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Did someone say hola?

Exactly! Don't you just love piecing things together and figuring out the whole!!?? It's like being a detective. Format changes are always exciting and they prompt other changes.
 
Yes, so true! Not only will the Triad be getting Oldies back, but there are a lot of Oldies fans in Charlotte/Gastonia/Hickory, etc that were devastated much longer ago after the flip of MAGIC 96.1 in Charlotte. Any idea what the new station will be called? Oldies 94.1? 94.1 WTHZ? Kool 94.1? Magic 94.1? Oldies 94? Probably something with Oldies as the moniker.
 
Only a guess as what they SHOULD call it. You'd be nuts not to use Oldies 94! However, I did hear that Entercom had toyed with the idea of calling it something different that didn't use "oldies" in the name. They felt that some people (advertisers and listeners) didn't want to be considered "old". But, I think calling it Oldies 94 would be the quickest way to let former Oldies 93 listeners know that you want them.
 
One problem Hitz has ALWAYS had is that it doesn't really have a focus, it's too broad. I mean, you can't try to be a Greensboro AND a Charlotte/Gastonia station! That should be one thing to consider when changing to Oldies - should they target

the Triad (GBO/WS/HP/Burlington), which the signal doesn't completely cover BUT has just recently lost an Oldies station, meaning that there are many listeners still looking for an Oldies station?

OR

Charlotte/Gastonia/metros, which the signal almost completely covers? However, it's been over 2 years since MAGIC 96.1 flipped and many of the Oldies listeners have settled with other stations or have gone to satellite radio. Would they be able to get the old Magic listeners back?


WTHZ needs to PICK an area to target, and for heavens sake, SPEND a little bit of money and MARKET THE THING! They can't expect to just run a radio station and automatically get loads of listeners without getting out and promoting themselves...lots of remotes, billboards, TV spots, etc. Does anyone know how the station is financially?
 
I think they WILL market it some. Probably not enough. They'll do some billboards for a while. They've been loosing money for the last year because of ratings and other management factors, so the pockets are not too deep. They'll most likely focus on the Triad because their salespeople all live there. But, they might take some stabs at Charlotte since they'll be the only game in town. A lot of the agencies that handle Triad businesses are in Charlotte, so they'll be able to hear the station. If it pulls some ratings there, they might buy it for Charlotte. I just don't think any sales efforts will be concentrated there.
 
If I remember correctly, Hitz doesn't have a very good signal in Greensboro due to interference from Sunny 93.9. , which could hinder their success in the Triad. I don't know. Does it come in very well in Burlington?

Looking at HITZ's signal pattern on Radio-Locator, it is very similar to 106.5 WEND, which is out of Salisbury. We can get The End fairly well here in Upstate SC. Can get HITZ occasionally but not very well.
 
Greensboro is not too good for Hitz94. Can be heard in the southwest part, but fades in other areas. Burlington, not at all. That's why the station has never been able to have big ratings in the Triad. But, you don't have to have huge ratings to be a viable product. All they need is to be 7th or 8th in the market and they can do quite well with that station. Covers WS very well, Clemmons, Davie County, good coverage. If it had a better signal, probably wouldn't be locally owned.
 
Oh. I've listened to it going through Charlotte before, solid signal in Charlotte, Hickory, especially Statesville. That's who they should target. Probably comes in well in Salisbury, Kannapolis, Concord, etc also.

How about 94.1 and 101.1 simulcast? THAT would be a great idea!!
 
94.1 as it now is doesn't cover enough of the Charlotte metro to be a player there. It does Cabarrus, Rowan , North Mecklenberg pretty well, but no go in York, Gaston, Union, and South Charlotte is pretty ratty. That's why Gig was trying to move south. It DOES, however, cover enough of the Triad to be a serious player. Especially with a specialty format like Oldies. The average listener will tolerate much higher noise levels to get their favorite programming when it's not available elsewhere. Look at Rock 92- lousy signal in W\S...but great ratings just the same.
 
ghattaway, you're right about tolerating high noise levels - I was living in Raleigh when WTRG flipped in Nov 04...listened to 96.5 WFLB and WMQX, had tons of static but it was still worth it to an Oldies fan like me.

Radio-Locator shows WTHZ's main contour ending right at High Point and out from Gastonia, what looks like it would be around Kings Mountain or around in that reigon. Sometimes those coverage maps are off though.

http://www.radio-locator.com/pats/WTHZ_FM_LU.gif
 
Why not call it Q94 - Carolina's Greatest Hits, like Y102.9.
That way the Triad and Charlotte are both included.
Play the right music and don't do traffic reports and nobody will know, or care,
where they're broadcasting from.

I would avoid using OLDIES as a name. It's an excellent moniker for the over 50 crowd,
but it doesn't give you room to move. Carolina's Greatest Hits would allow you to play
music from the 60s, 70s, 80s, or 90s down the road.

Y102.9 plays an equal dose of 60s and 70s and surprisingly, unlike most Oldies
stations, has very few listeners over 55. Yet, we're very strong in our target of 45-54 year olds.

Bill C.
Y102.9 PD
 
Bill, I think Y102.9 is a great sounding Oldies station! You've definately done a great job, a vast improvement over "StarFM" (my dislike of 80s music is probably it).

Does anyone know if Hitz will let the airstaff go after the flip?
 
While it is allowable under the FCC rules for 1200 to go to 50K/10K, it would require approval from Clean Channel because of WOAI - also on 1200 and protected. For SML to upgrade, CC would have to agree - and it ain't likely to happen!
 
Thanks carolinaradio! We try.

I always hope, and as a PD tried, to keep this existing airstaff. You can't always replace the people
you have with someone better with the current budgets and the talent pool we have in our business.

IF, 94.1 went Oldies, the new listeners probably weren't listening to HITS, therfore the current staff
would be NEW to the new Oldies listeners. Of course the staff would have to buy into the change and
Oldies requires a certain energy and style.

Certainly, some of those Oldies 93 personalities were VERY GOOD, and probably available.

Again, IF 94.1 goes Oldies, I believe they could do very well in the Traid and Charlotte.
But, they have to come on STRONG, with all elements in place, and some marketing money.
 
Surfdude, you're absolutely right about station location not mattering to the listeners- WPEG was number 1 in Charlotte for years, with studios in Concord. To a listener, all any station is is a spot on the dial- and if you're lucky, you get a pushbutton!
 
Carolina Radio,
That WTHZ contour shown in radio-locator is the CP site, about 30 miles south of their licensed site. After almost 3 years of fighting, approval of the new site by the zoning authorities is looking more like a long shot every day. The current site doesn't do anywhere near that good to the south.
 
While listeners generally don't care, location of a station does make a big difference to the staff and the presentations. If the on-air staff is not relating to people in their location, the station will not be successful. Those in Charlotte and Raleigh would love to think you are important to people in the Triad, but I have a clue for you - if you disappeared tomorrow it would make no difference to people in the Triad. Therefore, when you try to be relative to a town outside our home area, all you do is turn us off!

It is particularly true for the news-talk format. WZTK can't decide which market it wants to belong to, and therefore has not achieved ownership with either audience.
 
Based on X's well put thoughts on talking to the listeners in your area, makes one wonder how syndicating a show like Chris and Chris will go over? While I can't personally stand the show (don't let them tell you women love it too..) I know many guys that do. What they can offer that others can't (I.E. John Boy and Billy) is local appeal. Think Wilmington really cares if the girl on the show likes a sub shop on Wendover? The few times I've tried to listen they would spend lots of time discussing such subjects....
 
surfdude said:
Thanks carolinaradio! We try.

I always hope, and as a PD tried, to keep this existing airstaff. You can't always replace the people
you have with someone better with the current budgets and the talent pool we have in our business.

IF, 94.1 went Oldies, the new listeners probably weren't listening to HITS, therfore the current staff
would be NEW to the new Oldies listeners. Of course the staff would have to buy into the change and
Oldies requires a certain energy and style.

Certainly, some of those Oldies 93 personalities were VERY GOOD, and probably available.

Again, IF 94.1 goes Oldies, I believe they could do very well in the Traid and Charlotte.
But, they have to come on STRONG, with all elements in place, and some marketing money.
Click to expand...

I'd really like to say that it mattered but I doubt most listners could tell you who is on the air outside of morning drive. That's because when music stations went from AM to FM that's all they promoted, mornings and allowed them freedom to actually talk on the air.

Also most stations used to have 5 or 6 full time jocks and 2 or 3 part-timers. Now even some of the biggest stations have 3 full-time and 2 part-timers. Evenings and weekends are voice-tracked or satellite (count the Delilah stations) and all night is automated. So there is fewer places for new talent to practice and get better.

Something that's very easy to do is have a "Take Your Radio To Work" promotion. Listeners send an email to the station saying where they work and when they listen. One of the jocks goes out and tries to catch them listening. If they are, the listner gets a nice check! It works really well since it introduces other people in the office to the station, introduces the jock and can create a bond between the jock and the listener.
 
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