How to Drain the Life Out of Radio

 

There is no exact data available, but I've been keeping track of press releases and stories, and my estimate is that the radio industry in the U.S. has shed about 6,000 jobs in the last few months. That means radio is sacrificing talent on air, on the streets, in customer service, and in a lot of other areas. And that will be noticed by our listeners and customers if we're not careful. Though there is no question as to why these changes had to be made, there remain two responsibilities we bear for radio. 

 

Responsibility #1:

We need to use all of our ability to create jobs whenever possible and help place these out-of-work people in new roles in radio stations and online radio. These are valuable people who will be needed again in the future; we must seek ways to keep them in the industry and, if necessary, retrain them for new roles so they do not abandon radio. They are a valuable resource we don't want to push to other industries.

 

Responsibility #2:

We're now officially stressing the system. People are doing the jobs of those who were laid off, and it's inevitable that things will fall through the cracks. The worst possible thing would be if our customers and listeners have a bad experience as a result of poor customer service, unmet expectations, or other problems caused by too few doing too much. Therefore it seems logical to me that we invest in the people we have, to make sure they are capable of living up to their new roles.  

 

This means additional training, teaching them to manage their time and how to be effective at multi-tasking and prioritizing. We need to teach them improved customer service techniques, help them cope with stress, and help them understand their changing roles in radio as we go forward. Ultimately, our customers (advertisers) must not experience a dip in the quality of service by radio. And, of course, our listeners must also feel they are being properly cared for. 

 

We must continually evolve our people to make sure they understand ever-changing client needs. They must not only understand interactive selling, but know how to train clients in this new area. A year ago, one digital sales manager in the Northwest created a seminar for clients on interactive. No clients accepted the invitation. At the next seminar, six months later, 15 attended, and the most recent had 60 in attendance. He's seen a huge increase in interest in interactive from local businesses in just one year. 

 

Investing in Your People

The last thing anyone wants to do is spend any more money, yet our short-term thinking will bite us in the backside if we don't continue to help the remaining people stay current. If you remember, after 9/11, our business tanked and it seemed like it would never return, yet a few painful months later we saw things improve. Historically, advertisers come to a point where they realize they need to start advertising again, and they start with radio to keep their expenses lower. Investing in your people is important so they are able to cope with increases in business. How's that for optimism? (Read my recent blog entry about how to zig when others zag in this economy.) 

 

Embarrassment for RAB's Jeff Haley

At my recent Convergence conference, I asked RAB chief Jeff Haley to step to the stage, where I publicly embarrassed him. I told the people in the audience that the answers to radio's woes will not come from radio people, but from someone from the outside. After all, we're all too close. Historically, in every industry, reinvention comes from an outsider. Haley was hired because of his extensive experience in new media and the fact that he had no background in radio, but a great command of the advertising business. Though many were repelled by the idea of a non-broadcaster, it was a brilliant move. I told the audience that Jeff is one of the smartest people in the radio business, but that my guess is that his biggest challenge is getting radio to listen to him and follow his advice.  

 

Should you follow him blindly? Maybe. I think we have to assume he "gets it" in areas we, as broadcasters, do not. Sometimes we have to be willing to burn what's behind us and move toward our future. Haley understands that future, but I'm guessing that he spends a lot of time juggling board members who want to cling to the past. Therefore it's critical that we, as an industry, listen to Jeff Haley. Though I've heard criticism of Jeff, I think much of it comes from those who want him to do the same things as his predecessors. 

 

You're Thinking Like a Broadcaster

Yesterday I had the pleasure of a consulting session with Jeffrey Eisenberg, who, along with his brother Bryan, had the first New York Times best-seller that was sold exclusively on the Internet. They are among the smartest, most successful Internet optimization consultants in the world. Though I consider myself to be "up" on what is happening in this world, there is still so much to learn. When we discussed one idea, Jeffrey said, "Eric, you're thinking like a broadcaster. You need to shift your thinking because that model won't make you as much money as the one you're about to learn." He then blew my socks off with several hours of revolutionary thinking. And he was right.  

 

I default to old models, and I need to learn to be comfortable with new models. Yet, in some respects, people need to ease into concepts. That's why I think attending the RAB in a couple of weeks is a good idea. They are blending some of the important aspects of where radio is today with where it needs to be. I'm impressed with the interactive sessions and training they have developed for salespeople and sales managers, and I highly recommend it. I'll be there, not only doing our Radio Wayne Awards and presenting our Radio Executive of the Year award to Charles Warfield, but attending sessions too. To my knowledge, this event is the only one focused on sales, sales management, and management issues, and I'm impressed that they have so many advertisers at the conference. That alone may be worth the price because we need to listen carefully to what advertisers like Coca-Cola, AT&T, Wal-Mart, Chevrolet, Miller Coors, Home Depot, and Outback Steakhouse are saying. If we listen carefully, they will tell us exactly what they need from us. Seems to me this RAB conference is a great opportunity to retrain. 

 

You're Never Too Big or Too Important to Grow

At our recent Convergence conference, Jeff Hinson, the president of BMP, revealed how his company has reinvented radio and is making its stations a direct link to the interactive world, which I believe is the right thing to do. I applauded him on stage for being the only radio group CEO in the audience. To his credit, he sat for two days, took copious notes (yes, he actually attended sessions), then held a conference call with his staff to go over his notes. I've since learned that another CEO was in the audience -- Paul Ski, CEO of radio for Rogers Broadcasting in Canada, which is one of the biggest radio groups up north. These are busy people who did not assume they or their people know all the answers, and they were there learning. We even had people fly in from North Africa and Australia, and each said it was worth the trip because they learned so much. We all need to be learning and growing continually to stay ahead. 

 

Let's Go Fishing

Though things are feeling pretty gloomy, the lifting fog always brings new opportunity. New customers will try radio for the first time, and others who left for other mediums may return due to our effective costs. But, like fish, they won't just jump in the boat. We have to have our lines in the water, bait on our hooks, and know what techniques will seduce the fish onto our hooks instead of those from all the other boats. Preparation is the key to everything, and our people need to be properly prepared to tell our advertisers the recession story for radio advertising, and have the interactive presentation to capture those seduced by new media. We need to be able to dazzle customers so they have a great experience and stay.  

 

So many have laid off a big chunk of their staffs, and it could be easy to under-perform without knowing it. Though I know there is a slim chance companies will want to invest in their remaining people when they are trying to cut expenses, my gut is telling me that it's more critical at this moment than at any time in the past to find new ways to train your remaining people. 

 

Eric Rhoads

Publisher of Radio Ink

 

Sign up for free daily radio headlines at www.RadioInk.com

Direct: 925-372-9090 (SF Bay Area) 

HQ 561-655-8778 (Palm Beach) 
 
Follow me on Twitter:  http://twitter.com/ericrhoads 
Follow me on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/people/Eric-Rhoads/601906475

SKYPE me: B. Eric Rhoads 

View my visual CV: http://www.visualcv.com/ericrhoads

Comments

[GLORIA22BATES]

Following my investigation, billions of people all over the world receive the www.lowest-rate-loans.com from good creditors. Therefore, there's good possibilities to receive a consolidation loan in all countries.