18 May Lund Programming Clinic: Improve Station Awareness
There’s a factor in all ratings, even PPM metered markets, which goes beyond actual listening. The stations that are better branded and own a market image produce better numbers. The truth is that brand awareness brings about business. It’s true for Nike and Starbucks, two of the best brands around. Scott Bedbury counts those two brands on his marketing resume and offers this advice, “A great brand is in it for the long haul. It taps into emotions and becomes a powerful connecting experience.”
And it’s especially true in radio! A well-branded station has tremendous top-of-mind awareness, and that translates into bigger cume and more frequent usage. In diary and telephone ratings, the brand alone becomes a ratings halo that can transcend actual listening. It’s the first station people think of when asked for a station name. As with Starbucks and Nike, it’s the “experience.” Our challenge as programmers is about sharing experiences with listeners and making them feel good about themselves and about the time they spend with the station. It’s being an essential ingredient in their routine because you give them what they need. In branding, it’s an emotional response that connects.
Begin the branding process before your spring ratings by identifying your unique offerings, in addition to your music product.
- What is it about your station that your listeners cannot live without?
- What do you do to drive listener passion?
- What does your morning show do that is different from others, and why is it better? Avoid being too similar, and don’t do a midday request show because everyone else does. Make your offering unique. Personalize your weather to your market activities and listener needs.
- Are your website and social media truly interactive?
- Are your promotions super-serving the listener?
Planning your state broadcast convention? John Lund has an exciting multimedia presentation for your members in 2015 … Topics include how branding improves radio ratings, what drives listener passion, and keeping radio competitive with Pandora and audio streaming. Also for your TV members, what researches best on early morning news, and how to improve TV news demographics. John’s lively presentation focuses on the future of radio…and TV faced with new media challenges. There is a lot of good news ahead – in the Lund presentation. Contact John Lund to speak at your next convention, John@lundradio.com.