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Christmas Flips on WERZ and WYNZ.

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wpxt

Today when I got in the car both 107.1 WERZ and 100.9 WYNZ were playing christmas music. When I got home I went on werz.com and then y1009.com and found that they both flipped yesterday.

WERZ played Say by John Mayer at 3:00pm and at 3:05pm went Christmas with Have a Holly Jolly Christmas by Burl Ives.

WYNZ played Gimme Some Lovin' by The Spencer Davis Group at 4:54pm and at 4:56pm went Christmas with The Christmas Shoes.
 
If Nassau had the stations they'd be playing the song song over and over on a seemingly endless loop.

Ho Ho
 
Bah Humbug! WAY too early! sprinkle in some for flavor until the week of Xmas maybe. How many times can we hear Grandma go runover...? Although the "12 Pains of Christmas" I could listen to over and over again! Hey, maybe do a Country christmas hour... Christian Christmas hour... comedy Christmas hour, traditional, instrumental... that might be different... AND STILL WAY TO EARLY!
 
So i'll get whomped upside the head - but I like the way we used to do it - all-Christmas weekends, with a traditional smattering through the week. a tune every other hour after t-day. then one an hour. then two an hour. then all-Christmas in the days leading up to...
there is an upside, though, as anyone in a format that plays oldies/classic hits will tell you: Aretha and the Beatles sound SO MUCH BETTER on 12/26. it's really a nice break for those of us on the air working the songs that really don't change.
i feel bad when we lose a handful of listeners to other stations prior to the holidays (the few weeks OUT), but getting closer, the regulars are still with us (P1's) and there are some new names/faces hopping on board.
the challenge in this type of approach, i feel, is to remain true to your basic format (ie: core artists) while still working in the other influences of the genre to keep the format sounding fresh.
have to wonder if Mary was ticked when the Angel of the Lord told her it was gonna be a boy... what if she and Joseph wanted to be surprised? ("Mary Did You Know" - fav version by Kenny & Wynonna)
 
Chuck:

I completely disagree. It is the P1's you are MOST at risk of losing and there with it your AQH Ratings and Shares. Your P1's aren't your P1's because of Christmas music!! That makes no sense to assume they'll stay with you. They're your P1's because of the Oldies and Classic Hits that you play. When you abandon that with three or four weeks left in your ratings book, for YOUR format and two clear competitors in your market, that is totally playing Russian Roulette.
 
The Christmas tactic is best utilized by the A/C stations because it is primarily WOMEN who are the ones who can't wait for Christmas music to arrive once in the chill of November.

WERZ----WHOM-----yes

WYNZ----No Will alianate the male audience

And it works best with the more Mainstream A/C stations
 
adbuyer1 said:
Chuck:

I completely disagree. It is the P1's you are MOST at risk of losing and there with it your AQH Ratings and Shares. Your P1's aren't your P1's because of Christmas music!! That makes no sense to assume they'll stay with you. They're your P1's because of the Oldies and Classic Hits that you play. When you abandon that with three or four weeks left in your ratings book, for YOUR format and two clear competitors in your market, that is totally playing Russian Roulette.
Click to expand...

and I will completely disagree with your assessment. Do you have daily interaction with our P1 Audience? I do - and they are all still there.

again - read my original post. i don't agree with the flip. i prefer the old-school things.
 
I believe Seltzer is right on the money...emphasis on the money.

Personally, I enjoy Christmas music directly after Thanksgiving. The official kickoff for me is when Santa makes his appearance at the end of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, followed by "Black Friday." I'm the guy who walks out of the studio bellowing Crosby's "White Christmas, or Cole's "Christmas Song." And bellowing quite badly I might add. Just ask my cringing co-workers.

In addition, Christmas ushers in another opportunity to reach out and help families, especially kids, who are in dire straits. Yes, public service. Oh, the stories I could tell of Christmas wishes fulfilled. C'mon, it's all about the kids. Somehow, somewhere we totally lost sight of that.

And honestly, humbuggers can tough it out for a few short weeks. Sorry, True Grit. In fact, we should protect the humbuggers. There should be an FCC law that reserves the all-Christmas format for AC stations only. Other stations would be allowed to sprinkle in the occasional Christmas song, and be authorized to totally flip on Christmas Eve and Day, and not before.

As an advertiser, however, you better believe I'd be placing my dollars with the all-Christmas formats--it's where the shoppers ears are tuned. Cha Ching!

I strongly believe the all-Christmas format is an elemental part of the grease that keeps the economic wheels turning and people employed.

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Happy Hannukah, and Happy New Year.
 
Chuck:

You can't be even remotely serious. It is actually stunning to hear someone with your years of experience say that. Neither you, or any station, has interaction with but a tiny, miniscule fraction of your P1 audience on the phones, email, facebook or twitter on a daily, weekly or even annual basis.
The point - No you don't have interaction with enough of this audience on a daily basis to even begin to make such determinations.
Case in point - did you check WYNZ's Fall 2008 ratings on a monthly basis. Pick any demo. You were WIPED OUT in the last phase. Christmas music KILLED your P1's last year. Isn't that really the point of our little discussion?
 
<And honestly, humbuggers can tough it out for a few short weeks. Sorry, True Grit. In fact, we should protect the humbuggers. There should be an FCC law that reserves the all-Christmas format for AC stations only. Other stations would be allowed to sprinkle in the occasional Christmas song, and be authorized to totally flip on Christmas Eve and Day, and not before.>

Works for me, Nelz :)
 
I'm glad you agree, True Grit. BTW, I sure do miss ya round this nuthouse. I know you're missing those moments when I flex the "golden pipes" with a personal rendition of Joe Diffie's "Leroy the Redneck Reindeer."

True Grit, you may remember all those years go when 93.5 "The River" out of Fairfield, Maine, made the flip to all Christmas music. Many of us, including me, said what fools! What damn fools they are! Don't they know anything about radio? They must WANT to go dark! When the next Arbitron came out, many a station was eating humble pie, of which I partook. I believe it was the beginning of the Christmas flip wars in the years to come, with Kiss 94.5 leading the first to flip pack, followed by my beloved 92.9 WEZQ.
 
adbuyer1 said:
Chuck:

You can't be even remotely serious. It is actually stunning to hear someone with your years of experience say that. Neither you, or any station, has interaction with but a tiny, miniscule fraction of your P1 audience on the phones, email, facebook or twitter on a daily, weekly or even annual basis.
The point - No you don't have interaction with enough of this audience on a daily basis to even begin to make such determinations.
Case in point - did you check WYNZ's Fall 2008 ratings on a monthly basis. Pick any demo. You were WIPED OUT in the last phase. Christmas music KILLED your P1's last year. Isn't that really the point of our little discussion?
Click to expand...

if your statement is accurate, we have interaction with just about ALL of our P1's, since there are so few of them.

just wonderin' - on your world, is there only right ? every now and then, you might be surprised to find that on our planet, you are, on occasion, quite mistaken.

again - read the post. you find an argument for anything ANYONE says in response to you if it is in the least contrary. lighten up, Adbuyer1. easy to take shots from an anonymous point of view.
 
and just one more, if i may, to aplify the discussion:

Ratings are devised from extrapolated proportion of completed diaries to that of the overall population.

with that in mind - the same active regulars January through November still partake and participate in our radio station, based on the ability to recognize voices and names and email addresses and such. granted - the interactive portion of the audience is but a fraction of the passive audience - but extrapolated hypothesis indicates to me that the same core of folks are still, for the most part, with us.

i will tell you we get a few "oh God NO!" emails and calls - with the caveat that they will "see (us) after Christmas." however - those calls and notes have dwindled drastically.

don't pretend to tell me what i do or don't know about my profession. book-smart or otherwise, i know nothing of your credentials or experience. tout as you will your "knowledge," but put up or shut-up. 30 years in this market tells me that any formulaic, cookie-cutter audience measurement is not a true bellwether of what is real.

agreed - the ARB numbers are those which we have to live with. but that does not make them exact or even remotely right.
 
Yes Virginia,
There really is a Chuck Igo!.....I should know.....he leaves smart remarks on my Facebook page all the time!
 
Nelz:
I appreciate you enthusiasum for the holiday. I appreciate it from a programming standpoint. However, I agree with those that beleive too much of a good thing is bad. Ever have too much Egg Nog? My instincts about you tell me yes! HA! AC and Country sations can get away with it more than rock and CHR becasue of the volume of material and familiarity of it. I do think that going all Christmas has a burn out factor especially for 5 weeks. I also beleive that any segment of an audience thas is asked to "Tough it out for a few weeks" will not. They will go elsewhere. Never give any of your listeners a reason to sample the competition.
Moderation is the key with a growing number of hourly selections before you flip on Christmas eve (IMHO) is the way to go.
Merry Christmas you Jolly old radio dude!
 
splicer38 said:
Nelz:
I appreciate you enthusiasum for the holiday. I appreciate it from a programming standpoint. However, I agree with those that beleive too much of a good thing is bad. Ever have too much Egg Nog? My instincts about you tell me yes! HA! AC and Country sations can get away with it more than rock and CHR becasue of the volume of material and familiarity of it. I do think that going all Christmas has a burn out factor especially for 5 weeks. I also beleive that any segment of an audience thas is asked to "Tough it out for a few weeks" will not. They will go elsewhere. Never give any of your listeners a reason to sample the competition.
Moderation is the key with a growing number of hourly selections before you flip on Christmas eve (IMHO) is the way to go.
Merry Christmas you Jolly old radio dude!
Click to expand...

What can I tell ya Splicer38, I've always had a soft heart for the season and the kids it brings so much joy to. The big kids seem to come out of the woodwork for the holiday season as well, living vicariously through the little curtain climbers. I only speak from experience.

We are successful. I can't and won't tell you all we do to maintain a consistent level of success with seasonal boosts of audience growth, so I guess you'd have to listen with an open mind and take notes. Sometimes we can't see the forest for the trees because of our own likes and dislikes. I'm reminded of my days in advertising sales when I'd run into the occasional business owner who wouldn't buy a station because he/she didn't like the music or programming, even though their target audience/potential consumer was listening/viewing in massive quantities.

I always go back to an infomercial I saw a long time whose logo was tagged with these three words: "Decide. Commit. Succeed."
I know it sounds simplistic, like some hokey sales seminar, but many "Decide" to do something like flip to Christmas music or take up the guitar for example, but don't "Commit" to their decision by pouring emotion and creativity into it. But once you "Commit" and honestly believe in what it is you are doing and saying, "Success" will follow. In our case, audience growth.

I've said too much. Sorry for the ramblings.

May the holiday season bring some measure of joy in these turbulent times.
 
If it works... Don't fix it. Keep it up.
Merry Christmas. Happy, safe and Prosperous new year!
 
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