Do You Really Care About Radio?

[TheBigA]

The thing that peeves me so much, is what makes these stations believe that everyone that listens, is WHAT they want to hear...

It's not that the stations "believe" this. They have very detailed facts that PROVE what listeners want to hear. There is no agenda at radio about music. It costs stations the same regardless of the playlist. They pay a blanket rights fee that covers all music. And they have no personal issues with big playlists. They probably listen to wider playlists at home on their own time. They just know that the bigger the list, the smaller the audience. Documented fact, over and over, in market after market.

 

[oldies76]

There are a few people on this thread who would disagree with you. I find it hard to swallo that "a majority of listeners" are turned off by lesser known tracks. Like someone said here earlier, every song is someone's favorite. It might bring up a nice memory (first kiss, a kick a** party you attended, etc), or the words have a special meaning or whatever. I'm NOT saying JUST play lesser known tracks and that's it. No, what I'm saying is mix it up a little. Maybe 2-3 tracks an hour or so. Or would that still be too much?

Play the favorites, but also insert some other big hits from the past that "rarely" get aired today. Stations have got to mixed it up and add "fresh, new music" to avoid sounding stagnant and dull. Variety will retain your listeners, not drive them away in droves.

Stagnation will kill your audience, just like a 2-2 tie in the 15th inning of a baseball game, featuring two last place teams that have already been eliminated from the post-season!

 

[TheBigA]

Variety will retain your listeners, not drive them away in droves.

The classic hits stations are not only getting great ratings, but also tops in TSL among music formats. So the facts clearly dispute your opinion.

 

[oldies76]

It's not that the stations "believe" this. They have very detailed facts that PROVE what listeners want to hear. There is no agenda at radio about music. It costs stations the same regardless of the playlist. They pay a blanket rights fee that covers all music. And they have no personal issues with big playlists. They probably listen to wider playlists at home on their own time. They just know that the bigger the list, the smaller the audience. Documented fact, over and over, in market after market.

All I'm saying, is to have available all the hits from the past as options. Play some of them at night, during a countdown, during a specialty weekend, a holiday. Feature the favorites, that's fine, but the others have to be available, when needed (requests, specials...etc..). Gotta mix thing up a bit. Songs from the 60's to the 80's are prime these days, with the baby-boomers aging and many people that grew up in the early 80's, are in their 40's now. They remember the hits back then, they should be played today. Let them enjoy their heydays!

 

[oldies76]

Most people who listen to talkradio prefer to listen to people they agree with, not people they disagree with. Why? For the same reason they like to hear familiar music: They want comfort; they don't want challenges.

Familiar music involves all the big hits....every song is someone's favorite, so someone out there will be satisfied, in one way or another. Some people may tune away, but others will "tune in". It's a balancing act. You gain some and lose some. It happens everywhere. But sounding stagnant, will drive away your regulars eventually. Gradually adding variety and new "features" will attract new listeners. It happens in stores, on TV, in sports stadiums, at the movies, on the restaurant menus and on the radio.

 

[TheBigA]

every song is someone's favorite, so someone out there will be satisfied,

Radio doesn't program to audiences of one. They program to the masses. So every song has to be EVERYone's favorite.

You want an individual, personalized music service? Lots of choices available.

 

[DavidKaye]

The thing that peeves me so much, is what makes these stations believe that everyone that listens, is WHAT they want to hear...

It's called testing. Stations are so valuable these days due to the run-up in selling prices over the past 10 years that even the smallest ones can't afford to make format mistakes. Therefore, stations test music with panels of listeners fitting the demos of the audience they're trying to reach. Even little KKIQ in Livermore has been known to test its music.

Just because something was a hit in 1967 does not mean that oldies listeners want to hear it today. For me, I never want to hear "Ballad of a Green Beret" ever again, no matter how high it was on the charts, nor "Snoopy Versus the Red Baron".

 

[TheBigA]

Stations are so valuable these days due to the run-up in selling prices over the past 10 years that even the smallest ones can't afford to make format mistakes.

It's not just money. It's simply bad programming to ignore the majority and instead program to an audience of one. I didn't get into radio to reach individuals. I can do that by pointing the speakers out the window of my house.

 

[LKellerIII]

Play the favorites, but also insert some other big hits from the past that "rarely" get aired today. Stations have got to mixed it up and add "fresh, new music" to avoid sounding stagnant and dull. Variety will retain your listeners, not drive them away in droves.

Stagnation will kill your audience, just like a 2-2 tie in the 15th inning of a baseball game, featuring two last place teams that have already been eliminated from the post-season!

It's been a few years since I paid close attention to a Classic Hits format, but I recall that 99.7/KFRC would rotate songs in and out every month - or maybe every quarter - can't remember. So there was that core of "everybody's" favorites, but also a fairly short list of songs that would be repeated regularly for while, then go back into hiding. I used to listen to Bobby Ocean's afternoon show while commuting, and remember hearing "Honky Cat" (Elton John) for awhile, then that went away and I kept hearing "She's a Lady" (Tom Jones), etc.


But the playlist seemed to contain about the same total number of songs constantly, though I can't be sure because they didn't post the play list on their website like so many stations seem to do now.

But I assumed that was their method for avoiding the "stagnation" you speak of.

While "Big A" seems to be saying the shorter the play list, the better, the Classic Hits stations seem to have expanded a bit recently. K-Earth long ago dumped the Mike Phillips 300 song list (which was pretty mind-numbing if you listened frequently) for a longer play list. I just checked the 103.7 website - their posted play list is 613 songs.

 

[oldies76]

Radio doesn't program to audiences of one. They program to the masses. So every song has to be EVERYone's favorite.

You want an individual, personalized music service? Lots of choices available.

Right, I get what you're saying, but within those masses are individuals, lots of them, thousands of them and each individual has their favorites (many of which are never aired anymore).

Not everyone likes classic Paula Abdul music, not everyone enjoys hearing "Whenever I Call You Friend", some may like "Afternoon Delight", others may enjoy "Kiss You All Over" or "Music Box Dancer".......If 85% (give or take), of the hits are not being played, I believe many individual listeners, among the masses, are missing out. It's just my honest opinion.

I've hosted home parties, mixing in so-called stiffs from the mid-late 70's....guess what....no one left and had compliments on these songs, because it gave them the memories or have not heard them in ages. Radio can do the same. It just has to be done correctly.

Heck, look up song titles that are "stiffs" on You Tube, rarely do you see a song with more than 10% overall dislikes, among thousands of positive hits.

 

[oldies76]

K-Earth long ago dumped the Mike Phillips 300 song list (which was pretty mind-numbing if you listened frequently) for a longer play list.

Don't remind me....

I miss the Bob Hamilton days (early-mid 1980's), before Phillips....

 

[oldies76]

For me, I never want to hear "Ballad of a Green Beret" ever again, no matter how high it was on the charts, nor "Snoopy Versus the Red Baron".

Check this out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oxzg_iM-T4E

4439 Likes, Only 86 dislikes

Approval rate: 98%

Should be safe to feature on the radio, once in a while, huh??

Heck, even "Honey" from 1968 is at 97.7% approval, with over 9400 likes vs. 218 dislikes

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59BZxgohr9g

 

[oldies76]

KRTH 101, has done a fine job lately of expanding its playlist, sounds great the last time I was in L.A.

 

[TheBigA]

Should be safe to feature on the radio, once in a while, huh??

Heck, even "Honey" from 1968 is at 97.7% approval, with over 9400 likes vs. 218 dislikes

That should tell you the validity of such unscientific "polls." That's 9400 likes out of 3-1/2 million plays. What's THAT percentage?

If I ran a radio station that had an audience of 9400 listeners, I'd be out of business. As I said, if you want to listen to bad songs, go to YouTube.

 

[oldies76]

That should tell you the validity of such unscientific "polls." That's 9400 likes out of 3-1/2 million plays. What's THAT percentage?

If I ran a radio station that had an audience of 9400 listeners, I'd be out of business. As I said, if you want to listen to bad songs, go to YouTube.

Why does it have to be scientific? Actually, the vast majority of people forget to "like" or "dislike" videos they see (heck, I've forgoten too), they just watch them and move on to another. So the fact that 3.5 million played it since 2007, shows the interest is there. Music curiosity and memories are great, for the ones that want them. That goes for any song, not just "Honey".

btw, I dislike heavy metal music and rap, why bother youtubing those songs?? I don't bother. ;D

 

[TheBigA]

So the fact that 3.5 million played it since 2007, shows the interest is there.

If I owned a radio station that cumed 3.5 million listeners in five years, I'd be out of business.

One Direction gets 250,000,000 YouTube plays in just 2 years. THAT is the business we're in.

Get the picture?

 

[rricci]

Play the favorites, but also insert some other big hits from the past that "rarely" get aired today. Stations have got to mixed it up and add "fresh, new music" to avoid sounding stagnant and dull. Variety will retain your listeners, not drive them away in droves.

Stagnation will kill your audience, just like a 2-2 tie in the 15th inning of a baseball game, featuring two last place teams that have already been eliminated from the post-season!

You said what I've been saying all along. Contrary to what BigA says, I don't believe listeners would "leave in drove", otherwise how does new hits get played??

 

[TheBigA]

Contrary to what BigA says, I don't believe listeners would "leave in drove", otherwise how does new hits get played??

They don't play "new hits" on classic hits stations. He's talking about playing "rarely played" songs, not new songs. That's a very different issue.

 

[davideduardo]

For me, I never want to hear "Ballad of a Green Beret" ever again, no matter how high it was on the charts, nor "Snoopy Versus the Red Baron".

4439 Likes, Only 86 dislikes

Approval rate: 98%

No. Those are votes by oldies geeks, not radio listeners. Apples vs. oranges. Or apples vs. artichokes.

The test for radio play is not "like" but "how much do you want to hear... or not hear... that song on the radio today?"

If you test that kind of song, you will get 80% or more strong negatives. If you play it on the radio, you will see half your metered listeners disappear.

Should be safe to feature on the radio, once in a while, huh??

Less safe than a land mine.

Heck, even "Honey" from 1968 is at 97.7% approval, with over 9400 likes vs. 218 dislikes

Just thinking about playing that one makes me throw up in my mouth a little. Yuuuchhh.

 

[davideduardo]

I've hosted home parties, mixing in so-called stiffs from the mid-late 70's....guess what....no one left and had compliments on these songs, because it gave them the memories or have not heard them in ages. Radio can do the same. It just has to be done correctly.

This reminds me of cases where someone will say "but they are playing it in the clubs" as the sole reason to add a song.

Clubs create an artificial environment... and there are the "Three B's" in most cases (Booze, Babes and Blow) so the mood, the atmosphere and the time of day are totally different from the radio listening environment.