Archive for category: Planet Reynolds

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 fun to listen to and “I feel like I know them.”

Those are the images you want:  fun and authenticity.

Great shows Conquer Content and Create Connection.  If authenticity for any brand is paramount, what is that in radio?  What is effective character development?  As you plan your show or evaluate it as a Brand Manager, there are two ways to effectively and positively define your talent:

• In whatever topic you’re talking about, are you being honest with the audience? Years ago, when I was on-the-air, our consultant told me that I had to talk about the TV show Melrose Place because it was #1.  While I certainly had a working knowledge of the program, I hated it.  I asked the consultant if I could share that.  He said no, because it was #1 and that meant “everyone loved it”.  That didn’t pass the smell test for creating connection to me.  I disagreed with the advice, and we ignored the topic because I couldn’t be honest.  You do you.  Have a knowledge of and take on everything going on now.  Then forge honest conversations with your team and do interesting things from those perspectives and you will define who you are.
• Share those parts of your life that prove to the audience you’re just like them. That doesn’t mean everything is fair game.  Understand everyone’s addiction to drama.  If your story doesn’t have drama, you don’t have good content.  The lines were long at the ice cream shop might be relatable, but it isn’t interesting.  The lines were long and three Karens showed up to scream at the manager and one got arrested is.  Brene Brown said that “vulnerability is the birthplace of belonging, acceptance, creativity, and empathy.”  Let me in and that connection starts to happen.

This is not code for talk more about yourself.  It’s a balance that creates an engaging dynamic.

Think about your personal circle of friends who are honest and vulnerable.  You actively choose to be around them because they are those two items above.  That’s called cume and TSL.  And it’s a must if you’re going to develop a significant relationship with your audience.

Radio’s survival rests on the ability of personalities to form stronger human connections.  It’s a super power TV and podcasts don’t have.  Only radio does.

If you can’t share who you really are, you can’t create a genuine connection with your listener.  If you fail at creating connection, you’ll just be another bland option for those in search of people just like them who can tell stories that entertain and engage.

But, curate and prep your content to do the above?  Well, that could be lethal.

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 different when Rory McIlroy won.

A friend and very successful talent penned what’s below. He makes a terrific point I’ve noted in previous Planet Reynolds. Radio’s relevance has eroded over the years. Sometimes because of increased competition and at other times because of content choices. That’s the case in this one.

The writer wanted to remain anonymous so you could focus on his message. So, we’ll call him Gary the Golf Guy. Here’s Gary’s story about Rory McIlroy and relevance.  It applies not just to spoken word radio, but for those in music radio, too.

Masters Monday: A Listener’s Journey

On my usual drive into the station, I flip on the local News/Talk to catch up on headlines, weather, and traffic. But not today. It was the Monday after The Masters. And if you’re like me, you know that that tournament hits differently. The tradition, the history, the Sunday drama—it was everything. Rory. DeChambeau. Rose. Jack, Arnie, and Tiger—oh my!

So naturally, I went all-in on Sports Talk radio. I was craving takes, analysis, emotion—anything to keep the Masters high alive. First stop: a national show diving deep into the front office moves of a third-tier NBA team. Click. Next: another national show, but this time…NFL talk. In April?

I get to the office, turn on the TV, and boom—local and national news both leading with Rory highlights every 15 minutes. Validation! I wasn’t crazy. This was the sports story of the day.

Surely the ride for about 20 minutes during lunch would bring redemption, right? First local show: five minutes on whether people even care about The Masters (uh, what?)…then back to the NFL Draft. Again, in April?

So…do people care? I saw the ratings—20 million at the peak. That’s 2006 American Idol territory. Yeah, people cared.

Next local show: they’re breaking down a former NFL player’s new (much younger) girlfriend. Entertaining? Sure. But that’s not what I came for. Finally, I land on a fifth (local) show on my way home in the afternoon and there it was: all Rory, all the time. Rory is a choke-artist takes. Golfers are soft debates. Callers chiming in. Laughter, passion, back-and-forths about moving the pin on the 16th hole. LIV vs PGA. They delivered The Master’s meal I was hungry for and it was delicious.

Days like today should be enjoyed by on-air talent because you don’t have to do any heavy lifting! The content/drama was served to you by someone in a beautiful Green Jacket!

Two quick notes:

1. No, I didn’t listen to every minute of every show. Maybe the others hit on The Masters eventually. But in my 25-minute commute(s), only one show of the five nailed it.  If you’re not on the big topic when listeners tune in for their few minutes, you get zero credit for being on it. Don’t make that mistake.

2. That fifth show? It’s been #1 in its time slot for over 15 years—and it shows. They crushed it by focusing on what their listeners were thinking about. And spoiler alert: it wasn’t the NFL. In April.

When a big story appears, they become shiny objects. We go towards them until the next shiny object appears. Rory was a shiny object. If we don’t feed that need in radio, we’ll just be another bland, boring, irrelevant choice for listeners that day on their journey for connection.

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.  A critical item must be noted that helps their popularity.

I’ll often explain a feature’s success from a strategic point-of-view.  Today, let me tackle the success of a trivia feature psychologically.

Every trivia game isn’t about the person on the phone.  That player is a conduit to your having fun and doing content directed at everyone not on the phone.  But its success is about how addictive it can be to those thousands of people in their cars playing along.  What are they looking for?  Fun, yes.  But…

When you ask a player on the air trivia questions in a game and tell them if they’re right or wrong, if the listener in their car gets it right in their head, you give them a hit of dopamine.  You make them feel smarter.  Ask a bunch of trivia questions, every one the listener gets right is another dopamine hit for those in cars who get it right, too.

If they leave the feature feeling smarter, they come back for more the next day for the same reason.  That makes your feature addictive.  (Kinda like if I share a compliment every time I see you, you want to see me more!)

The converse is true, too.  Some trivia features seem to have as a goal to ask hard questions so the person on the phone and those in cars playing along struggle.  Don’t do that!!!  Your fans in cars playing along just woke up and they have limited mental bandwidth.  If you force them to think too hard, they’ll bail, believing your feature is too difficult (hence, no dopamine hits).

Evaluate your trivia feature.  Is it unique in its presentation?  Are you focused on what really makes it successful – people in cars?  And are you dishing out the dopamine, so they get addicted and come back for more?

What’s it like to listen to 7-8 hours of morning radio each day?  Well, you’ll need to sit with me each morning to find out.  Each show gets one hour of listening so I can get a sense of what they’re up to.

The goal for any show and any talent is to conquer content and create connection.  One of the most satisfying aspects of coaching is when I hear talent do that effortlessly.

Many of these shows are mine, some aren’t.  That’s where this list comes in.  There are certain small things shows do that, at the end of the day, have a minimal impact on their perceptions and ratings.  But enough to catch my ear and become a pet peeve.  I released volume one which you can find here.

It’s time for a fresh ten we’ll call volume two:

1. Reading texts and Facebook posts instead of curating listener phone calls. I know that’s how many listeners interact with shows now, but we still must craft breaks that sparkle with more than chatter. Hearing other listeners voices do that.
2. Teasing what prizes you have to win. There’s very limited appeal to that tease.  Promoting your content will impact 100% of your audience. They come for content.  Not to win something.
3. Changing something about your show because you got a few complaints online. Those four people might be wrong.
4. The phrase “everyone loves it”.  Unless you’ve surveyed 100% of your fans, that could be wrong, too.  Not to discount that those people do love “it” but that doesn’t mean everyone does.  Everyone is not five people.  Another vote for being strategic.
5. Things like tweaking your processing or getting new jingles or sweepers and believing they will change the perceptions of your show and the ratings will go up. Not that you shouldn’t update your presentation, but doing it doesn’t have the impact some think it does.
6. Shows that think they should move their benchmarks around so lots of people hear them. That’s a solid mistake to make.  You can’t groom an appointment at a certain time and then take that bowl of ice cream away from those who make that feature part of their daily routine.
7. Use of first-person words (I, me, mine). I have this to give out; I’m going to do this next; Call me now.  It should be:  We have this to give out.  Call us now.  We’re going to do this next.  Your story or opinion is first person.  All else is collective.  Don’t send the signal to your teammates that it’s your show.  What we do is ours.
8. Shows that air guests (callers or interviews) and then dominate the conversation. Once the guest or caller comes on, they should be the center-of-the-universe.
9. Talent who rarely say the name of the show or station on the back side of the break. You just did a great content.  Remind the audience who did it, so you get the credit!
10. Shows that forget there are tons of people checking them out for the first time every morning. Do resets so they feel a part of the family as a first-time listener.  I recently listened to a show for the first time that had two guys as the co-hosts.  Their names are very similar.  I left a few hours later not knowing who was who.  Not good.  The anchors on Eyewitness News in your market have been there for decades.  They still reset their newscast coming out of commercials.  You’d be shocked at the number of tenured shows that forget this.

I know you’ll be excited to hear I have enough for future collections.  Have one?  Let me know here.

The BLUF (Bottom Line Up Front):  The new year brings an appropriate moment to re-affirm your content strategy and clean up your show for a better listener experience that results in higher ratings.

Why It Matters:  We are not in the radio business anymore.  We are in the experience business.  Years ago, Best Buy was awful to enter.  Salespeople hovered because they were on commission.  The stores were dingy and old.  They were on the road to becoming the next Circuit City.  Then, they got smart.  They redesigned the stores to be brighter, installed interactive areas, and took the salespeople (who all knew we’d just go to Amazon to buy whatever we were looking for) off commission so they were there to genuinely help.  They improved their in-store experience so we enjoyed going there.  We need to do the same.

Ever open that catch-all drawer in your kitchen looking for the menu to the Chinese restaurant only to wade through zillions of paperclips, pens and rubber bands, scissors and coupons, and 14 other menus?  The start of a new year is a great time to clean it out, so things are streamlined and what’s left matters and stands out.

If you are a Brand Manager or leader of a show, here’s Part 1 of things to work on.  I’ll do half now and the balance in the next Planet Reynolds.

What You’re All About:

• Everyone might have a different sense of your content strategy. With time we lose focus of things like this.  Affirm it so everyone is on the same page.
• Do a short listener profile so you know your target audience, discussing, too, how their values match yours.
• Understand why the audience comes to you. What are they looking for when they turn you on?  How are you at delivering that?

Review Character Development:

• What are the attributes of each person on the show – the major connection points they offer to develop loyalty with a like-minded group of listeners?
• How are the cast members different from one another? Especially if you have two people of the same gender, how do you help them create separate personas?
• How do you generate story-based personal content to drive who you are? How can that be elevated to get more so you become a personality-driven show?

Playing the Hits:

Content must be strategically chosen. Where will you find that?  Planet Reynolds readers know I believe four areas are best:

• • Pop Culture (because pop = popular = familiar).
  • What’s up locally if you are a live and local show?
  • The appropriate parts of your life so the audience can connect with you.
  • Music-based content so you are part of the larger station brand and not siloed.
    

Benchmarks and Icons:

• Review your benchmarks and features. If your benchmarks have been on for a while, should you update their presentation, so they have a fresh coat of paint?
• What new features can you add to the show in 2025, so your fans are always getting a fresh, innovative product?
• What’s iconic about your brand? If a focus group were done on your show, what 1-2 items would come up unaided by typical listeners in the room?  How do you help make that happen?
• How do you make your show’s signature feature even bigger? That’s not about the prize you attach to it (if a game) but how do you increase its exposure so more people know about it?

The 15-Second Game:

Let’s play a fun game to wrap up Part 1.  Grab ten random breaks from last week’s shows and listen to only the first 15-seconds of each, then stop the audio.  Is enough done in those 15 seconds that would compel listeners to stay for another fifteen seconds?  In other words, are you doing content by then or forcing the audience to wade through paperclips, pens, and tons of menus?  If the morass of up-front promotion and process chatter stands in the way of getting to actual content (the reason the listeners come), clean it up.

That’s enough for now.

Part 2 comes next where we’ll cover promotion of your show, its imaging, show prep, your digital efforts, and a street campaign.

I do this because I want radio to be an epic, unique choice for listeners.  If you have questions on the above, feel free to reach out here.  Doesn’t matter to me if I work with you or not because I believe in radio.