Absolutely! If it makes money, I like it.
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Entercom's alternative experiment not a success?
- Thread starter tall_guy1
- Start date
That's an opinion of one person. Really more of a blog.
Entercom’s Alternative Format Still Spinning Its Wheels - -The Top 22 -
Severe ratings problems in NYC, LA, and SF are the result of systemic problems with execution... Bythetop22.com
It's not though. Their ratings suck....in the key demos as well ..
It seems you haven't learned much via posts from other professionals who frequently post on this site. Chances are you'll ignore them, but here are just a few of the insider baseball facts from the business:
1. 6+ Ratings published, aren't indicative of whether stations are successful or not. You recognize key demo's, but discount the focus of those demos provided by the format. Once a station has the data, there's a lot of ways to slice it. Demos in dayparts, mobile demos, at home demos, at work demos, streaming demos. Determination of how a format is doing is based on revenue it brings in. Full stop.
2. I know it's hard to fathom, but ratings aren't everything. (gasp) There are financially successful stations/formats who don't even pay for ratings, let alone rely on them. They've established an on-going relationship with agencies or local/regional advertisers who want to reach the audience their format brings in. Sports Radio is a prime example with similar demos to AAA-Alternative; 18-34M. Agencies know that buying sports radio gets them that audience, even if their local 6+ratings are hash marks.
3. Any format hits a low at multiple times in it's life. Sometimes that low is caused by changes, or lack of change in the music industry. More recently, social media sites have shifted younger audiences away from looking-for or finding new music via the radio. Because radio formats are cyclical over time, it's foolish to just abandon a previously successful format without first spending some time to make gradual changes in an effort to increase audience/advertising, without crashing the plane. Many times the changes are subtle, sometimes more extreme. One usually makes those changes to reinforce or bridge an existing format across a time when things are at a low. For successful formats like Alternative-AAA, that means trying to bridge the way people find music now.
4. Changing formats is expensive. REALLY expensive. Smart programmers/groups avoid changing station formats because it's an expensive risk. It's much less risky to repair the house than tear it down and start over.
Am I the only one who thinks the quite frequent invocation of individual names is a bit odd?
Expected coming from arm chair PD's.
The worst part is the angry demands that they be fired, immediately!
Fair point.
And only because the posting party prefers Alice Merton over Magic Mouse, Coldplay, or whatever. First World thinking.
My entire career was spent in print, briefly as a sports writer/photographer, occasionally as a music critic, but mostly on the news copy desk. Radio has always been a hobby. I try to resist the temptation to play armchair PD in a forum run by and mainly for radio professionals, preferring to ask questions of the pros.
I'm not here to beat up on the Tall Guy. I appreciate his, and everyone's passion for the industry that posts on this forum. In spite of being passionate though, sometimes one has to take a step back to see the bigger picture. Just because I don't prefer a certain music mix, doesn't mean I'm endorsing people losing their livelihood.
I agree. The other thing we know is alternative radio stations, regardless of ratings, underperform other formats in terms of revenue. The attraction of the format is in terms of events. With concerts getting back up this summer, we're already seeing some radio companies announcing the return of their events, and that's where the real money is made, not on air.
Yeah, come out come out wherever you are... Good points, but a damning final piece of evidence look up the song jxdn "angels and demons" and listen to it (I'm on my phone so I can't link to it). That's what we as fans hear on a regular basis, and see if that impacts your judgement.
I'm in the industry and have seen numerous criticisms of Audacy's implementation of the "ALT" format. A lot of them are admittedly anonymous, because no one wants to jeopardize their career, but there's plenty of PDs and others actually employed in radio who don't agree with the strategy. It isn't just the fans here.
That being said, their disagreement doesn't mean it won't work - but I think the Marszalek article raises some valid points. Is this the "future" of the alternative format? A new format entirely? I'm certainly not rooting for Kaplan or Audacity to fail, but I think there's healthy skepticism about what's being done.
That being said, their disagreement doesn't mean it won't work - but I think the Marszalek article raises some valid points. Is this the "future" of the alternative format? A new format entirely? I'm certainly not rooting for Kaplan or Audacity to fail, but I think there's healthy skepticism about what's being done.
Giving examples of individual songs is like identifying water dropplets within a swimming pool. You're missing the much larger view. As Andy says; rooting for a company to fail who's experimenting with some changes to their business, is silly at best. It's their format to tweak.
The question is; if the changes eventually get results, will you come on this very site and eat your words?
Yes, I will....I don't know much about gen z's tastes, so it might be all the rage with them, but as someone who was a fan in the past years, I've removed their preset.
How will you know if they change their MO?
I feel like this is almost a rebirth of the Modern AC format but skewing more towards Zoomers. It's a risky gamble; I think it's one that has to be made but I have my criticisms of the methods being used. At least Audacy isn't ignoring the new Coldplay and Modest Mouse songs so I hope that's a sign of a more transitional approach. Problem is, they should have done that to begin with instead of cold turkey so I don't know if this will help. But those are questions for the professionals to work out.
I have a nearby preset. I usually scroll and find them, then scroll back after 3 seconds or so. It's an incredibly narrow playlist, so any kind of change at all will be noticeable...
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Funny thing is kc and Portland responded positively at first with both their numbers rising the first few months. It does seem like better execution would have helped.
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