Radio in low population and distant communities is a totally different animal from radio we know. KCGM in Scobey, Montana inspired this writing.
To an outsider it appears a very expensive to operate FM station operates from a town of 1,000 and only a few hundred more humans in the coverage area. Surely there can’t be much business and certainly the station cannot make money.
Once you are in a spot where cell phones don’t work a few miles out of town, the internet needs serious upgrading and simply isn’t worth getting out of the town and cable TV is about the only connection to the outside world. Even those TV channels seem blissfully unaware your county exists.
Weather is a big factor. In a place like Scobey, venturing out on a snowy night is dangerous and may be life-threatening.
There is only one spot to get info locally. It’s the local radio station and except for that religious translator, the only other radio options are mostly 100+ miles away. The radio station is Facebook in audio form.
If there were ratings you were selling, it might start with everybody listens but this short list of people.
Almost every dollar of retail sales is local. Going out of town to shop might be once a year. You actually want to buy locally so your merchant sticks around. You might even think twice about ordering from Amazon.
The merchants don’t need to advertise, it seems. For the merchant it is quite important. They need to financially support what locals perceive as essential services. The radio station is essential because people count on it for local info.
You might need 10 times the retail sales elsewhere to sell as much as you do in advertising in an isolated spot. And those big ranches have tons of cash to spend to support their herds.
1,600 people in a county might not sound like much but when everybody is supporting your station, it is ample enough to pay the bills. No this is no cash cow but it is self supporting if you are careful with expenses.
I understand the Scobey, Montana radio station is for sale. As I recall, the bank is ready to loan money on it. Banks don’t loan on dead in the water ventures. They loan money on investments that can return that money plus interest.
I’d even suspect if a real cash crunch hit the station, some local folks would pony up the cash because radio in such a place is truly essential, somewhat the heart of the area.
And yes, I recall the Scobey station operates 6am to10pm Monday through Saturday and is off the air Sundays. And it’s live during all those hours.
To an outsider it appears a very expensive to operate FM station operates from a town of 1,000 and only a few hundred more humans in the coverage area. Surely there can’t be much business and certainly the station cannot make money.
Once you are in a spot where cell phones don’t work a few miles out of town, the internet needs serious upgrading and simply isn’t worth getting out of the town and cable TV is about the only connection to the outside world. Even those TV channels seem blissfully unaware your county exists.
Weather is a big factor. In a place like Scobey, venturing out on a snowy night is dangerous and may be life-threatening.
There is only one spot to get info locally. It’s the local radio station and except for that religious translator, the only other radio options are mostly 100+ miles away. The radio station is Facebook in audio form.
If there were ratings you were selling, it might start with everybody listens but this short list of people.
Almost every dollar of retail sales is local. Going out of town to shop might be once a year. You actually want to buy locally so your merchant sticks around. You might even think twice about ordering from Amazon.
The merchants don’t need to advertise, it seems. For the merchant it is quite important. They need to financially support what locals perceive as essential services. The radio station is essential because people count on it for local info.
You might need 10 times the retail sales elsewhere to sell as much as you do in advertising in an isolated spot. And those big ranches have tons of cash to spend to support their herds.
1,600 people in a county might not sound like much but when everybody is supporting your station, it is ample enough to pay the bills. No this is no cash cow but it is self supporting if you are careful with expenses.
I understand the Scobey, Montana radio station is for sale. As I recall, the bank is ready to loan money on it. Banks don’t loan on dead in the water ventures. They loan money on investments that can return that money plus interest.
I’d even suspect if a real cash crunch hit the station, some local folks would pony up the cash because radio in such a place is truly essential, somewhat the heart of the area.
And yes, I recall the Scobey station operates 6am to10pm Monday through Saturday and is off the air Sundays. And it’s live during all those hours.
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