Gregg, Freddie, and Andrea, MIX 104.1, Boston with Triple True or False

I like trivia a lot.  Especially when it’s easy.  Watch a trivia-based game on TV and it’s highly addictive.  You end up playing along with the game, as your listeners do in their cars.  There are so many creative, very engaging ways to do this.  Compile a list and, when you have things to give out, use them.  They are way better than caller 18 to earn images with those not contesting for the prize.  Gregg, Freddie, and Andrea, MIX 104.1, Boston play Triple True or False.  They have three true/false trivia questions.  If caller 14 gets all of them right, they win.  But if they don’t, caller 15 gets the prize.  The key to creating some drama is to first put both callers on the air so one is rooting against the other.  Here it is as an example.  Bet you play along.

Triple True or False

Triple True or False is a fun game that can be played a few different ways.  #1:  get lots of true/false trivia questions.  Then work the phones.  The first person to get three true/false trivia questions right in a row wins.  The key is to never repeat a question (every caller gets a new set).  Or ask three true/false questions to caller 14.  If they get them all right, they win.  If they miss one, caller 15 gets the prize.  Make sure to conference callers 14 and 15 together on-air so one can root against the other.  Hear it in action on the audio page here.

The AD Show, KSHE, St. Louis with Everyone Rallies For Pot Smoking Patrick

One of the benefits of being a phone-driven show is that you have regular callers, many of whom are quirky characters.  Some shows don’t see the opportunity there.  The AD Show, KSHE, St. Louis does.  Oddball regular callers become part of the show and add much-needed color to many of them.  Think about how David Letterman made stars of the weird people on his staff.  AD and Chris have done the same, embracing every time these folks call the show.  Enter Pot Smoking Patrick.  As Patrick has called in, everyone has gotten to know him.  Then, a touch of humanity.  Patrick shares with the audience that he has cancer.  More stories, more real life.  Hear how the rest of the audience, none of whom know Patrick outside of his appearances on the show, rally around him.  Now, that’s great, memorable  radio.

What Did You Have For Breakfast?

Here’s a new Letterman-esque idea you can put in the grab bag and do on occasion.  Get a quirky What Did You Have For Breakfast jingle (AI can do that for you) and open the phones, asking listeners what they had for breakfast.  Sure you’ll get the standard answers of cereal and eggs and bacon.  But what you’re looking for are the people who have the off-menu items like bags of potato chips and beer.

Promo No No’s

Apple has new devices for sale.  Even though they’re one of the world’s most recognizable brands, they’ll still market the hell out of them.

This week, let’s tackle marketing your morning show.  No, I’m not gonna suggest you buy a TV campaign and billboards (even though they could probably use them).  You don’t have the resources, and I know that.  So, I’ll save the space.

But let’s engage on how you use your station to promote your premiere talent and their shows.  Namely, promos.

I love when brand managers decide to run promos.  The question I always ask is:  what are you going to promote?  What’s our marketing message?  I tend to get back a mish mash of everything:

“Let’s promote their next day’s content.”  Or “we’ll talk about the prizes they have to give out.”  Or “we should do some character development outside the daypart, so the audience knows who’s on the show.”  I get several other suggestions.  None with a strategic theme that helps the show win.

I’ve learned much over the years about show promos.  My thinking on this has evolved more than anything else associated with its success.  Let me wade through all the options.  Most of them are promo no no’s.  I’ll land on the one I think is most viable.

  1. Let’s promote the plot of the show. This is a “promo no” because this is too esoteric for the audience to get.  It’s just words to those hearing it.  They must consume the plot in action to feel it.  Think:  if you saw a promo that Seinfeld was “the show about nothing” you’d scratch your head.  But watch it and you get it.
  2. Let’s promote our characters. This is a “promo no”, even with clips.  It’s so hard to feel someone in the short time allotted to promos.  How can I get what you’re all about in a 20 second clip from the show?  I really need to hear the story or break in real time to get a sense of who you are.
  3. Let’s have the station voice tell the audience how fun and real the show is. This is a “promo no”.  I worry all the audience hears is hype and hyperbole.
  4. Let’s tell the audience the content they’ll do tomorrow. This is a “promo no” because free flowing content breaks are not appointment listening.  One minute after you’ve told them, thousands of other messages bombard their brain and they’ve forgotten what you said.  And anyway, it’s not likely I’m coming back tomorrow because you’re doing a phone topic at 7:30 or will read that letter about the relationships drama at 8:15.  If you’re really, really, really doing something unique and special tomorrow, this doesn’t apply – promote that!
  5. Let’s promote the prizes you can win tomorrow. This is a “promo definitely no”.  That promo talks to only contest players, which is about 2% of your audience.  We need to worry about earning images with the other 98% and that’s about content.
  6. Let’s run clips of the show to reinforce images. Hmmm…I’ll take it.  Any promo that proves via clips how fun things are, how real the talent is, how relevant the content is, or how unique/different the show is will work.
  7. Let’s promote the show’s signature feature – the guaranteed moment everyone loves and is entertained by. Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding.  We have a winner!  Every show needs to be known for something.  If your signature feature works then promote the hell out of it every hour.  Burn it in further.  Make sure 100% of your cume knows of this fun daily benchmark.  The more who know, the better your images, the more tune-ins.

Promos can play to one’s head (“we’re going to do this thing tomorrow at this time”) or one’s heart (I have an emotional reaction).  Play to their hearts with promos.  Make them feel something so it resonates:  I don’t like the brand of car I drive.  I love it.  My laptop doesn’t just get the job done.  I love my MacBook Pro.  Go for that.

Human beings are not logical creatures.  We are emotional beings.  Emotional attachment forms relationships. Continue to build your one thing and make me feel it.  I promise it’ll work.

Number seven is the smartest route because every positive image earned from a signature feature transfers to the show.  If the feature is fun and relevant, so is your talent.

Good things come to people who focus.  If we do a combo of the above, none of it will stick (and much of it is non-strategic).  But if we put all the klieg lights on one thing (your big thing), then it stands its best chance of cutting through, being remembered, and having a positive impact for you and the show.

George, Mo, and Erik, KILT-FM (The Bull), Houston with Tattoo Regrets

We are a story-telling medium.  That’s what we do best.  Stories are how we introduce ourselves to others.  Stories define us.  In any format, but especially in country.  Because every great country song tells a story.  Here’s George, Mo, and Erik, KILT-FM (The Bull), Houston with tattoo regret calls.  A few things to note:  first, the “why” is the most important part of anything we do.  Why is this content on the show?  Mo’s husband has a tattoo he doesn’t like.  Other items to highlight:  the setup from the show is super short.  The win of this for listeners is hearing a caller’s story.  They get to that in under twenty seconds.  Finally, there’s great character development at the end when Mo’s father calls to tell his story (it’s wild).  Know your why, be relatable, tell stories, involve listeners, and get to it quickly.  The recipe for a terrific content break.

Can We Talk To You On Monday?

Shows that ask listeners on Friday what they’re doing that weekend are really smart.  It’s a question all co-workers ask in the office that day.  With some phone screening, you air the most interesting.  Then, for one that grabs you, ask if you can talk with them on Monday to see how it went.

Daly/Migs Show, 99.9 KISW, Seattle with Lily Hates Metallica

If you ever need to construct a break and get stumped at how to create conflict (a disparity or incompatibility in how something is viewed), just think “what’s the opposite of this”.  The big story last weekend in Seattle was two Metallica concerts after years of not being in the market.  This is a big deal to rock fans and the Daly/Migs Show, 99.9 KISW, Seattle needed to own it in content.  Yea, other rock shows had tickets, too.  But this is about what’s done with Metallica content that competitors won’t think to do.  The opposite of a metal head is to play some of their music for a kid.  Enter Danny V, who’s on the show and has a ten-year old, who’s never heard the group.  Listen to Lily’s reactions.  To extend the content, the rest of the show did it with their kids the next day at the same time.  All of it adorable, character defining, funny, and relevant.  This is great ideation on that relevant and local topic.

Drunk at the Debate

Trump and Harris are having their only debate this week.  The question is how do you tap into this highly familiar topic without it being about politics?  Easy, peasy.  Do Drunk at the Debate.  Get audio from both and doctor it so they sound drunk.  Make sure to do both and then ponder why they’d have cocktails before the event.

Are Your Teases Google Proof?

There are two reasons to tease content.  I bet you only know one of them.  Before we get to that, let’s hit the way-back machine and join Steve, a few weeks ago, as he sits in his home-office, listening to a show in his blue, terry cloth Land’s End bathrobe…

Dateline Friday, August 23, 2024, 6:51am in Steve’s house while streaming a morning show:  “Hailey and Justin Bieber had a baby last night.  We’ll tell you the name they chose right after we play some Ed Sheeran.”

Dateline Friday, August 23, 2024, 6:52am:  Steve Googles that exact tease and finds out it’s Jack.  Now I can grab a coffee, look at Facebook, or check out another show.

Let’s agree that that’s an ineffective tease.  Why?  Because I can Google the answer.  Not like your listener actually will.  But it’s not very inspiring or intriguing to get me to stay with you.

I wanna talk about teases this week.  But let’s back up for a second.  Why do we tease content in radio?  The traditional answer (and the one I get most often):  so listeners stay and we extend TSL.  I’ll take it, but it doesn’t always work.  Listeners have ADD and when they think of something else (or get to their destination), that tease is long forgotten.  It just doesn’t have anything that hooks the audience and ends up being very tactical.

The strategic reason to tease is to intrigue the audience with something they can’t get anywhere else so they actually do stay.  Here, you gain an image that something special is about to happen, so they return to the show the next day out of a fear of missing out.

What is that unique thing only you have for that content?  The item they can’t find out on Google?   You only come up with that in prep and ideation and that’s the thing you tease.

Like this instead: “Hailey and Justin Bieber had a baby last night.  We’ll talk next to a nurse who was in the delivery room to find out why they named their kid Jack.”

See the difference in the effectiveness of the two?  A great tease notes the story then leaves out a big element they can only get from you if they stay.

Teases can’t be throwaways.  If they’re going to serve the two goals above of extending TSL and creating intrigue, we must not only prep for those goals, but write teases before the show to have impact.  When I was on-the-air, I was the king of coming up with teases on the fly.  As I reflect, almost all of them had no consequence to keeping listeners tuned in.

Today, with so many choices for connection and entertainment, we must spend more time creating our content breaks to be special, then crafting a tease to communicate that.

Pull all your teases from the last few days.  See how many of them pass the test:  are they Google proof?