• Get involved.
    We want your input!
    Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.

    After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
    If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.

    After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
    https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/

    Thanks in advance and have fun!
    RadioDiscussions Administrators

Flip on the 4th

Rusty Bridges

Rusty Bridges

Was a time when at least one station in a large or major market could be counted on to flip format during a holiday weekend... Memorial Day, 4th of July, Labor Day, and the tried and true post-All Christmas flips, usually stations flipping to or from AC. Would it be a surprise to hear a format flip in Buffalo occur this 4th of July weekend, or soon after? Perhaps another Country format in place of an Active Rock or Alternative format?

Purely speculative. No wagering, please.
 
Rusty Bridges said:
Was a time when at least one station in a large or major market could be counted on to flip format during a holiday weekend... Memorial Day, 4th of July, Labor Day, and the tried and true post-All Christmas flips, usually stations flipping to or from AC. Would it be a surprise to hear a format flip in Buffalo occur this 4th of July weekend, or soon after? Perhaps another Country format in place of an Active Rock or Alternative format?

Purely speculative. No wagering, please.
Click to expand...
WBUF is in a Death Spiral. The switch to Classic Rock was ill conceived. It's still unlikely that Townsquare would flip it again this soon.

Cumulus has 3 Rock formats if you count WHTT. They could sacrifice one I suppose. Are you just speculating or leaking info?
Entercom/Audacy should have dumped ALT Buffalo 6 years ago. The idea that it generates NTR with a 1 share is absurd. That's a Pipe Dream. David Field lets the format shamble on year after year because it's supposed to attract hip young affluent demos. It clearly doesn't, but he has tell his Wall Street buddies something...
 
tbolt909 said:
WBUF is in a Death Spiral. The switch to Classic Rock was ill conceived. It's still unlikely that Townsquare would flip it again this soon.

Cumulus has 3 Rock formats if you count WHTT. They could sacrifice one I suppose. Are you just speculating or leaking info?
Entercom/Audacy should have dumped ALT Buffalo 6 years ago. The idea that it generates NTR with a 1 share is absurd. That's a Pipe Dream. David Field lets the format shamble on year after year because it's supposed to attract hip young affluent demos. It clearly doesn't, but he has tell his Wall Street buddies something...
Click to expand...
I'm intrigued as to why WBUF chose a mostly classic rock format considering that there's already 97 Rock, 103.3 The Edge, WHTT, and cross-border Canadian counterparts 97.7 HTZ FM, 91.7 Giant FM, Q107 and Y108 already generally receivable terrestrially. It's very redundant and Townsquare could easily implement a variant rock format not already catered to in the market proper nor by the Canadian local/semi-locals, (even if something a little bold and risky) like a modern rock format with a substantial concentration of songs by emerging acts as well as those that are well known but under-represented on terrestrial radio.

Other than that they could just try to be more like HTZ-FM was years ago but without the obligatory Canadian content quotas. Does anybody else notice that a lot of active rock stations don't seem to actually focus to much on industry chart material anymore? Philadelphia's WMMR seems to be a good model to follow.
 
Mikon8er said:
I'm intrigued as to why WBUF chose a mostly classic rock format
Click to expand...

Looking at the company's main program format choices around the country, they already have a country station, and an urban station in Buffalo. So the likely choices were between classic rock or CHR. The purpose isn't just for the local market, but also how it would factor in their digital strategy and syndication. WBUF clears two of their national rock shows, which was important to the decision.

Philly's WMMR is a heritage rock station, and has that built-in heritage to support it. WBUF really doesn't have that kind of heritage. Had they gone strictly active rock, the results would have been about the same.
 
Mikon8er said:
I'm intrigued as to why WBUF chose a mostly classic rock format.
Click to expand...
Townsquare probably used their research from 1989. It was a "Can't Miss". If you're looking for bold or innovative, you are looking in the wrong place. I don't know how record low ratings leads to Digital growth. I would expect that WBUFs website gets very few visitors...
 
Well...does WLKK pulling the trigger today on a format change(from Alt Buffalo to Buffalo's New Country, 107.7 & 104.7 The Wolf)count?
 
ckg279 said:
Well...does WLKK pulling the trigger today on a format change(from Alt Buffalo to Buffalo's New Country, 107.7 & 104.7 The Wolf)count?
Click to expand...

That's funny. They've been listening to Buddy Shula!

radioinsight.com

Alt Buffalo Flips To Country 107.7/104.7 The Wolf - RadioInsight

Audacy flipped Alternative “Alt 107.7/104.7” WLKK Wethersfield Township/W284AP Buffalo NY to Country “107.7 & 104.7 The Wolf” at 5pm today. Audacy today announced the immediate launch of 107.7FM and 104.7FM The Wolf (WLKK-FM), Buffalo’s new country. Previously known as Alternative Buffalo, the...
radioinsight.com

So now we get to see if a return to the country format will improve ratings for that frequency.

I expect they will run the mid-day and evening shows from WNSH, as do most Audacy country stations.
 
TheBigA said:
That's funny. They've been listening to Buddy Shula!

radioinsight.com

Alt Buffalo Flips To Country 107.7/104.7 The Wolf - RadioInsight

Audacy flipped Alternative “Alt 107.7/104.7” WLKK Wethersfield Township/W284AP Buffalo NY to Country “107.7 & 104.7 The Wolf” at 5pm today. Audacy today announced the immediate launch of 107.7FM and 104.7FM The Wolf (WLKK-FM), Buffalo’s new country. Previously known as Alternative Buffalo, the...
radioinsight.com

So now we get to see if a return to the country format will improve ratings for that frequency.

I expect they will run the mid-day and evening shows from WNSH, as do most Audacy country stations.
Click to expand...
I doubt they pay attention to posts on a message boards. But yeah, that's funny. Kinda. Audacy finally had their fill of the consistently abysmal performance of the Alt format. They considered the coverage of the 104.7 and 107.7 signals, and the amount of money that Townsquare takes out of this market. But just because Audacy flipped to Country doesn't mean they automatically get a five share and beefy AQH Persons. They're gonna have to work for it. Hard. We'll now see how committed Audacy and Audacy Buffalo are committed to this endeavor. It will be most intruiging to watch this play out. And yeah, it'll be good for this board and page views on one of the more active boards Radio-Discussions offers. Will Audacy find a competitive, local, topical morning show? They'll need one to put even a slight dent in the heritage WYRK morning show. And Audacy will need a localized, steady afternoon show to complement morning drive. They might want to think twice before putting on an out-of-market midday show. But hey, it's their geniuses at work, so let's see how they do it.

First take on the imaging, typical template stuff, "Finally a country station built for Western New York..." Maybe Country listeners in Attica, Nunda, Castile, Batavia, Medina and Albion probably will buy that. It's sure to be more to their liking than the previous format on 107.7 and 104.7.
 
I think we all know at least one former WYRK morning show host who's available. If that's the route they choose.
Click to expand...


There are two others who have 'known' Country roots. Will Audacy invest in local talent, or choose to run the Wolf as a Country version of Jack/Bob/Chuck-FM?
 
Rusty Bridges said:
I doubt they pay attention to posts on a message boards. But yeah, that's funny. Kinda. Audacy finally had their fill of the consistently abysmal performance of the Alt format. They considered the coverage of the 104.7 and 107.7 signals, and the amount of money that Townsquare takes out of this market. But just because Audacy flipped to Country doesn't mean they automatically get a five share and beefy AQH Persons. They're gonna have to work for it. Hard. We'll now see how committed Audacy and Audacy Buffalo are committed to this endeavor. It will be most intruiging to watch this play out. And yeah, it'll be good for this board and page views on one of the more active boards Radio-Discussions offers. Will Audacy find a competitive, local, topical morning show? They'll need one to put even a slight dent in the heritage WYRK morning show. And Audacy will need a localized, steady afternoon show to complement morning drive. They might want to think twice before putting on an out-of-market midday show. But hey, it's their geniuses at work, so let's see how they do it.

First take on the imaging, typical template stuff, "Finally a country station built for Western New York..." Maybe Country listeners in Attica, Nunda, Castile, Batavia, Medina and Albion probably will buy that. It's sure to be more to their liking than the previous format on 107.7 and 104.7.
Click to expand...

Maybe, maybe not. CJ Country does a mix of traditional and new country-plus their programming includes high school sports, local news & weather, and agriculture(considering most of the area it covers is rural, that's not a surprise). If The Wolf does ANY of that, I'll be surprised. Odds are, they'll be local in AM & PR drive...and off the bird(or ISDN)at other times.
 
Audacy will operate this "on the cheap"... they don't want to cannibalize sister WBEE in Rochester (1077 signal is pretty good in Rochacha). They just need to post better than a 2 share to beat the Alt Buffalo numbers. They are sending packages out for clients to buy at $1,990 per month called the Wolf Pack. The best income they had was when 1077 did events like Alt's Kerfuffle. Sales people are bailing out...recent losses are Brenda Alesii and Mark Walter... both had been there upwards of 15 years. Tim Holly (GM) is a stooge...no presence and puts little time into the job. He is why valued people like Don Tomasulo, Buddy Shula, have left. Don't expect much with him at the helm. He once asked who Nicholas was at Kiss (after spending 10 years of having his office 50 feet from the Kiss studio). It's embarrassing that David Field knows nothing of this guy's lack of qualifications for his important position.
 
Oldbloodandguts said:
Audacy will operate this "on the cheap"... they don't want to cannibalize sister WBEE in Rochester (1077 signal is pretty good in Rochacha).
Click to expand...
It does not have a 60 dbu signal over about 85% of the Rochester MSA. It's there, but just below the "listenable by the average person" level in most places.

I'd love to know how close to Wayne, Monroe and Ontario counties (about 85% of the MSA population) you can get an average car radio to find it on "seek".
Oldbloodandguts said:
They just need to post better than a 2 share to beat the Alt Buffalo numbers.
Click to expand...
No, they don't. Different format and much different advertiser attitude. Look at the Alt station in Philadelphia: it has a 0.3 power ratio... meaning that it bills about a third of what a station that gets its "fair share" of revenue for its audience size. Country can get a 1 to 1.1 power ratio when well sold.
Oldbloodandguts said:
They are sending packages out for clients to buy at $1,990 per month called the Wolf Pack. The best income they had was when 1077 did events like Alt's Kerfuffle.
Click to expand...
And how many events are Alt stations doing now? And how many artists are touring?
Oldbloodandguts said:
Sales people are bailing out...recent losses are Brenda Alesii and Mark Walter... both had been there upwards of 15 years. Tim Holly (GM) is a stooge...no presence and puts little time into the job. He is why valued people like Don Tomasulo, Buddy Shula, have left.
Click to expand...
Now you are talking about management, not the format. The country format is a much better option for a station that has a signal that is wedged in between two larger markets, covering neither particularly well.
Oldbloodandguts said:
Don't expect much with him at the helm. He once asked who Nicholas was at Kiss (after spending 10 years of having his office 50 feet from the Kiss studio). It's embarrassing that David Field knows nothing of this guy's lack of qualifications for his important position.
Click to expand...
That is not horribly unusual. Most managers came up through sales, and some know nothing about programming, engineering, the back office or anything else.
 
ckg279 said:
Maybe, maybe not. CJ Country does a mix of traditional and new country-plus their programming includes high school sports, local news & weather, and agriculture(considering most of the area it covers is rural, that's not a surprise). If The Wolf does ANY of that, I'll be surprised. Odds are, they'll be local in AM & PR drive...and off the bird(or ISDN)at other times.
Click to expand...
I hate to say this but with all of the migrant farm workers why didn’t they make it a ranchera or tejano station to go with the rural setting. It wouldn’t have made much money but 20 years ago the programming suppliers were paying the bills to get on the air.
 
warsaw35 said:
I hate to say this but with all of the migrant farm workers why didn’t they make it a ranchera or tejano station to go with the rural setting. It wouldn’t have made much money but 20 years ago the programming suppliers were paying the bills to get on the air.
Click to expand...
Tejano is not a "migrant farm worker" format. It is the music of later generation Texans of Hispanic heritage, not of the typically recent immigrant migrant labor person. And "ranchera" is a format of mostly 60-plus seniors, not likely to be the ones traveling crop-to-crop through the area.

You are likely thinking of what is (inaccurately) called "Regional Mexican" based, today, mostly on banda and norteña music and their variants.

Buffalo is only 5% Hispanic; migrant's don't get sampled in radio ratings.
 
I know Buffalo isn’t. But the rural areas have a decent audience. I suppose they stream most of their content but the barns are always rocking the tuba music. Lol
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.


Back
Top Bottom