I know this is generic... but just wanted to see what ideas there are out there.... I've heard so many stations flip formats and some do it with cool ideas and some just change overnight.... so, if you were in control... what would you do? Make up formats from and to or just keep it generic....
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How would you flip a format
- Thread starter damian542
- Start date
I would stop it after a shift or @ like 12 or 5 pm, when most ppl are listening.
I would have a final song be a sad song.
It would stint with a thing like "this is radio history" etc.
Then id launch the new format.
It start as "Welcome to "Insert Radio Market's name here" brand new radio station, The ALL NEW "Insert name monkier & frequency"
I would have a final song be a sad song.
It would stint with a thing like "this is radio history" etc.
Then id launch the new format.
It start as "Welcome to "Insert Radio Market's name here" brand new radio station, The ALL NEW "Insert name monkier & frequency"
R
radroad
Guest
do what howard did and plat fart noises till he launched lol
Last hour or 2 full of songs with "end" "goodbye", etc messages in them.
Then flip the format at the TOH.
A more flashy, yet cheap and easy way to do it is take all the imaging for the new format and play it all back to back and then fire up the first song.
Otherwise just roll the TOH ID and go.
Then flip the format at the TOH.
A more flashy, yet cheap and easy way to do it is take all the imaging for the new format and play it all back to back and then fire up the first song.
Otherwise just roll the TOH ID and go.
Based on the documentry that was on HBO, when WLIB 1190 in NYC flipped from Caribbean Music to Air Ameirca they were playing music and had their DJs on right up until the end. (Yeah I know Air America didn't use WLIB's existing studio). I remember from the documentry one of the Air America Hosts flipped on a radio at 11:35AM (25 minutes before the launch) and they were still playing Caribbean Music and the Air America host said "This sh*t is our Station".
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fred flintstone
Guest
I would not cite AAR/WLIB as an example of how to do anything - except screw up.
I wonder how they will handle the flip if/when AAR loses their LMA on WLIB and P1 takes over? Probably an extended whine-a-thon.
Three basic schools of thought on flipping:
Advance notice and give the old format a decent send-off (and listeners a chance to mourn).
No notice. Call everybody in and tell them they have been fired (as the new format launches).
Stunt programming. Tease. Promise a big surprise.
If the old format was established and has now run its course, I favor number one. If the old format bombed and nobody's going to care, go for number three. A special place in hell should be reserved for those who do number two.
I wonder how they will handle the flip if/when AAR loses their LMA on WLIB and P1 takes over? Probably an extended whine-a-thon.
Three basic schools of thought on flipping:
Advance notice and give the old format a decent send-off (and listeners a chance to mourn).
No notice. Call everybody in and tell them they have been fired (as the new format launches).
Stunt programming. Tease. Promise a big surprise.
If the old format was established and has now run its course, I favor number one. If the old format bombed and nobody's going to care, go for number three. A special place in hell should be reserved for those who do number two.
There's always a purge of the former audience. But, sometimes this is done over a weekend (stunt with a temp format or loop starting Thursday or Friday, then Monday comes - boom - launch new format).
Others just pull the record in the middle (a la Max 95.7 flips to Jammin' Oldies).
What I would do is annouce a new format for frequency X about a week before, allow the DJ's to give the station a proper send-off (depending on the success of the format, etc.). Maybe, if its a heritage station, do a retrospective in the hours leading up to the final curtain call. Then, Thursday/Friday at Midnight exactly...blow up the former station: play the legal ID, then explosion noises, have the Vo guy announce "this station no longer exists....stay tuned for the new frequency X coming this Monday morning at X am". Tie the time of the launch into the frequency (example: 92.1fm would launch at 9:21AM).
That weekend is an hour loop, perfectly backtimed, of songs with radio in the title or about radio. Make it all over the place so that no one knows what the new format would be prior to launch. In between songs, a temp VO announces the new station signs on Monday and give the time.
Sunday/Monday about midnight, a loop starts (either a heartbeat or construction noises, no music) with the LID on a secondary loop, announcing the time the new station goes on. Maybe a countdown...
I once came up with an idea of what time to launch an all-80's station. If you look at a digital clock, 8:05 would spell out "80S", with the number 5 as the letter S. You could have done the same with a 70's station launching at 7:05.
Others just pull the record in the middle (a la Max 95.7 flips to Jammin' Oldies).
What I would do is annouce a new format for frequency X about a week before, allow the DJ's to give the station a proper send-off (depending on the success of the format, etc.). Maybe, if its a heritage station, do a retrospective in the hours leading up to the final curtain call. Then, Thursday/Friday at Midnight exactly...blow up the former station: play the legal ID, then explosion noises, have the Vo guy announce "this station no longer exists....stay tuned for the new frequency X coming this Monday morning at X am". Tie the time of the launch into the frequency (example: 92.1fm would launch at 9:21AM).
That weekend is an hour loop, perfectly backtimed, of songs with radio in the title or about radio. Make it all over the place so that no one knows what the new format would be prior to launch. In between songs, a temp VO announces the new station signs on Monday and give the time.
Sunday/Monday about midnight, a loop starts (either a heartbeat or construction noises, no music) with the LID on a secondary loop, announcing the time the new station goes on. Maybe a countdown...
I once came up with an idea of what time to launch an all-80's station. If you look at a digital clock, 8:05 would spell out "80S", with the number 5 as the letter S. You could have done the same with a 70's station launching at 7:05.
Back in the transition from 1990-1991 here in louisville,ky there was a station called rock 102(wlrs) and they flipped to a mix format and to stunt they counted down from 10,000 seconds each and every second and the computer would say new year brings new radio station to 102.3 fm.Pretty clever i thought.Since then there have been a billion well not quite formats on that frequency.
hotpatrick2004 said:
Sounds like what WWDB did here, flipping from news/talk to 80's oldies "The Point". It was a computerized female voice counting down from, I think, 10,000. After the computer hit "one", the voice simply said "look out, Philly, here we come". Then, the production montage played, announcing the new station, lots of movie clips from the 80's, and imaging that included the artists to be played, mixed in with their most popular tunes.
First song played was Simple Minds "Don't You (Forget About Me)". It only lasted a year and a half before they ditched it for Rhythmic CHR as "Wired".
(Side rant: it sounded nothing like Beasley's Star 102.7 in Vegas - Beasley owns the Philly property, which was a well-executed 80's station. The Point focused too much on 80's chicken rock)
The outgoing station owes its listeners something to remember them by. WNBC did a great job of this, if I remember correctly; they did several hours worth of documentary that aired prior to their flip to WFAN.
It's really tempting to spend time decrying the change - a celebration of the difference it made in peoples' lives is the way to go.
(Though, on the "decrying their impending doom" side, you can't do much better that Philadelphia's WDRE, who put together a final concert night and called it the "WDRE Bitterfest", even letting a "lucky" contest winner be the guy who finally pulled the [ceremonial] plug on the station.)
-Sean Carolan
Altrok Radio at http://www.altrokradio.com
It's really tempting to spend time decrying the change - a celebration of the difference it made in peoples' lives is the way to go.
(Though, on the "decrying their impending doom" side, you can't do much better that Philadelphia's WDRE, who put together a final concert night and called it the "WDRE Bitterfest", even letting a "lucky" contest winner be the guy who finally pulled the [ceremonial] plug on the station.)
-Sean Carolan
Altrok Radio at http://www.altrokradio.com
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PaulBWalkerJr
Guest
Here's how id do it, mind you .. in a small town/market..
Stunt for 30 days, just load up the computer with game show songs, and every genre or music imagine and hit random. Every 10 minutes have a liner that comes on and says, "Coming on September 1, 2006 you're going to get to hear the best thing ever along The Jersey Shore, 1620 WXYZ Atlantic City" (ficitious station of course)
Then use that month to fine tune the transmitter, audio processing, promote the hell out of it in local papers.... get new sponsors signed up....
then on that 30th day, hold a huge BBQ and COokout on the front lawn.. and at 12noon flip to the new format with the entire town and listenership present.....
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(I want royalities if anyone uses this idea LOL)
Stunt for 30 days, just load up the computer with game show songs, and every genre or music imagine and hit random. Every 10 minutes have a liner that comes on and says, "Coming on September 1, 2006 you're going to get to hear the best thing ever along The Jersey Shore, 1620 WXYZ Atlantic City" (ficitious station of course)
Then use that month to fine tune the transmitter, audio processing, promote the hell out of it in local papers.... get new sponsors signed up....
then on that 30th day, hold a huge BBQ and COokout on the front lawn.. and at 12noon flip to the new format with the entire town and listenership present.....
\
(I want royalities if anyone uses this idea LOL)
F
fred flintstone
Guest
WXYZ fictitious?
Legendary, yes. Fictitious, no.
WXYZ in Detroit was the station which created and produced The Lone Ranger, The Green Hornet and Challenge of the Yukon (Sergeant Preston) in radio's Golden Age.
After George W. Trendle sold the station to ABC, WXYZ (or "Wixie") became one of the first personality top 40 stations and the first ABC top 40 station (the manager who flipped WXYZ to top 40 later went to WABC, New York and repeated his success there.
Station alumni include: Fred Wolf, Paul Winter, Ed Mackenzie and Mickey Schorr; later Joel Sebastian, Dave Prince and Lee Allen; still later Martin and Howard.
The station's demise came with the decline of personality jocks on top 40 stations and competition from newer competitors with tighter formats and playlists, coupled with absentee mismanagement from ABC Radio. When Capital Cities, which already owned WJR, Detroit, acquired ABC, they were forced to divest Wixie. But Wixie will always be remembered as one of the great stations of radio's golden and silver ages.
Hi yo, Silver.
Legendary, yes. Fictitious, no.
WXYZ in Detroit was the station which created and produced The Lone Ranger, The Green Hornet and Challenge of the Yukon (Sergeant Preston) in radio's Golden Age.
After George W. Trendle sold the station to ABC, WXYZ (or "Wixie") became one of the first personality top 40 stations and the first ABC top 40 station (the manager who flipped WXYZ to top 40 later went to WABC, New York and repeated his success there.
Station alumni include: Fred Wolf, Paul Winter, Ed Mackenzie and Mickey Schorr; later Joel Sebastian, Dave Prince and Lee Allen; still later Martin and Howard.
The station's demise came with the decline of personality jocks on top 40 stations and competition from newer competitors with tighter formats and playlists, coupled with absentee mismanagement from ABC Radio. When Capital Cities, which already owned WJR, Detroit, acquired ABC, they were forced to divest Wixie. But Wixie will always be remembered as one of the great stations of radio's golden and silver ages.
Hi yo, Silver.
PaulBWalkerJr said:
I like the idea... but I think 30 days might be a bit too long to stunt.... but I wouldn't mind getting the listeners involved. I do rememeber what WDRE did in Philly.... I was on air at Q102 at the time (I think, or I had just left).. but I was still in the radio loop in Philly.. we all thought it was a great way to go out...
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PaulBWalkerJr
Guest
Ok, maybe 30 days is too long.
That time frame also depends on if the station is already on the air or it's off and you need time to repair stuff and spend a little bit of time doing some advertising and stuff.
And yes, I know WXYS is real, I was using those calls as an example..
That time frame also depends on if the station is already on the air or it's off and you need time to repair stuff and spend a little bit of time doing some advertising and stuff.
And yes, I know WXYS is real, I was using those calls as an example..
Chances are that if I had to change a station I would probably just kill the old format and go into some sort of stunt for a weekend... then Monday morning I'd start the new format.... Only if I had a really legendary station would I outro it... but anything that's not 20 years old would probably just get killed.....
U
Uncle Buck
Guest
Never Use a Fork, You want to keep the Juices inside. Use a Spatula or Tongs.
That's How You Flip a Format!!
That's How You Flip a Format!!
hubcity said:
Oh that was the day! I remember being in West Chester when DRE pulled the plug. They played Pearl Jam's "Alive" (supposedly the first song they played when ethnic WIBF went off). They said goodbye, the engineer faded out the feed from the club with the crowd chanting "DRE! DRE! DRE!". Then, the stunt format took over, about 12 or so hours of old school R&B. This, of course, was killed mid-afternoon and was replaced by the soon-to-be-rebranded "Philly 103.9".
Remember all the production leading up to "Bitterfest"? You have to say, even in death, DRE's production team was second to none.
I would love to do this. If there is a marketing budget, go and spend a bit on rival stations in the demo you are going to be chasing (I would probably use a shelf company to for billing purposes), as well as on your own station. Direct them to a generic website, telling listeners that this website is coming and has everything they want. Do this for a week, with the last day of the campaign spent counting down to the launch of the "website". in the last hour put a clock counting down on the website. At the end of the countdown. The website launches the station at the same the format flips, and your competition has helped you launch, because they accepted your advertising.
Lee Anderson said:
KDWB in Minneapolis did that before they debuted in 1959. They bought ads on their competitors advertising something called "Formula 63" (they were at 630 AM). People probably assumed it was toothpaste or something. IIRC, they directed people to go to their local store for a free box. Inside the box was an ad for the new station. By the time the other stations caught on, KDWB was on the air, and has remained with a Top 40 format (albeit the last 20 or so years on FM) ever since.
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