• 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

93.3 WLZT is now going by "Soft Rock 93.3"

J

jhc2010

Anyone notice that WLZT is now referred to "Soft Rock 93.3"? It's been like this for a few days now.

When they switched their on-air name to WLZT a few years ago, I figured it would fail. Call letters tell nothing about the station.

I think this just leaves WNCI and WCOL as the only stations on the FM side that simply go by their call letters at all points during the hour.
 
Noticed this on Satruday. Looks like they've softened up the playlist a bit to follow the new name... a lot of Chicago and Rod Stewart. They were really sounding more Hot AC before this, but that would be too close to WNCI, wouldn't it? Roo? Comments?
 
xiradiodotcom said:
Noticed this on Satruday. Looks like they've softened up the playlist a bit to follow the new name... a lot of Chicago and Rod Stewart. They were really sounding more Hot AC before this, but that would be too close to WNCI, wouldn't it? Roo? Comments?
Click to expand...

I noticed the softening, too. I wonder if they've started choosing the music locally, or maybe moved to a new version of Preimum Choice. The PC format they had been using was indeed a bit "hotter" sounding, if inconsistently. But mainstream AC has moved in that direction -- usually to an even greater extent than in 93.3’s just-abandonded approach. What used to be considered edgy (e.g., “Little Pink Houses,” “Little Red Corvette”) is more mainstream now. One real indicator of this is that when I’m on hold with Walgreen’s pharmacy, it’s not at all surprising to hear, say, Led Zeppelin. (WSNY had moved only a tad hotter, and looks like it may be “re-softening” some itself...maybe a preemptive move against 93.3’s changes?)

Maybe there was *some* possibility of demo overlap with NCI under 93.3's just-abandonded approach. But probably not all that much, given that 93.3 was still heavily gold-oriented despite playing more currents than they used to. And, like most Top 40’s (even conservative ones), WNCI plays virtually no gold these days.

One thing that may figure into 93.3’s change (which, make no mistake, remains an abhorrent waste of 93.3's city-grade signal) is that lots of the "hotter" older stuff LZT *had* started playing via PC has started getting airplay on the Brew, since the Brew's move toward "female friendly classic rock”...think 80’s Eurhythmics, Human League, Level 42, Huey Lewis. Of course, like all changes 105.7 has made in the past it is can be pretty inconsistently implemented: One hour you might hear 4 tunes from artists like those, and the next hour none.

BTW, it’s nice to see CC/Columbus making some substantive changes of any kind, even if 93.3 remains an ugly pock-mark. I do think the changes at 105.7 may have legs IF they can work on consistency. I’ve seen some progress on that count, but in fits and starts.
.
 
This is was what was intended for the duplicate post just before this one:

P.S. Futher explanation of why NCI-LZT overlap shouldn't be an issue:

Look at how Saga has two varieties of AC in the same market -- (softish) mainstream AC on 94.7 and hot AC on 107.9. In Dayton CC has both a "hotish" mainstream AC and a "not-overly-soft" soft AC. Both AC's are gold-heavy and both do extremely well (on good signals, of course).
 
You're correct, Nu. We're programming 93.3 locally now. (My friends at Sunny are officially on notice.) :)

Premium Choice absolutely has it's place in our company, but in situations where there's a strong upside, local programming is almost always preferred.

And while many might decry what you call a waste of a city-grade signal, rest assured that cluster strategies are always more important than the individual stations that make up the cluster.
 
Florentino said:
And while many might decry what you call a waste of a city-grade signal, rest assured that cluster strategies are always more important than the individual stations that make up the cluster.
Click to expand...

It's sad to see radio run as a strategy and not as a service.
 
Even if one fully acknowledges that the cluster is paramount, it's been demonstrated repeatedly that there can be multiple -- and often highly divergent -- ways to deploy the secondary stations for the cluster's benefit, without changing or endangering the cash cows.

93.3 has done soft AC before. As low as its non-Christmas ratings were then, and will be again, it's hard to believe that that the cluster benefits that accrue from relegating 93.3 to a thorn-to-Sunny role can't be exceeded by something a little more differentiated. If there's any market where it can pay to be a little more proactive with a good signal instead of relegating it to a lower-priority pawn of the cluster, this should be it. That signal is a MAJOR asset in Columbus. The great upside this presents for the cluster sure isn't being maximized.

BTW, nice to see you posting here, Florentino. I miss seeing JbC's occasional posts. (Of course, maybe I contributed to his absence with some of my heavy-duty rants...).
 
I'm surprised that 93.3 didn't rename itself "93.3 Lite FM" like WLQT in Dayton did, going from Lite 99.9 to 99.9 Lite FM.
BTW, WMMX(Hot AC) and WLQT(AC) have always done well for CC/Dayton, and are usually ranked in the top 5 12+...and have the exact same PD as well, Jeff Stevens, who has done a phenomenal job with both.
 
I'm still waiting for the day 93.3 becomes WTVNFM. My prediction was September of this year just to cash in on the elections, but I may be wrong now.
 
alans613 said:
I'm surprised that 93.3 didn't rename itself "93.3 Lite FM" like WLQT in Dayton did, going from Lite 99.9 to 99.9 Lite FM.
Click to expand...

They tried that with name the launch on the new signal, it flopped. Now they go "soft"? Sunny has the better moniker, signal and existing listener base. Good luck to those at CC Columbus that still think they'll make a real dent.
 
Florentino said:
Premium Choice absolutely has it's place in our company, but in situations where there's a strong upside, local programming is almost always preferred.
Click to expand...

Don't know how I missed this needling opportunity in the first place, but how can you talk "strong upside" when 93.3's rare-for-Columbus big signal is still being used merely to trim a few whiskers off of Sunny.

Time to finally think "Nascar racer" instead "Norelco?" Four high-performance tires instead of three rotating heads = much stronger upside.for the cluster.

Hey, Columbus has NEVER had a smokescreen format like most markets. Wouldn't it be fun to say, "hey guys, this has all been a big joke," and instead go for one of the many formats that are doing very well in other "white-bread" markets, yet have never even been TRIED here on a decent signal (or at all)? Maybe it's ALREADY a smokescreen! Hey, good one, you had us going!
 
One good thing about the moniker "Soft Rock" is that it's versatile. Around the country it's used by AC's whose music profiles range from snoozeville to much-edgier. So there's still hope for 93.3. OK, maybe not...
 
The music on the station sounds worse now. At least, to me it does. I'm glad it's local now, but they should really try something else. Something that will rock Columbus like an Earthquake!But you know, not that bad of an Earthquake though. Don't want anybody to get hurt. :D
 
imadethisusernamemyslef said:
The music on the station sounds worse now. At least, to me it does. I'm glad it's local now, but they should really try something else. Something that will rock Columbus like an Earthquake!But you know, not that bad of an Earthquake though. Don't want anybody to get hurt. :D
Click to expand...

You know what? I never wanted to admit it (sorry roo) but I sometimes liked 93.3 before this latest tweak. Now I can't stand the station and the same goes for the Brew. I used to like that one too before it was recently tweaked.

I think this will show up in the ratings in a bad way for Clear Channel.
 
I do think Soft Rock was a bad idea. I think that the whole Soft Rock, Lite Rock, easy listening positioning is horrible. Why do you think Rewind in Cinci is doing so well? FEEL GOOD Favorites. I personally like MOViN better, but hey, they're beatign the heritage AC, Warm 98.
 
lovejamminoldies said:
I do think Soft Rock was a bad idea. I think that the whole Soft Rock, Lite Rock, easy listening positioning is horrible. Why do you think Rewind in Cinci is doing so well? FEEL GOOD Favorites. I personally like MOViN better, but hey, they're beatign the heritage AC, Warm 98.
Click to expand...
I'd take the station Adult Hits or Classic Hits. Staying AC is beyond stupid.
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.


Back
Top Bottom