I’m frustrated and annoyed with many of the managers in the broadcast industry. We manage the most powerful and persuasive media in the world and we don’t use it to market ourselves!
When was the last time you heard anything on a newscast about new research outlining broadcast’s continuing dominance in the new media landscape?
Let me answer; "Probably never"!
And yet, the news of our strength is often important enough for other media to report.
Look at this excerpt from a recent article in USA Today;"The digital revolution may not be as revolutionary as believed according to a Nielsen 360 Music Study that found listeners more in tune with friend’s tips and radio, than blogs and social networking. Results indicate that the airwaves remain a dominant influence; 43% discover music most often through radio, while 13% are alerted to new tunes and acts via friends and relatives and 8% by watching YouTube".
If this kind of news is important enough for other media to publish, shouldn’t it be important enough for the benefactors of this news; radio, to publish?
And I seldom see or hear any ads on the air about the power of radio or TV advertising.
Yet daily, I’ll pass signs and billboards that say something like, "You just proved signs work".
I guess it’s because the outdoor folks have avails and we’re sold out.
If you search most station websites, you wouldn’t believe they sell advertising. Most sites have nothing about advertising, how to use our media, or even who to contact if you want to advertise.
I’ve actually had sales managers tell me, "We can’t budget for branding or advertiser education. We need immediate, measurable results that branding can’t give us" (I hope their advertisers never hear them say that!).
Then they claim ‘accountability’ by ‘measuring’ and taking credit for a package blitz to known advertisers who were already going to buy. Seldom do they actually convert non-advertisers to their stations.
Based upon what I hear, or should I say, "don’t hear", around the country about broadcast advertising, I can only surmise we’re all happy with the old system of churning through poorly-trained reps as our only means of marketing and new business development.
The irony is, there are a few stations around the continent that actually do brand and market themselves very successfully. And even though they face increased competition, they do experience growth, and more importantly, maintain profit margins that would be the envy of almost any other business category.
The catch words in marketing today are ‘accountable’ and ‘measureable’.
In our business, the only sustainable ‘measure’ is annual sales increases and profit margins. Annual sales are a combination of renewal increases and new business development, and sustainable margins can be as much a function of rate integrity as cost control.
And as for ‘accountable’? That’s what mirrors are for!

If you want to increase your local-direct sales in 2013 and beyond contact Wayne Ens , of ENS Media Inc. at [email protected].