t change but how the consumer gathers the information and where it’s presented will.

3. Say Hello To Social Media Reporters/Video Content Generators – There will be a bigger shift to add people to help radio stations compete stronger in the social and digital space. Pushing out content messages is necessary but the demand to interact back will increase and stations will need to dedicate time and people to make sure it’s a part of their overall strategy. As television has required reporters now to capture their own video and shoot their own standups, radio will look to have multi-purpose people who can write, create video and interact socially. It’ll also be more valuable to station advertisers.

4. Digital Media & NTR Sales Will Increase – Buyers are spending more money on social, digital and event driven media and the measurements of digital are a lot easier to analyze and receive faster. The need to be stronger in this area will be important for sales teams to thrive and with advertisers demanding stronger ROI on their investments, radio companies will need more than a great brand and Nielsen ratings story to stay on buys. Text and Email databases, Social and Digital Media inclusion, Content associations, Phone App sponsorships and Events which generate immediate results will all be necessary.

5. Play by Play Radio Rights Deals Will Decrease – While the dollars continue to reach astronomical heights for television and certain radio markets continue to perform well with LIVE play-by-play, the fact of the matter is that most of the programming takes place at night and audiences are going to become even harder to reach through audio during off peak hours. They’ve also become costly and put many operators in the red and with a growing need inside the industry to show profitability, brands will look harder at the bottom line than the importance of being connected to local franchises. If deals do stay the same or increase, it won’t be without the radio station getting more control of inventory, exclusive categories and programming features and title sponsorship opportunities inside of the broadcast.

6. An Extension of Our Format Will Be Created – Sirius XM dove into the NFL space early on with its own branded channel and I believe you’ll see an all dedicated NFL channel or MLB channel on terrestrial radio over the next 5-10 years. Whether it’s on the local or network level is still foggy but the next wave of sports talk radio is going to come in the form of specific league content.

7. On-Demand Content Will Become a Bigger Focus – Podcast One has done a really nice job acquiring popular celebrity personalities to host their own podcasts and I see sports radio doing more of this in the future. Whether it’s hiring players, coaches, agents, scouts or GM’s to create unique content, I think you’ll find more audio options available with higher profile people.

8. Digital Bonus Incentives – How many operators ask talent to write, chat, tweet, create podcasts or provide additional video? What does the talent get for adding those responsibilities to their regular line of work? Usually nothing. When dollars start shifting digitally and certain talent start attracting stronger numbers online, on social and on video, you’ll find incentive programs created to make sure talent remain involved in helping these brands succeed beyond the over the air signal.

9. Major Markets Will Go More Local – While national programming has its value in the marketplace, the reality is that local sports talk dominates in the ratings. Networks will be in good shape with digital dashboards, apps and partnerships that help their strategy of delivering audio to fans on multiple platforms but local operators will feel the need to put more focus on local shows with local personalities in order to help increase ratings and revenue.

10. Weekly Guest Deals Will Become More Complex – Popular sports personalities, reporters, columnists, athletes, coaches, executives and owners have grown accustomed to appearing on local stations regularly in exchange for cash compensation. While these appearances have great branding value, they’re only 10-15 minutes in length and don’t deliver enough bang for the buck. I see radio operators getting more in the future or walking away from these deals. You may see certain guests and companies start doing deals in multiple markets to create better value for both sides and you’ll see these become more of a fixture in rights deals too. In some deals you may even see the weekly guest provide special hosting assignments to the station in addition to appearances, voiced commercials, signed merchandise and other unique experiences.

Which ones am I right about? Which ones am I wrong about? The future will tell the story. For now, we can debate it and each make our case for where we stand on each issue.

Aside from the 10 I listed, I’m sure there will be others too and that’s a positive (Does Apple, Google or Pandora launch a sports talk network?). This format is nearly 30 years old which is still relatively young and with experience comes knowledge of what works and what doesn’t. If we want to grow and connect strongly with the next generation, we’ve got to keep challenging ourselves to make the format better and adapt to how they use our products.

The big question I have is, will the next Jeff Smulyan have the time, courage and support to launch the next big idea and see it reach its full potential? There’s a fine line between ratings and innovation and the best creations don’t happen overnight.

Jason Dixon Leaving Detroit Sports 105.1

Radio

BSM Staff

February 10, 2015

Jason Dixon has left his post as Program Director at Detroit Sports 105.1. Dixon announced the departure earlier today on his Facebook page via the following message.

Today marked my last day at Detroit Sports 105.1. I’m very proud of everything we were able to accomplish, but it’s time to move on. I’m thankful for the special team we were able to put together. You folks are the best! Also thanks to the listeners and everyone at GMD. I’m looking forward to finding the next stop in our little radio adventure.

Dixon joined Greater Media Detroit in April 2013 and was responsible for building the radio station from the ground up. During his tenure the station acquired the rights to the Detroit Pistons while presenting a solid alternative to market ratings leader 97.1 The Ticket.

No official announcement has been made by Greater Media Detroit on a replacement for his position.

Leaving California

Columns

Jason Barrett

February 9, 2015

Many of us in this business have heard the phrase “the bigger the risk, the bigger reward“. In theory it sounds good but when push comes to shove, most people prefer a sure thing over the unknown. I don’t blame them. The unknown is scary and unpredictable.

Well, anyone who knows me or has worked with me knows that I don’t fear taking risks. It may not always be popular or look good at first glance, but that approach has put me in position to run four radio stations in three top-20 markets over the past nine years and thanks to working with some great people it’s led to a lot of success.

Today is bittersweet for me because while I’m staying true to that approach, it’s for a very different reason. I’ve spent the last nine years making choices based on what was best for my career. Today, I’m making a decision based on what’s best for me and my family rather than worrying about how it might look or impact my career.

To the surprise of many, I’ve informed my friends and family at Entercom that I will be leaving San Francisco and my position as Program Director of 95.7 The Game at the end of my contract when it expires this June!

Before the rumor mill swirls with all sorts of created controversies and half truths, let me state that this has zero to do with being unhappy with my staff or company. It has zero to do with wanting more money or power and it has zero to do with my company’s faith in me. Truth be told, I’ve loved this place from the moment I arrived in June 2011, Entercom has treated me and my family incredibly well and if they had their preference, I’d be staying here.

Saying goodbye to people who I’ve grown close to and care about is not easy but I didn’t arrive at this decision overnight. This is something I’ve contemplated for a long time and while it may catch some people off guard, I know in my heart that it’s time.

So the natural question is, why am I leaving?

I wish I had some complex answer but it’s really simple. I’ve reached a point in my life where returning home to New York and being there for my son as he enters his teenage years is critical for me. My parents are also starting to slow down in their later years and I want to be there to help them as much as I can. As much as I love radio, building brands and coaching and motivating people, I love my son and family more and it’s time to put my focus on them in a much stronger way.

For some who know me, that might be hard to digest given how much passion and effort I put into this line of work. Sure I’ve balanced things pretty well over the years but I never drew up a plan to have my son and I separated by thousands of miles. I was dealt those cards and had to adjust to make it work. On the surface it may seem like I found the solution to juggle it but you haven’t seen me every other Friday morning and Sunday evening in New York when I’ve been fighting to stay awake and be available in conversation or fight back emotions as I say goodbye to my son and head to the airport to catch another flight.

For nine years, my schedule every 2-3 weeks has consisted of flying on a plane to/from NY, renting a car and driving two hours upstate to share a bedroom with my son in my parents house for three days. It’s physically and emotionally exhausting and I can’t do it anymore.

I’ve been lucky to have great support from my son and parents and I know they’d be in my corner no matter what I decided. At some point in life, we all have to look in the mirror and ask ourselves if we’re ok with the decisions we’ve made and I won’t look back regretting the fact that I was absent from my son’s life during his entire childhood. These next 5 years of his life are critical and will heavily influence what type of man he becomes and I won’t miss the opportunity to help lead him down the right path as he inches closer towards chasing his own hopes and dreams one day.

I recognize some cynical people will suggest this is corporate spin or that there’s more to the story that I’m not sharing. I can’t control other people’s thoughts and actions, only my own. I wouldn’t exit a situation without a guarantee elsewhere unless it had a bigger meaning to me and I wouldn’t be sticking around for a few more months to help with a transition if I wasn’t still wanted here.

Before I discuss my future, I’d like to thank some people who have been a huge part of this journey the past four years. Without their trust, support, respect and friendship we would not have had great success at 95.7 The Game.

First, my former GM Dwight Walker and Entercom’s President of Programming Pat Paxton were the ones who hired me in San Francisco. They believed in me and my vision for 95.7 The Game and supported me every step of the way. I will be forever grateful to each of them for having trust in me to shape the radio station the way I saw fit. Did I get it all right? No. But we enjoyed a lot of success and they had my back every step of the way and were great professional colleagues who I respect tremendously.

Secondly, my entire team at 95.7 The Game has been special and afforded me four of the best years of my professional career. From our initial lineup of the Rise Guys, Chris Townsend, The Wheelhouse w/ Lund, Papa, Urban & Steinmetz & The Drive with Brandon Tierney & Eric Davis to our current crew of Flight 957, Papa & Lund, Haberman & Middlekauff, Damon Bruce and Towny & Zakariah, we’ve created great radio together and I’ve enjoyed being a part of the ride with you.

While I’m intense, driven and a pain in the ass at times, I hope those who’ve worked with me in San Francisco realize that my goals were to make people better and grow the radio station. If you took 2-3 things away from me and used them to improve as a broadcaster, then I’ve done my job. Numerous people have left situations in other cities and companies to be part of this and words can’t express how much it’s meant to me that you took the leap to come here.

We launched in August 2011 in 25th place with Men 25-54 M-F 6a-7p. In December 2014, we were in 8th and we’ve peaked as high as 6th in June 2014. That’s great progress in a top five market in a little more than three years. And to think, this team haven’t even hit its peak yet. I suspect bigger books are just around the corner.

To say I’m extremely proud of the progress we made as a team would be a massive understatement. I have no doubt that the person who takes the controls of this radio station next will take the product to an even higher level because it’s a building full of smart, hard working people who care about creating great radio for local listeners and the talent level is too strong to not continue doing big things. The station also has great corporate support from Entercom. As a PD that’s half the battle. Whoever earns this opportunity in the future is walking into a winning situation.

Third, I want to thank current Entercom San Francisco GM Steve DiNardo and Entercom CEO David Field. Steve got thrown into the fire last January and had never dealt with the chaos of overseeing a sports format. Rather than come in and try to put his prints all over it and act off of emotion, he stepped back, observed, let his people do what they do best and allowed me to lead the way I was comfortable. He also maintained a great demeanor during difficult times and has done a really nice job bringing our building together. I’ve enjoyed being a part of his team.

David on the other hand has been as cool of a CEO as you can hope to work for. He’s extremely passionate about sports, believes in the format strongly, supports it by allowing you as a leader to make moves to grow the product and most importantly, he’s willing to engage in spirited discussion and allow you to disagree with him without it feeling like you’ll pay the price for not being a yes man. That kind of candor and passion is what makes working for him a thrill. It’s a big reason why Entercom is one of the best broadcast companies around. I’ve enjoyed my numerous conversations with him over the years and they’ve helped me grow as a leader.

I’d also like to thank Dwight, Pat, Steve and David for their patience and support in allowing me to get back and forth to NY to see my son over the past four years. Not every company offers the flexibility to be out of the office every other Friday to stay active in your child’s life but Entercom afforded me that just as Bonneville St. Louis did and that speaks volumes about what they stand for as companies and people.

Fourth, I want to thank current Assistant Program Director Jeremiah Crowe and our Imaging Director Jeff Schmidt. Crowe has endured a ton being the middle man, much of which can be very uncomfortable when dealing with a dominant presence like myself. Through it all he’s kept growing and finding ways to make us better. I have no doubt he’s ready to run his own radio station. Making a suggestion vs. the final decision is very different but you can’t show what you’re capable of unless you’re thrown into the fire. I’m rooting for him as he goes through this process.

As for Jeff, it’s his twisted brain and creative genius that allowed 95.7 The Game to establish the identity we hoped to create when we launched the station. His commitment to doing killer production is what keeps the station sounding fresh and while he can be a pain in the ass like myself, and make you question your own decisions, I value that because I want honesty and conviction out of people. If you don’t believe in what you’re doing 150% and have the confidence to stand by it, defend it and sell your team on it, you’ll get trampled in a room full of alpha males. Jeff has no problem speaking his mind and challenging the status quo to help a brand strive for greatness. His imaging work is second to none.

Fifth, I want to thank our consultant Rick Scott. Not only is he the best in the business at what he does but he’s a dear friend and someone who’s friendship, trust and respect I appreciate deeply. He was instrumental in helping me build 101 ESPN in St. Louis into a strong local and nationally recognized brand and he has done the same thing here in San Francisco helping us establish 95.7 The Game. To have the benefit of swapping ideas and getting into the weeds of some tough situations with him on a weekly basis is a big reason why 95.7 The Game has taken steps in the right direction. I’m sure he and I will remain collaborating in the future and spend countless hours continuing to talk about the sports radio format and how to make it better.

Last but not least, I want to thank our listeners. Growing up as an East Coast guy I was clueless to how passionate people on the west coast were about their teams. I constantly heard how New York, Boston and Philadelphia sports fans were great and how fans on the west coast were too casual, passive and disinterested. Having lived it for 4 years now, I know that couldn’t be further from the truth.

This audience is as engaged, informed and passionate as anyone and just because they don’t scream and yell with every phone call doesn’t mean they don’t care. From seeing how people responded to our Lucky Break auditions, Gridiron Gala parties, AM/FM campaigns and sharing their views on our shows/radio station on social media, I learned that people wanted to root for us yet also express their opinions about our brand. For that I’m extremely appreciative.

You may not have always agreed with the decisions I’ve made and you’ll always have preferences for things that matter most to you as an individual but through it all, you rooted, supported and connected with us and that’s what makes sports radio fun. Thank you for allowing me, our staff and our radio station a chance to be part of your lives the past four years. I trust you’ll continue connecting with 95.7 The Game because there are some very talented personalities on these airwaves and they won’t stop working hard to gain your time, trust and feedback.

I could spend all day listing individuals who I’m grateful to but the list is endless and I’ll likely forget someone plus I don’t want to put readers through a column which takes three hours to finish. If I didn’t list you specifically, don’t think for a second that you didn’t play an important part in what we did here together. The past four years don’t happen without every single person making a contribution to help us build a great radio station.

So the next obvious question is “JB where are you going to work“? As of today, I know one thing, I’ll be located in New York. Professionally I have some possibilities that I’m entertaining and I have my agent Craig Fenech exploring those discussions to see what makes the best sense for my future. It remains possible that I’ll stay with Entercom in some capacity but we’ll have to see how things unfold.

When I have further details to share I’ll make everyone aware but right now this isn’t about my future, it’s about the final chapter of my time in San Francisco. All I’m thinking about right now is my upcoming six day vacation to Hawaii on Wednesday and returning to work next Tuesday to make sure 95.7 The Game is set up in strong fashion for my team and the next PD of this radio station to have future success.

On a personal level, I’ve not been a free agent contractually in over six years so it’s nice to be able to step back, relax and take a look at the possibilities that exist while also getting a better sense of how my peers and colleagues in this industry view my work. Rest assured, my days in the industry are not over and I haven’t lost the passion or drive to do this. I’ll just be doing it from a different address. After living in eight different towns over the past nine years, I’m excited about re-establishing my roots, having my family near me and calling someplace home for a change.

While the future may appear cloudy today, I’ve never been afraid to embrace change and take chances and in doing so, it’s helped me build a very strong eighteen year career in this industry. I’ve learned that you rarely know what’s being planned inside each company and the availability of talented people often dictates whether or not other situations can be created. I was told a long time ago to always trust my gut and that approach has never let me down. It won’t this time either.

As I prepare to exit San Francisco, I want to make sure people are in good situations here just as I did when I left 101 ESPN in St. Louis a few years ago. I’ve often used the quote “it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish” and I’ll be leading by example and finishing up strong.

While the face of station leadership may change, the success of the staff and company will only get stronger. This was my baby and I’ve helped raise it and I’m very proud of what it has become. Even long after I’m gone, a part of me will always be inside this building and I’m grateful for that. But it’s time now to give the keys to the radio station to someone else and give my own TLC to the one who deserves it most, my son.

Hey Dylan, dad is coming home!

Going Through Changes

Columns

Jason Barrett

February 4, 2015

In life, people are creatures of habit. We prefer routine and being comfortable. Everything from when we wake up, shower and grab a cup of coffee, to making our commute into work and listening to a radio show to provide us a mental distraction from the chaos that lies ahead.

While the individual is always in control of their sleep, shower and coffee schedule, the same can’t be promised when it comes to listening to a radio show or working in the radio industry. That’s because the media business is faced with change on a regular basis. It’s not much different than professional sports. Remember, Brett Favre, Peyton Manning, Joe Montana and Jerry Rice all wore different jerseys at some point in their careers.

I raise that example because it’s one of the unavoidable situations that comes up when you work in this business. Anybody who works in programming knows that we’re in the business of generating ratings with the audience. Expectations are set, strategies are created, talent are secured and it’s all done to hopefully generate excitement with an audience and regular tune-ins each day. If all goes according to plan, the ratings will grow and advertising dollars will follow.

But what happens when the ratings don’t grow? Or when they rise for 2-3 shows on your radio station but not for one of your other shows? That’s where the most feared word in media comes into play – “change“!

It’s easy to say “give a show time” and that’s always been my mentality when crafting shows. I believe that most programs need 18-24 months to become consistent with an audience. In some cases I can tell much quicker that the show isn’t going to work but when I hire a show I go in with the mindset that it’ll take some time to win over the crowd.

However, just because you give something time, doesn’t mean it will reach the level that you need your brand to ascend to. If the show isn’t able to perform to the level that you’ve determined is going to be needed to justify continuing it, then at some point whether it’s easy or difficult, you’re going to have to deal with making changes.

I’ve told some of my producers over the years that if I lose them at some point in their careers, I want to lose them to bigger career opportunities. It feels great to know you’ve worked with someone and helped them grow and as a result, another company wants to invest more in them and give them bigger responsibility. The worst part is having to cut ties with someone because they haven’t performed or delivered the necessary results.

You’d be amazed at some of the situations that come up and require parting ways from people. From people stealing lunches out of the refrigerator to people showing up late and sleeping on the job to people lying and undercutting their peers to countless other stupid things that cause a person to lose respect and opportunity from an employer. While sports radio may be fun and a labor of love for many who work in it, people still are human and poor decision making happens to all of us at some point.

When it comes to on-air talent, the leash is usually longer. A lot of executives will put up with a lot of headaches if a talent is delivering ratings and revenue. Even things that are unacceptable in many other professions often get swept under the rug for someone who can be a difference maker in this industry.

Speaking for myself, before I cut bait with a host or show, chances are given and conversations are had. I’ll go through numerous things from changing the content direction of a show to changing the clock to conducting listener focus groups to asking for feedback from the host(s) about why they believe they’re not delivering ratings and what we can do better to be more successful. Once those avenues are explored, then it’s my job to promote the program and support the people doing it and it’s their job to execute and help us generate stronger audience numbers.

While all involved may have the best of intentions, sometimes even after those discussions and adjustments, shows still don’t connect. When they don’t, nobody beats themselves up over it harder than I do. I’m sure many fellow programmers can relate. The last thing you want to do is tell somebody they have not performed to the level that’s required and as a result a change is necessary. But when you sign on to run a radio station, this is part of the job description. You can’t be a leader and have success if you’re afraid to deal with adversity and change.

When these situations occur, blame goes all the way around. The PD instantly becomes the bad guy and everyone inside and outside the building has their opinions on what’s going on. It becomes the companies fault, the ratings systems fault and everyone else’s fault and listeners will often react negatively due to the fact that a change is happening.

You can’t as a host or programmer blame the audience and ask “why didn’t you listen more“? You can’t blame the advertisers and ask “why didn’t you spend more“? You can’t blame Nielsen and ask “why didn’t you provide more meters to people who like what we do“? You can only do one of two things, pick yourself up off the ground and find the next opportunity and make your last employer regret letting you go or sit in sorrow and blame the world for what happened.

I went thru this myself back in 2008. I programmed a radio station 590 The Fan in St. Louis which had a great thing going on when I arrived in 2006. The Cardinals reaching the WS that year certainly didn’t hurt business either. Over the next few months, budget cuts, employee dissatisfaction and lack of corporate support would lead the radio station down the drain and I’d become the fall guy for it because after all I was the face of the franchise.

It was hard to accept that back then because I believed in my abilities and my desire to win but in the grand scheme of things, we were beaten before we ever hit the airwaves. I didn’t see that when I accepted the job but I did after I stepped back, removed my emotion from the situation and figured out how I’d learn from it going forward.

When I received my next opportunity as programmer of 101 ESPN in St. Louis, I made sure I knew I’d have better corporate support and a General Manager who believed in me and the confidence that was instilled in me allowed me to focus on what I do best and fortunately thanks to hiring a lot of smart and talented people and supporting them, the station became a smashing success. The product became #1 for sports radio listening in the market and reached a level of being the 2nd highest rated sports station in the country during one particular month in 2010.

Today I sit in San Francisco where I program 95.7 The Game. In this market, my brand is the underdog taking on a heritage sports radio brand that has the Giants, 49ers and Warriors games on their air and they’ve rode the success of play-by-play to the top spot in the market for well over 20 years. When we built this station, we didn’t launch with the expectation that we’d beat our competitor in the ratings in the first couple of years. We launched with the mindset of hiring dynamic talent and building a strong and viable brand that in time could work it’s way up towards the top.

Setting realistic expectations is important because you don’t overtake strong brands in 1-2 years just because you’ve arrived and presented talent and a vision that you believe is superior than the competitor. If it was that easy and that formula worked that fast, I’d have already retired. You have to have a strong strategy, know where opportunities lie in the market, create a plan that will consistently show growth and establish what makes you unique to the market. When you go from 25th to as high as 6th in the span of 3 years, that’s a sign that you’re on the right track.

Since I’ve been here, we’ve shown that we will not be afraid to introduce new talent, take risks and change course if things aren’t working. One thing I always enjoy is hearing our current listeners criticize or compliment the work previously done by Brandon Tierney, Eric Davis, Sean O’Connell, Ric Bucher, Aubrey Huff and The Rise Guys. A few years ago these were foreign names to Bay Area sports radio fans and had we not taken a chance to put them on the air and introduce them, people would not have had opinions of them. Clearly they all had tremendous talent and whether the feedback on them was good or bad, it showed that new voices with strong talent, can connect in a market like San Francisco.

While one could play devil’s advocate and criticize us for not being consistent, the fact of the matter is that when you’re in the driver’s seat in a market, it’s your job to keep a winning product consistent and lock up the things that are most important to your success until you’re forced to adapt. In our case, we’ve got to keep growing to eventually cause bigger disruptions and change long-term listening habits. If that requires adjusting as we go, then that’s what we’ll do. During the past 9 months our radio station has had its highest ratings run and had we not made changes I’m not sure if that would be the case. That can certainly be debated but in a business that is judged by results, the numbers don’t lie.

Change is never easy for people but it’s a part of life (especially the media business) and I often find that I work best when I’ve got my back up against the wall. I think that you learn a lot about people in this business when the pressure is on and decision making is critical. It’s in most people’s nature to try and find a way to return to a place of comfort rather than enter foreign territory but sometimes you’ve got to be willing to gamble and put your ass on the line in order to create bigger opportunities for your brand.

When I look across the sports radio landscape, I see tons of stations who have not been afraid to take risks and as a result, have been rewarded for it. From The Score in Chicago to 710 ESPN in Seattle to 680 The Fan in Atlanta to Arizona Sports 98.7 FM in Phoenix. All made changes and continue to perform strongly. The same can be said for 101 ESPN in St. Louis, The Fan in Dallas, WEEI in Boston and The Fanatic in Philadelphia. All of these stations have continued to thrive despite dealing with change and there are plenty of others who could easily be on this list.

Look at sports television and you’ll see the same. Over the past 5-10 years Monday Night Football switched from a 3-man booth to 2-man booth, First Take went from rotating hosts to using Stephen A. & Skip, Jerry Rice, Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin left ESPN while Chris Carter, Keyshawn Johnson and Ray Lewis signed on and Football Night in America lost Tiki Barber, Jerome Bettis and John Madden but added Hines Ward, Tony Dungy, Rodney Harrison and Chris Collinsworth.

Some may see making changes as showing a lack of consistency and that’s fair, but some also believe it’s necessary to stay ahead of the curve. From where I sit, I’d much rather take risk and fail trying to be great than stay complacent and wait to be picked off. It certainly seemed to work out ok for Favre, Manning, Rice and Montana!

95.7 The Game Unveils “20 In 20”

Radio

BSM Staff

February 3, 2015

95.7 The Game is sending their morning show (Flight 957) on tour!

The San Francisco radio station has announced plans to send Chad Doing, Joe Fortenbaugh and former NFL fullback Lorenzo Neal on the road for 20 shows over the span of 20 weeks, hence the name “20 In 20”.

The show will broadcast LIVE from a different Bay Area city/town from 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. PST starting February 18th and continuing through July 1st. Fans in the local area will have a say in determining locations by sending in suggestions on Twitter via the hashtag #20In20.

For more details visit 95.7 The Game’s website by clicking here.

95.7 The Game Delivers Super Week

Radio

BSM Staff

January 23, 2015

The Bay Area’s new sound for sports, today announced it’s 2015 coverage of “Super Week” before the big game on February 1^st between the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks. Beginning January 26^th through January 30^th 2015, 95.7 The GAME will send three of their major shows including Flight 957 with Chad Doing, Joe Fortenbaugh & Lorenzo Neal, The Wheelhouse with Greg Papa and John Lund and The Damon Bruce Show to broadcast live from radio row in Phoenix, Arizona. This marks the fourth consecutive year that 95.7 The GAME provides Bay Area football fans with live comprehensive coverage from the site of the Super Bowl.

“There is no bigger event in sports, and we believe that covering premier events matters greatly to our local sports fans.” said Jason Barrett, Program Director for 95.7 The Game. “Wall to wall coverage and in-depth analysis is what our audience has come to expect from our brand.”

Listeners can expect to hear from a star studded guest list including Sports Illustrated’s Peter King, ESPN’s John Clayton, Chris Mortensen, Trey Wingo and Trent Dilfer. Also appearing will be NFL Hall of Famer Rod Woodson, four-time Super Bowl champion Bill Romanowski and more.

95.7 The GAME is the largest radio market FM Sports Station in California and the flagship radio station for the Oakland Athletics and Oakland Raiders. Effective January 26^th, 2015 95.7 The GAME’s live coverage of “Super Week” includes:

6:00 a.m.-10:00 a.m. (PST) — Flight 957 with Chad Doing, Joe Fortenbaugh, and Lorenzo Neal
12:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m. (PST) — The Wheelhouse with John Lund & Greg Papa
3:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m. (PST) — The Damon Bruce Show

No Fence Sitting Allowed

Columns

Jason Barrett

January 22, 2015

When you listen to sports talk radio today you’re likely to find a number of different styles in the personalities you hear on the air. That’s what makes each host unique. What shouldn’t be disputable though is the understanding and importance of giving an opinion!

Search around the country and listen to some different stations and personalities and see if you can pinpoint the following types of hosts.

A) The caller-driven host who puts the power of the show in the audience’s hands.
B) The guest heavy host who fills a 9 segment show with 7-8 guests.
C) The comedic host who offers jokes, bits, parody songs and downplays the importance of a serious topic. They often sound uninformed or uninterested in sports talk.
D) The stats/historian host who crunches numbers, shares old stories and is quick to highlight everyone else’s opinions and use them as a shield to avoid giving their own.
E) The strong opinionated personality who speaks their mind confidently and earns praise from supporters and criticism from detractors.

The beauty of this format is that there are multiple ways to inform and entertain but of the 5 styles listed above, I find myself more drawn to E. The host who has something to say and defends their position with good sound evidence and is willing to engage in a compelling conversation with callers, guests, texts, tweets and colleagues, will always catch my attention first. I don’t have to agree with you, I just need to be moved by your opinion.

I can’t even count how many times I tune into a show somewhere across the country and hear a personality say “we’re going to talk about the Super Bowl” or “let’s chat about these coaching changes” and then spends the majority of a segment reading off the information and waiting for calls without providing their own point of view on the topic. It absolutely drives me nuts.

Of course you’re going to talk about the Super Bowl or coaching changes if they’re a timely story but why does it matter to you? What do you want me to think about? Be specific.

People are usually in a car dealing with non-stop traffic, aggravated from a long day at work and they want a mental distraction to make them laugh, help them learn or get their blood pumping. Your style, presentation and view on the relevant material is what they care about when they put you on. If the subject matter is broad and you don’t define your position, they’re going to lose interest.

Anytime you’re on the air, you’re expected to share your perspective on the news, not break the news. That’s what reporters do and what sports updates, your website and Twitter are for. What you think of the information matters more than the information itself. Your opinion is what grabs people’s attention.

20 years ago people in sports talk focused on the result of a ball game and did the typical box score breakdown segments. Today the world is much different. People care much more about what happens outside the lines than what happens inside the lines. Case in point, there’s been more talk this week about the Patriots deflating footballs than the actual game itself vs. the Colts. Last year at this time, people spent more time discussing Richard Sherman’s post-game interview than they did recapping the Seahawks-49ers game. Need any more proof?

I understand that every personality does prep work and values their credibility so being right and informed is important but rather than worry about being right, the bigger focus should be on making people think and being interesting. That starts with a strong informed opinion and having the courage to stand by it and defend it with smart rationale and great research.

What sometimes worries me about our format’s future is when I hear newer broadcasters coming up the ladder, not focused on delivering opinion and instead worried about how many guests they have booked or how many people have called their show. To this day I have never hired someone who set a record for most calls taken on a show and I’ve never hired a host based on their guest list. I care more about what they do with a guest and caller than how many they can get.

I’m not going to say guests, calls, being funny and having information doesn’t matter because of course they do. They’re all valuable parts of a show but when you step back and look at a 9-12 segment show, there should be more focus put on delivering opinion on the content/stories of the day and telling the audience why you feel the way you do than anything else. The opinion is your main course, the guests, calls, soundbytes and extra bits of entertainment are your sides and appetizers.

During my years as a PD I’ve told a number of hosts that there is no “No Fence Sitting” allowed. I recognize that the only thing we control is our words and if we don’t take positions, defend them strongly and make our audience think, then we’re just background noise and people can find that in many different places. Standing out from the clutter is not easy and it’s even harder if you don’t take strong defined positions on relevant material.

The last thing you should want to be as a personality trying to connect with an audience is the equivalent of elevator music. Our job is to be clear, concise and definitive with where we stand on various issues and confident enough in our own skin to defend them, while also being open minded to hear the other side of the discussion.

Does it matter if the listener disagrees? No. What about if a team, player or front office executive doesn’t like it? Are they paying your check or controlling your brain? No. So stand up for yourself but be smart enough to avoid getting personal and open enough to give them a forum to counter your point of view. Good banter on a topic with multiple viewpoints makes for compelling discussion.

What if your peers think you’re crazy? Just be crazy enough to have a position and good rationale for why you feel how you do and they’ll get over it or come around to your way of thinking. It’s about delivering interesting content and when you are firm with your thoughts and prepared with information to support your position, more people will connect with you than tune you out and after all, that’s the name of the game.

Sometimes personalities lose sight of this and need to be reminded how important it is and to get their attention over the years I’ve been known to dish out a few silly gimmicks that get their attention. In a few instances I’ve pulled out a green pillow and offered it to a few hosts so their asses would be well protected while sitting on the fence. Usually it’s led to a good laugh and a host realizing that they need to be more authoritative and not dance around the subject.

I’ve also given out a few nails and dollar bills to let a person know they nailed an opinion or provided something great and I’ve given out a compass to ask them if they knew where they were going with their stance. While it may be hokey, the point is to make one think of how their position has come across on the air. Most hosts forget that nobody wants them to succeed more than the PD that put them in the studio in the first place but sometimes even the best need a reminder that something wasn’t as sharp or as strong as it could be.

Based on my experience, usually it’s athletes who are just transitioning into the format who take the most time getting comfortable in this arena. Fortunately though, once you tell them they’re quick to adapt because they appreciate and respect coaching and want to make an impression rather than sound too guarded. That said, being comfortable taking strong positions does take some people time and while it may not always feel great, it’s critical to one’s presentation.

If there’s one thing to leave you with, it’s to remember to always have something to say and a good sound reason for why you feel the way you do. Listeners can get information from a myriad of places but those who stand out are the ones who are confident and comfortable enough to give an opinion and make it interesting.

How Sports Radio Can Learn To Connect Better From Taylor Swift

Columns

Jason Barrett

January 3, 2015

How Sports Radio Can Learn To Connect Better From Taylor Swift

Before you change your glasses or contacts or wipe your eyes to make sure you read the headline right, yes I did mention Taylor Swift on a Sports Radio blog. Before you assume I’ve completely lost my mind, let me explain why she’s relevant in this space today.

One of the real pleasures of creating sports talk radio is connecting with people. When you think about the position we’re in, we’re not really different than those who listen to us. Sure we may have more training, a microphone and broadcast signal that allows our opinions to be heard in our local markets and we may earn a paycheck which classifies us as professionals but at our core, we’re people who love sports, talking about it passionately and entertaining one another.

The reason it works, is because others care enough about the same things we do. Thru the bond of talking about sports, we’re given an opportunity to engage with audiences each day and get them emotionally invested in our content and people.

Similar to sports, music has a lot of appeal as well. One performer who has built an incredible fan base is Taylor Swift. To date she has over 73 million LIKES on Facebook and over 49 million followers on Twitter. That’s over 120 million combined associations to her fans.

So with all of those fans, it must be impossible for Ms. Swift to connect with people aside from when she’s performing on stage right? Guess again! Not only does she get active on social media, she also takes time at some of her shows to take photos with fans.

Today I watched this video and was genuinely moved by it. I encourage you to watch it too. While some of you may not care for Taylor’s music, I think you’ll agree that this is a brilliant way to showcase connecting between Ms. Swift and her fans.

While some will focus on her buying gifts and taking road trips (which by the way was very cool), what I got out of this was that Taylor Swift cares about her fans. Because she invests time and thought into connecting with them, it helps her relate more to her most passionate and loyal supporters and that gives them a reason to continue rooting for and supporting her.

When this type of bond exists between performer and fan base, there’s less concern about the next single being well received or the next arena being sold out. Because Taylor has made her most loyal and passionate fans part of her experience, they will be there to support her thru thick and thin. Click this link and you’ll see even more photo evidence of her connecting.

Now think about this and how it applies to what you do as a sports radio personality or executive. How much time do you spend interacting with your audience? Do they know you beyond your talk show? Have you ever responded to one of their tweets, texts or facebook messages? Are they able to reach out and provide feedback on your radio station beyond an email address on the contact page of your website? How many photos would show up if you google searched yourself and/or station with fans?

Is it taxing to engage sometimes? Yes. Does it get annoying when people take personal shots or reach out simply to complain? Yes. But people are entitled to free speech and having an opinion and sports talk is a very passionate and emotional format. I’d much rather receive a high volume of passionate replies and know what’s pushing the buttons of my audience then have them disappear and have to hire a research firm to find out why.

The way the world thinks and acts today is very different and we’ve got to continue evolving or we risk being left behind. In the past, hosts were seen as untouchables. They’d spend a few hours on-air spewing their thoughts on issues and aside from reaching out thru the on-air phone number, fans could not connect with them or learn anything further about who they were. The world outside of the talk show was very private and irrelevant.

Today, people want access and information more than ever and just hearing an opinion thru a set of speakers isn’t enough. They now want to join the conversation at the bar rather than eavesdrop in the distance. They also want to know who you are and what you’re about when the microphone is off. Being a private personality is a lot less acceptable by the audience today and that just goes to show how the world has changed.

In thinking of this topic, I couldn’t help but think about how different radio has become in this area over the past 20-30 years. Back then there was a stronger sense of community, marketing and investing in forming connections with local people. Over the years though that focus has shifted more towards ratings, ad revenue and metrics to determine what is and isn’t working.

Some of these changes have definitely been for the better. I know I’d much rather deal with this current flawed ratings system than the previous one and I’d much rather invest money in people and partnerships than marketing but I do think our industry as a whole can be much stronger in the way we connect with and view the association with our listeners. It’s not just about the people with meters or inside of focus groups, it’s about anyone and everyone who takes the time to listen and/or interact with your product and people.

Furthermore, executives can’t preach the importance of a strong digital and social media presence and strategy and then not be visible themselves. You can’t encourage or require participation from those inside your building if you’re not leading the charge yourself. You’re either all-in or all-out.

In my opinion, connecting with people and being accessible is as much of a job requirement today as anything else we do. You can’t say you care about your ratings and making a better living and then do little outside of your show to drive people back to the show. We should be thrilled that people care enough to tell us their opinions but smart enough to weed out what matters and what doesn’t.

That said, being accessible doesn’t mean you have to respond to every piece of feedback or change your show or station due to a handful of negative replies. It means the audience can follow you and reach out to you and you will engage when it makes sense to. The audience doesn’t control your brain, your voice or your emotions. You set the tone because that’s what you’re charged with doing but they also deserve to be included in the process.

As I bring this column to a close, the main thing I want you to take away is how vital it is to connect with your audience. Remember, people don’t have to listen to us or interact with us, they choose to do it. It’s our responsibility to find ways to further strengthen our bond with them and it starts with accessibility and engagement.

I understand we’re pulled in many directions as we try to balance life, work, personal passions and numerous other things but if the job matters to you, than invest the time necessary to make it pay off. Judging by Taylor Swift’s 30 million CD sales, 80 million singles downloads and 120 million fans on social media, I’d say connecting with fans has worked out pretty well for her. Maybe it’s time you considered doing the same.

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Barrett MediaSports, News & Music Media Analysis & Insights

Barrett MediaSports, News & Music Media Analysis & Insights

Barrett MediaSports, News & Music Media Analysis & Insights

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No Fence Sitting Allowed

How Sports Radio Can Learn To Connect Better From Taylor Swift