Media Info Bureau

Despite being knee-deep in the digital age, marketers have not turned their backs on offline media. So says a Winterberry Group report that finds that the 2020 presidential election and the Summer Olympics will result in $5 billion year-over-year growth in media spend. There's just one problem: Radio won't reap big benefits from the increase.

From the office of the Chairman of the FCC to the Please Stop! on Route 9 in Parkville, Mo., fans of Kansas City Chiefs pro football team are reveling in their first Super Bowl championship in 50 years. Local radio largely did its part, with stations across the dial offering various choices in locally originated celebratory programming.

Featured Media Information Bureau columnist Ken Benner has received several requests for a comprehensive Alternative Broadcast Inspection Program document that covers the services he provides for radio and TV stations. He's obliged, while also taking time to explain why he has the right to do what he does.

"Never let the inmates run the asylum," warns expert sales trainer Barrett Riddleberger in this latest Media Information Bureau installment. In this column, Riddleberger provides details on how sales managers and those in the C-Suite can learn how to effectively hold their sales reps accountable.

As the U.S. enters a heated 2020 presidential election year, a new Pew Research Center report finds that Republicans and Democrats place their trust in two nearly inverse news media environments. What could this mean for your broadcast media station, and the implications on ratings and long-term ad revenue?

How many times have you had to endure that one commercial when accessing an audio stream on a popular app? For our editor-in-chief, its in the thousands, thanks to Volvo and TuneIn. That said, the spot recall is 100%. What about the advertisers using radio during a long holiday weekend? Um ...

Understanding "the contextual affinities and nuances" of every radio market in the U.S. is key to connecting with listeners "in a mindset that matters." Yet, it is not a radio group but SiriusXM-owned Pandora that is telling potential marketers and advertising clients key facts about listeners in markets of all sizes. It's just another slap in the face of an industry that still doesn't get it, our editor-in-chief opines.

High turnover. Low sales. Unmet quotas. Disloyalty. Pressure from executives. These are just a few of the outcomes when sales managers fail. In this Media Information Bureau installment from expert sales training coach Barrett Riddleberger, some of the reasons GSMs don't succeed are offered.

The Association of National Advertisers (ANA) has selected a prominent marketing and media executive as the first president of SeeHer, the organization's movement for gender equality in advertising, marketing, and entertainment. It's an individual with stops at L'Oreal and Colgate-Palmolive on her resume.

As we enter the 25th year of the existence of the “FCC Compliance Certification Program,” Media Information Bureau featured columnist Ken Benner argues that the program deserves "a realistic review of its history of licensee protection from massive fines, fees, forfeitures and most significantly, legal expenses."

"Don't get fooled by another sales candidate," says expert sales trainer Barrett Riddleberger. "Uncover the truth about their capacity to perform." This Media Information Bureau installment gives you the answer to what you're missing in your hiring process, he promises.

Traditional media channels will get more than half of QSRs’ spend in 2019, new research from BIA Advisory Services notes. However, most of the growth in local ad spend will come from digital media channels. Where does that leave broadcast radio and television?

While there are costs and revenue synergies to be delivered and assets to be divested, Wall Street analyst Michael Nathanson thinks that the structural pressures facing the industry will negatively weigh on ViacomCBS’s basic and premium cable networks as cord cutting and the attendant pressures likely accelerate. With that said, there is one big unresolved issue facing ViacomCBS.

If you're hiring a sales rep to prospect for leads and acquire new accounts, then don't hire this type of person, warns expert sales trainer Barrett Riddleberger. "Unfortunately, they look like a great candidate, so it's really difficult to know from just an interview," he says.

Over the past 50 years and thousands of station visits, Ken Benner has encountered the best and worst among the broadcasting industry. Past columns were focused on the premise that the most professional individual at the top of this list is one willing to share unselfishly his talent and experience with his/her colleagues, he says. "I suspect I have found the individual at the top of this list."