While reading The Snowball, the authorized biography of Warren Buffett, I learned that his father was a politician. Buffett recounts how he used to tag along when his father, a Republican, would visit meat-packing plants and factories. Though his father may have dreaded spending time in these environments, where he was often met with suspicion and hostility, he knew it was part of his job.
I recently took my kids to a county fair and had a similar experience of mixing with people I rarely encounter in my life otherwise. We all tend to hang with people who have a similar socioeconomic status. Though I don’t want to send the signal that I consider myself better than anyone else, I do consider myself more fortunate. I don’t have to do hard labor or work in a difficult environment like a meat-packing plant.
So what’s this got to do with radio? While at the fair, I commented to a friend that if I were programming a radio station, I’d be spending a lot of time at events like this one and talking to the people. This is where you get the story that research cannot tell. This is where you can learn to understand the issues facing families and the ways your radio station can be most relatable.
In the 1970s, when I was a programmer and, later, a programming consultant, I always insisted that we hold our music meetings in the cafeteria at Kmart. As my music and research director and I discussed each song, we could gaze at the shoppers and have a pretty good feel for its fit.
Sometimes I feel as though radio stations have lost their deep, relatable connection with their audiences. It’s critical to spend time where the bulk of your target audience spends time, whether that's upscale or downscale. An old buddy of mine called “T-Buff” (Tommy Buffington) was a retail consultant in Salt Lake City, at Brown Brothers Furniture. He used to say, “If you want to appeal to the masses, you can’t hang out with the classes.”
I used to give him grief about the overly folksy, hickish-sounding ads he ran on my radio station, but they packed the store when my slicker ads would not. It was clear what he did was working.
Where are you spending your time? Are you investing time to learn more about your listeners and their lives? Every programmer, manager, and air personality should be required to invest time in the study of their target audience — not just reading data, but immersing themselves in the local culture. Only then can they truly understand the value of the Blue Light Special.
I recently took my kids to a county fair and had a similar experience of mixing with people I rarely encounter in my life otherwise. We all tend to hang with people who have a similar socioeconomic status. Though I don’t want to send the signal that I consider myself better than anyone else, I do consider myself more fortunate. I don’t have to do hard labor or work in a difficult environment like a meat-packing plant.
So what’s this got to do with radio? While at the fair, I commented to a friend that if I were programming a radio station, I’d be spending a lot of time at events like this one and talking to the people. This is where you get the story that research cannot tell. This is where you can learn to understand the issues facing families and the ways your radio station can be most relatable.
In the 1970s, when I was a programmer and, later, a programming consultant, I always insisted that we hold our music meetings in the cafeteria at Kmart. As my music and research director and I discussed each song, we could gaze at the shoppers and have a pretty good feel for its fit.
Sometimes I feel as though radio stations have lost their deep, relatable connection with their audiences. It’s critical to spend time where the bulk of your target audience spends time, whether that's upscale or downscale. An old buddy of mine called “T-Buff” (Tommy Buffington) was a retail consultant in Salt Lake City, at Brown Brothers Furniture. He used to say, “If you want to appeal to the masses, you can’t hang out with the classes.”
I used to give him grief about the overly folksy, hickish-sounding ads he ran on my radio station, but they packed the store when my slicker ads would not. It was clear what he did was working.
Where are you spending your time? Are you investing time to learn more about your listeners and their lives? Every programmer, manager, and air personality should be required to invest time in the study of their target audience — not just reading data, but immersing themselves in the local culture. Only then can they truly understand the value of the Blue Light Special.
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