Back to my radio roots

Some of my friends who are sports fanatics constantly scream at the TV.

Case in point, here's a pic of Gary Stelly (KOGT) and I taken back in 1985...he was always screaming at a TV!

When they see a play they can’t believe, or someone pulls a bonehead move, they are quick to shout at the poor, innocent television set.

Not being a sports nut myself, I do find myself doing the same thing when it comes to news announcers or deejays on the radio.

I guess it comes from having over two and a half decades of working with folks who know a lot more than I about how broadcasting works.

I have thousands of words of advice from people who have gone on to bigger and better places and count it a privilege to have learned from them while they were in my neck of the woods.

Here is an example.

I was listening to one of my favorite stations the other day as I was driving to Beaumont.

At the end of the song the announcer came on and told me the name of the song that just played and the names of the previous three songs.

In my opinion, there are several things wrong with this.

I admit I might be the one “out of the loop” and may be basing my interpretation on outdated ideas.

But, risking exposing myself as an armchair quarterback, here we go.

First… telling me the name of the song that has just played or the names of the proceeding three gives me no reason to keep listening.

As a listener I might just say thank you and tune to another station that is not about to play commercials.

Now, if you tell me the name of the next three songs you are about to play I just might stay with you for my favorite tune.

I heard this at least a thousand times from a former program director of mine, John Martin. (KSLR around 1982 in San Antonio)

Secondly….I do not think an announcer should ever talk so long over dead air.

Robert X (another past program director I’ve worked for) once told me to talk as long as I wanted AS LONG AS IT WAS OVER THE INTRO OF A SONG.

I didn’t like the restriction at the time, but looking back, he was right.

If I hear the intro of a song, even if I don’t care for what the deejay is saying, I know he has to shut up as soon as the singer comes on.

I’ve heard stations try to “cheat” on this by playing a music bed under everything, but it doesn’t seem to work very well.

If I hear the music intro to “another one bites the dust“, I know what song is coming on and that the announcer is about to quit talking.If the announcer reads the weather dry then starts the song, I might tune out in the middle of the weather not knowing that the music is about to start.

If he reads the weather over the intro, I’m more likely to stay around because I can hear the music already playing and I know the guy is about to shut up.

Thirdly… there’s a little thing called forward momentum, which is basically… always looking to the future. Keep things moving forward. It would take too long to go into it here, but I have had so many bosses preach this to me, I’ve come to the believe that it’s a good thing. Keep the past in the past and tell people something they can use… tell them what is coming up.

Here’s something I have never understood.

I am probably in the minority on this one.

I love radio station contests and feel they absolutely help in the ratings.

But do we always have to hear a 30 second recorded phone call of the winner?

No one but the winner and his friends care that he/she won.

Don’t waste that much time.

Take caller number 3 and announce his/her name over the intro of the song coming out of a commercial break.

Keep it moving.

There are exceptions.

Specialty programs (Like Randy use to do on KKMY) and if the caller does something unusual.

But, sadly, most of them are identical.

Hi Bob, you are caller number 3...Bob says great… announcer says Bob you just
won a CD. Bob says cool… announcer says Bob what is your favorite
station…Bob says KXYZ.

Great for Bob. Good for the announcers resume tape. Bad for the listeners.

If you have to do this to show the listeners there are others joining in, at least keep it short enough to play over the intro of a song.

I really believe too many radio folks don’t realize how much you can say in 20 seconds (short enough to do it over an intro)

6:30 am .. KXYZ, congrats to bob Jordan our latest mega c-d winner.., keep
listening, another chance to win is coming up on XX-FM your new music
station.

In this example the announcer gave the time, station call letters, told you who won, gave you a reason to stay around, and ended with the station slogan… and did it all in 11 seconds over the intro of a song.

Isn’t this much better than paying a 30 second conversation over a music bed letting me know that someone else won?

I guess I’m set in my ways, but that’s the way I see it.