The new PR campaign for terrestrial radio has struck a nerve with our readers.
Everyday, everywhere we see celebrities endorsing all kinds' of products and services informing us of how much they love 'IT' and how often they use 'IT' and we should use 'IT' to. While nobody is going to argue that such product endorsements don't have some positive effect for that brand, I think we can all agree that we know our celebrities lie to us on a regular basis. They never even heard of xyz product until they were told they were going to get 10 million dollars for endorsing it!
So what's all the fuss about Alicia Keys, she got paid to lie about terrestrial radio and then let slip what her and her generation are excited about and when they can afford it actually listen too, XM radio of course. I think that its time for the terrestrial radio posse to take off their caveman outfits and realise the medium is evolving but the message remains the same. Soon every home will have an LCD or plasma screen and every car will have GPS navigation and satellite radio with less or no annoying commercials, a lot more variety and the ability to really personalise the output. Soon might be ten years but it is going to happen so what are we waiting for...Terrestrial stations will go satellite also and we will offer the same but free of charge as long as you listen to our commercials and we will have come full circle and it will be XM radio worrying about tomorrow!
Kind Regards,
Mark Coffey
Phoenix
How's this for irony? In the first position of a spot cluster you hear a spot for the new NAB PR campaign for radio. Second position is a commercial for XM satellite radio. Might happen on any Clear Channel station! But then the first position isn't for freebies, so maybe not in that order.
Scott Harris
VP/GM
NextMedia Lubbock
Ummmm, did we ever freak out when radio artists began appearing on MTV?
I didn't hear anyone scream when AOL webcast concerts from artists they feature on their station playlists.
Is it so bad for an artist that fans respect to get on our airwaves and say that radio was the place they got their break?
Come on people, stop the witch hunt, and get out this cycle of fear.
Scott Winchell
Account Manager
Clear Channel Radio
101.1 The Beat Jamz/WUBT FM, Nashville
These artists are innocent. They are simply supporting clients on both sides of the fence just as we do. How many beverages are advertising on your station? Are you "duping" Coca-Cola by supporting Pepsi and playing their commercials too?!
Nevertheless, I disagree that a cut in spot loads will magically solve all problems. The revenue hit this would create would be too great for Wall Street to overcome with faith in the long-term. There are more attractive, less risky long-term bets out there. Meanwhile, the short-term investors would bail out of terrestrial radio, making our problems much worse.
Instead, I believe radio salespeople need to become more creative like television reps have had to do since the invention of TiVo. How can your clients stealthfully fit into the programming with product placement and the like? How can we offset spot revenue, without decreasing overall revenue? How can we use promotions to generate more than "value-added"? These are the questions our brilliant marketing minds should focus on. Rather than nit-picking, "who's the best spokesperson for our ads."
Mike McBride, KUBL
Citadel Communications
Salt Lake City, UT
Are you reading this from a forwarded email?
