Any hope for KB?

[Steven21]

I noticed they have dipped below a 1 share again. How can this station be making ANY money?

As annoying as I find Randi Rhoades, Leslie Marshall is 10x worse. I cannot believe she's actually syndicated. I know there are plenty of horrible shows syndicated, but this one even surprises me.

 

[WTUX]

The great WABC moved early and professionally from the Top 40 glory days into an AC format then into N/T. KB did not progress as smoothly. It's attempt to recreate the KB of the glory years, while fun to listen to, probably set the station back even further. The Air America days are not working.

Its sad to see any radio station die. But when one that was a national powerhouse bites the dust, its heartbreaking. The 50kw blow tourches of the 60's have generally made it. Notable are WABC, WBZ, WLS. Others have not. Notable are WIBG/WZZD Philadelphia, WCFL, CKLW, and of course, KB. And through bad ownership decisions, only the npresent incarnation of WCFL has a chance. KB does not.

 

[Oldbones]

The great WABC moved early and professionally from the Top 40 glory days into an AC format then into N/T. KB did not progress as smoothly. It's attempt to recreate the KB of the glory years, while fun to listen to, probably set the station back even further. The Air America days are not working.

Its sad to see any radio station die. But when one that was a national powerhouse bites the dust, its heartbreaking. The 50kw blow tourches of the 60's have generally made it. Notable are WABC, WBZ, WLS. Others have not. Notable are WIBG/WZZD Philadelphia, WCFL, CKLW, and of course, KB. And through bad ownership decisions, only the npresent incarnation of WCFL has a chance. KB does not.

I wouldn't exactly say WABC's transition from their Top 40 "glory days" was necessarily smooth. You're forgetting their (thankfully) brief run as a disco station, right about the time disco was beginning to crash & burn. What were they thinking? The station lost loads of cred with that move, that they never recovered.

You're right about KB though, losing their way early and often...the whole "Great American Music Machine" move in the mid 70s was the first of many blunders. It's hard enough to retain an audience with multiple poorly-thought out/executed format changes on FM, on AM it's a death sentence.

 

[Kal]

How can this station be making ANY money?

It can't... but it works nicely as a 'loss leader' to offset the mega profits from down the hall!

Kal

 

[SirRoxalot]

What a Waste

KB is doing exactly what Entercom wants it to do. It's protecting both 'BEN and 'GR by acting as a flanker, and not competing with them. If they can barter enough to pay the electric bill, they're likely to be thrilled.

Let's hope that the WLVL/WECK combo can shake things up a little.

 

[Philip_Airtime]

WTUX, I don't see how KB's attempt to bring back oldies earlier this decade set the station back "even further." How can it get any worse for a frequency that has been wasted for the past 20 years? Oldies on KB was fun to listen to, and not just for us radio geeks. The station ranged anywhere from a 1.5 to a 2 share. While that didn't set the world on fire, it was far better than the station earned either before or after. Yeah, the music was all over the place, but I never agreed with those who have posted here that the format was a disaster. It was what it was, and it was better than what we're hearing at 1520 now. I would agree with the arguments that the seeds for KB's demise were sown in the mid '80s and perhaps even earlier when the station tried to compete with FM by focusing more on music than the personalities. In any event, Rox is right on by saying KB's main mission is protecting WBEN and WGR. An example of that is how KB suddenly got the Bisons back from WECK shortly after the announcement of Dick Greene's purchase of WECK from Regent. While Bisons games don't draw big numbers, Entercom no doubt didn't want Greene to have a sports franchise for the launch of his news-talk product. Perhaps Greene told the Bisons he didn't want them. But with most games being played at night and weekends, it would have been a source of revenue for him, so I would assume Greene would have kept the Bisons if given the chance. Just as Entercom blunted WHLD by going with liberal talk two years ago, the Bisons move from WECK to KB is another example of Entercom trying to protect its main AM franchises.

 

[Yeziknoradio]

??? I thought 1520 was going to go religious...?

 

[Savage]

MIscellaneous observations on the various above posts:

I thought the recent "reincarnation" of KB was artfully done and was entirely entertaining to listen to. The station, as conceived, could have made money if there was sufficient management commitment to go out and sell "KB" to advertisers as a concept sale instead of being ratings-driven. IMHO it wasn't left alone long enough to work, and it wasn't sold effectively on a local basis. Selling an unrated product requires a degree of management involvement and commitment that's generally lacking these days.

WIBG is doing fine these days as Salem's Philly talker WNTP, carrying successful syndicated talkers. It's sold effectively in combo with former nemesis WFIL, now ironically co-located at 'WIBBAGE's' Conshohocken Tx/studio site.

As for WECK and the Bisons there may not be much to read into this. While baseball is good night and weekend programming it tends to be hard to sell. Generally the team soaks up whatever local advertiser revenue there is, leaving the station with crumbs. Carriage of a 144-game schedule is a major commitment involving personnel and scheduling, and is expensive. If there's a rainout you still have to pay your game producer. Unless the team ponies up direct games fees to the station, baseball is "iffy" in terms of representing a revenue stream.

 

[Mike Sheridan]

MIscellaneous observations on the various above posts:

I thought the recent "reincarnation" of KB was artfully done and was entirely entertaining to listen to. The station, as conceived, could have made money if there was sufficient management commitment to go out and sell "KB" to advertisers as a concept sale instead of being ratings-driven. IMHO it wasn't left alone long enough to work, and it wasn't sold effectively on a local basis. Selling an unrated product requires a degree of management involvement and commitment that's generally lacking these days.

Bob, thanks for your post. I agree but you have far more experience on the business side of radio. I guess when sales is confronted with the $200 spot on a station in the cluster vs. a $20 spot on a station that's a harder sell they will go where the larger commission is!

Sadly most do not care about the glory of KB's past. Few even remember it except for a few of us radio fans (read radio geeks).

 

[Media_Man]

What's Next For KB??

to paraphrase those religious from a few years ago... When you have tried everything else, why not try Disney? Hannah Montana anyone?

 

[alw]

"Sadly most do not care about the glory of KB's past. Few even remember it except for a few of us radio fans (read radio geeks)."


The reincarnation of the Old KB never had a chance in the first place....even if it actually sounded anything like the Old KB.

Entercom knew that it would never do WBEN any harm, I was surprised it was let to go on for as long as it did.


I was tuned in one day and heard a song which will remain nameless (because the holes in my brain are getting larger and I can't remember). But I thought to myself..."My God...I've been listening to that #*^%@ing song for 50 years."

50 YEARS!!!!!

At that point I threw in a jazz CD and listened to a new song that I'd only been listening to for 30 years.

I'm not sure why I forced that upon you....but it made me smile...almost.

 

[Kal]

Now, now, old man.

Let me help you back to your armchair and we can watch 'The Hollywood Palace'. Bing is the host tonight
and there's a new music group named 'Herb Alpert and The Tijuana Brass' appearing tonight.

Or if you'd rather, we can listen to the new Brubeck LP on the record player, 'Time Further Out'. It's supposed to be a good one.

Kal

 

[Ray D. Oh]

I don't care what anyone says. If a 50kw station with a big signal can't do better than a .7 share the owners should sell it and give someone a chance to make it something. I'm not a genius but somewhere there is a format that would work on KB and deliver a decent share. Entercom is blowing it. Don't use it as a defender of the other two AM's...make something out of it on it's own. It's this kind of corporate thinking that kills radio.

 

[AndrewLawson]

I'd bet dollars to donuts that if Dick Green talked about changing the format of WECK to Standards or Oldies after he takes over, Entercom would have changed KB's format to pre-empt WECK.

 

[Mike Sheridan]

I don't care what anyone says. If a 50kw station with a big signal can't do better than a .7 share the owners should sell it and give someone a chance to make it something. I'm not a genius but somewhere there is a format that would work on KB and deliver a decent share. Entercom is blowing it. Don't use it as a defender of the other two AM's...make something out of it on it's own. It's this kind of corporate thinking that kills radio.

AM 740 is a perfect example of what KB should be doing.... but radio owners don't seem to want that audience, they don't know how to sell those numbers. I think it's time they learned how.

 

[Savage]

I agree that use of radio facilities - AM or FM - as ratings "flankers" may make sense tactically but it's bad for the industry overall. The focus should be on serving the audience, not on hurting competitors irrespective of whether an audience is garnered. After all the stations are licensed to serve the public, not to be used as offensive weapons against each other.

Mike Sheridan, you're right - there are only about 6 productive sales hours in a day and only the equivalent of about 20 productive sales days per month. Time in sales is precious. You must sell as early as possible and as fast as you can, accumulating as much revenue as you can. It's a race. Given the choice between selling $200 spots on an FM ratings leader and $20 spots on the AM, the latter always loses out, as is as it should be. The ONLY way to generate revenue on a station like the dearly-departed KB revival is for the station to have a dedicated AM-only sales team, with appropriate management involvement and motivation. In the corporate culture of radio clusters this model usually just doesn't fit. It's doomed to failure without an entrepreneurial-style commitment and corporate willingness to do things "outside the box."

We can now pause for all the big radio group-types to scoff at what I've just written. And thereby make my point for me. This is not a put-down. It's just the way it is.

 

[dustintv]

There is...how about some good local talent! Granted given the situation they are in right now it probably won't help but then again WWKB is positioned towards more progressive audiences so hire progressive hosts.

 

[Mike Sheridan]

I agree that use of radio facilities - AM or FM - as ratings "flankers" may make sense tactically but it's bad for the industry overall. The focus should be on serving the audience, not on hurting competitors irrespective of whether an audience is garnered. After all the stations are licensed to serve the public, not to be used as offensive weapons against each other.

Mike Sheridan, you're right - there are only about 6 productive sales hours in a day and only the equivalent of about 20 productive sales days per month. Time in sales is precious. You must sell as early as possible and as fast as you can, accumulating as much revenue as you can. It's a race. Given the choice between selling $200 spots on an FM ratings leader and $20 spots on the AM, the latter always loses out, as is as it should be. The ONLY way to generate revenue on a station like the dearly-departed KB revival is for the station to have a dedicated AM-only sales team, with appropriate management involvement and motivation. In the corporate culture of radio clusters this model usually just doesn't fit. It's doomed to failure without an entrepreneurial-style commitment and corporate willingness to do things "outside the box."

We can now pause for all the big radio group-types to scoff at what I've just written. And thereby make my point for me. This is not a put-down. It's just the way it is.

All this time I have been accused of thinking like a jock and not a station owner! I have said many times that there needs to be a dedicated sales team for KB.

The problem with the big radio groups is two fold. One it's likely they paid too much for the stations they bought and now they can't carry their own weight and two they do not sell or market creatively. It's obvious the current sales methods are not working. Someone needs to find a source of untapped revenue.

 

[cee]

All this time I have been accused of thinking like a jock and not a station owner! I have said many times that there needs to be a dedicated sales team for KB.

The problem with the big radio groups is two fold. One it's likely they paid too much for the stations they bought and now they can't carry their own weight and two they do not sell or market creatively. It's obvious the current sales methods are not working. Someone needs to find a source of untapped revenue.

This pretty much sums up everything that's wrong with deregulated, corporate controlled media. One big corporation owns the 3 biggest AM radio signals in one market? And one of them, the once Mighty KB, is used as a flanker station? I'm sorry, this isn't serving the needs of the public. Too bad an independent owner, like Dick Greene, couldn't run KB. But I'm glad he purchased WECK. Despite some doubts I have about their new lineup, I wish them the best of luck.

 

[Debaser]

Its sad to see any radio station die. But when one that was a national powerhouse bites the dust, its heartbreaking. The 50kw blow tourches of the 60's have generally made it. Notable are WABC, WBZ, WLS.

That would be New York, Boston and Chicago, where enormous populations make the possibility of ratings success for transitioned AM giants a whole lot better than Buffalo.

As for what's in the future for KB, Disney could very well be the answer, Jerry Del Colliano opined in Inside Music Media that any possible future for radio lies with children (yes, children), so why not grab them with Hannah Montana and High School Musical? They may not stay with a Disney station through their teens, but as potential future listeners at least they will have an idea of radio being a media choice!