Why Sign Up For Planet Reynolds?
Anyone who works with me will quickly learn that I’m not usually a fan of “lists” for on-air bits (no lists of birthdays, please).
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But here, I’m breaking my own rule, as I give you the top 10 reasons to subscribe to Planet Reynolds, my monthly newsletter. Cue the David Letterman music . . .
10 It’s FREE.
9 This newsletter will help change your approach to developing compelling content—for the better.
8 You’ll start thinking more creatively AND strategically—automatically. Yes, even in your sleep!
7 You’ll gain a new and deeper appreciation for your listeners’ needs—and how your team can meet them.
6 You’ll start to live and breathe my mantra: be FAIR to be GREAT. (FAIR stands for Funny, Authentic, Innovative, Relatable. Read more about it here.)
5 You’ll find new ways to talk strategy with your talent—ways that will make sense to them.
4 It’s also GREEN. (No trees will be harmed in the making of this newsletter.)
3 Regular practice of my strategic approach will help turn listeners into your BIGGEST fans (and not the scary kind, although some will still send you listener food).
2 Rumor has it that regular reading of this newsletter could result in a slimmer build and better sleep!
1 You’re guaranteed to laugh, learn, and laugh some more.
The Kennedy Connection
Two summers ago, in a brainstorm in Boston with MIX 104.1’s Karson and Kennedy, we were tasked with developing a big, new idea to combat depressed summer cume. Lots of folks were on vacation or not paying attention to radio and we all wanted to do something big to capture the imagination of the audience […]
The Blog That Saves Your Job
I’m told the story of the market manager who went to find the morning show at 10am to congratulate them on their great ratings the day prior and they’d already left. Seriously, that still happens in radio? Yup. We’re not so much in the radio business as we are in the business of radio. A […]
It’s National Steve Reynolds Day (And Other Things You Don’t Care About!)
Be honest, where is your enthusiasm and interest level on a scale of 1-10 knowing that it’s National Steve Reynolds Day? If you said it was resting comfortably at a zero, I’d get it. I’m Steve Reynolds and even I don’t care. And yet I listen to some personalities who think telling me that this […]
Taylor Didn’t Wait – Neither Should You
I’m turning over the blog this week to one of the smartest people in radio. Jim Ryan consults, coaches talent, and is one of my closest friends. After nearly thirty years programming day-to-day in New York City for immensely successful brands like WLTW, CBS-FM, and WNEW-FM, along with growing national formats for Clear Channel, CBS, […]
The One Thing Missing from Morning Show Bootcamp (And It Isn’t You)
Early August brings the tradition of the Morning Show Bootcamp. This year in Austin. A few hundred personalities who believe in radio gather to improve, grow, and network. As I reflect on the many I’ve attended, there’s one thing always missing that you should know. Before I reveal that, an admission… When I’m working with […]
Seizing the Scandal – The Coldplay Couple and Creative Relevance
Stephen Colbert, in a 2018 interview with Howard Stern said, “My show is about whatever the conversation is today. We’re about what the audience is talking about right now.” The big story last week was the couple that got caught cheating at the Coldplay concert. I need to tell you no more because it was […]
The Button Fans Wish They Could Hit
Have you ever watched the latest installment of a favorite Netflix show and not hit the “skip intro” button that appears on the screen? We always hit that button. TV shows living in the yesteryear had memorable, sing-along theme songs we can all still recall. Who doesn’t know the name of the bar where everyone […]
Steve’s Pet Peeves – Volume 3
When you listen to 7-8 hours of radio each day like I do (each hour a different show), you’re bound to hear things that bug you. Most days, shows are hitting it out the park. They’re on the right topics cut from that day’s pop culture, things going on locally, and stories about their lives […]
If You Think You Can’t, You’re Right
An actual conversation recently had with a talent: Steve Reynolds: “To make that idea ever bigger, why don’t we invite the sports guy from channel 4 to do a humorous play-by-play?” Talent: “He can’t come in when we’re on because he isn’t awake.” Steve Reynolds: “You’re right, because you said ‘can’t’.” Can’t. Won’t. C’mon […]
Creating Credible Connections
All the ratings gimmickry in the world can’t beat a personality who is emotionally connected to his or her listeners. When starting with a show, I ask what two unaided things they want the audience to say about them in two years. Almost every time I get back the right answers: that the show is […]
Six Step Show Prep
The next time you get on a plane, glance to your left before walking down the aisle to your seat. Those two pilots, whether young or grizzled veterans, have one thing in common with every other pilot on every plane you’ll ever be on. They have a flight plan to get you from here to […]
They Missed the Cut (Pun Intended)
I love sports, but hate golf. Many of my friends play and I’ve never understood the appeal of a venture that so frustrates and angers people. That said, I adore The Masters and am glued to its final round every April. I cry tears of joy when someone wins their green jacket. It was no […]
The Overused Talent Excuse
Which brings me to Facebook and an exchange I had with a morning talent about relevance and appearing tone deaf to the audience. I was listening to a show in another market getting nailed with bad weather. With snow falling, here’s the show’s content that morning: hacks on how to vacuum your house better, a […]
Trivia Done Right – Dishing Out the Dopamine
In many of the focus groups I conduct or see, a show’s trivia feature usually scores well. Ever wonder why? If uniquely presented, they are vicarious. All game shows on TV are trivia-based yet every one is different – Who Wants to be a Millionaire and The Weakest Link are both trivia games done differently. […]
Be Bold or Get Cold
The BLUF (bottom line up front): Radio doesn’t have a listening problem. It has a top-of-mind-awareness problem. For whatever reasons (and there are many – looking at you corporate lawyers, over-worked brand managers who might be scared to take a chance, and morning talent who enjoy their comfort zones) much of what we do is […]