Magic gone from WMGQ?

[blueboy]

I know the 12+ numbers are not what an AC station usually uses as a measuring stick but WMGQ has sunk to a new low in that demo. Evidently, FRESH 102.7 has a strong presence now in Central NJ. Anyone know what the "money" demo numbers were for WMGQ?

 

[chuckydoll]

It's fading away

Magic 98.3 has a history of being a copycat station. It continued to play 60's oldies after other AC stations dumped 60's music -- and this was when 101.1 was Jack.

The irony is that Fresh 102.7 is getting listeners in Central Jersey with Magic's formatics -- jingles, "soft" positioning, music-intensive morning show.

Greater Media has a country FM in Boston. Magic 98.3 is getting killed as an AC. Do I see a future Country 98.3 in Central Jersey?

 

[wmgcbs]

They need help... and FAST! I think the station needs a major overhaul. The DJ's are nothing special (now that Steve O'Brien is gone), the currents are played to a crisp, and the annoying jingles need to go.

Either do a major overhaul or get ready for the death of Magic. It seems like no matter what the station does (which doesn't seem to be much), the station can't win.

Despite its flaws, I enjoyed Magic 98.3 for the past two years after CBS-FM changed formats. After WLTW turned out the "Lite" and "Fresh" stopped being so "Fresh" for me, I turned to Magic. It's not a bad station. But, that being said, it needs work. It won't make it the way it is now. It seems as if people are tired of it. And, quite honestly, since the music stays the same for SO LONG, I can't blame them. Magic even used to have music surveys which often times included some songs that they hadn't played in a while. Some actually got airplay. One that comes to mind is "You Belong to the City" by Glenn Frey. Those surveys have stopped.

What does everyone here think should be done? If you were the PD at WMGQ, what would you do to make the station better? It seems like a pretty tough job to me.

 

[Band-Scanner]

WMGQ is in the unfortunate position of being in a "shadow" market of NYC with a strong signal from WLTW and now having to compete with Fresh as well.

WMGQ has much less coverage....WKJY in Long Island frequently interferes with them in the fringes.....even the Catskills station sometimes sneaks in....not to mention WOGL @ 98.1.

In order to survive they must "super serve" Central NJ and stop trying to be a regional music intensive station. Do more "local " news and announcements and become involved more with the core communities they serve.

Music format? That's a tough one....I would have to say Hot AC somewhere between WPLJ & WLTW ....gold leaning...like the breeze

 

[wmgcbs]

WMGQ is in the unfortunate position of being in a "shadow" market of NYC with a strong signal from WLTW and now having to compete with Fresh as well.

WMGQ has much less coverage....WKJY in Long Island frequently interferes with them in the fringes.....even the Catskills station sometimes sneaks in....not to mention WOGL @ 98.1.

In order to survive they must "super serve" Central NJ and stop trying to be a regional music intensive station. Do more "local " news and announcements and become involved more with the core communities they serve.

Music format? That's a tough one....I would have to say Hot AC somewhere between WPLJ & WLTW ....gold leaning...like the breeze.

First of all, we're assuming that the 25-54 numbers for WMGQ are as mediocre as the 12+ numbers. I've not seen the 25-54's, so the station may be more stable than we think.

As far as the music you seem to be referring to, I would take a good look at a cross between the Breeze and WKQC/Charlotte. The Breeze has the variety, and WKQC plays a lot of 70's and 80's without sounding "old." Personally, I wouldn't go that route.

Here's the problem I have with the variety, gold-based approach. The Breeze can be received in some areas that Magic is listenable. WCBS-FM (now playing more 70's and 80's) is received in most of the area where Magic is. WMGQ would be caught between a rock and a hard place if they ever decided to take this route.

Maybe Hot A/C would work. 'PLJ seems to be very successful in Central Jersey. Magic should have tried "Fresh" before CBS Radio jumped on it. It seems that Fresh is taking off here as well. Jan Ochs, Tim Tefft, John Lisk, Staci Dee, Danni G all sound either tired or annoying. Steve O'Brien, Matt Newman and Alan David Stein were the best three WMGQ had. Now, only Newman remains, IIRC. I'm an advocate for personality radio... I really am. But when faced with "personalities" such as Tefft, Dee, and Lisk, I'd rather the station be jockless.

As you stated, Magic is in a "shadow" market. While "Central Jersey's Music Station" playing "Today's Hits and Yesterday's Favorites" may have worked in the 90's, the "Continuous Soft Rock" format is falling fast. They need a new format -- maybe just an updated AC somewhat similar to Fresh with a larger playlist, but not soft AC, not oldies. It has been proven that central Jerseyans prefer the NYC alternatives for Magic's current format and have done so for awhile.

Maybe an updated AC format could work without a major overhaul. All I know is they certainly haven't tried to change the station's image lately. The new commercial focuses on tired AC songs like "Crocodile Rock" and "Breakaway." EEK!

Magic 98.3 has a history of being a copycat station. It continued to play 60's oldies after other AC stations dumped 60's music -- and this was when 101.1 was Jack.

60's oldies? Not really. They play many of the same limited 60's songs that WLTW played (and still plays). WMGQ rarely plays anything from the 60's, and hasn't for at least two years. You'll hear "Build Me Up Buttercup," "What a Wonderful World" and the like.

BOTTOM LINE: If their 25-54 numbers are as mediocre as their 12+ numbers, WMGQ needs help! Someone wake up and do something!

 

[blueclaws1210]

i argee the music playlist is bad. too many sad boring songs. also they play the same songs over and over so you get bored with the station. wmgq signal is so bad that you get kjoy if you drive around the corner in most of southeastern middlesex county. plus with the breeze and wcbs fm why would you want to listen to this station expect for traffic and news updates. they need to do something with the format maybe counrty983 or rock983 or even standards 983. what do you think would work. should they put wctc talk on 983 and go from there maybe? its not the djs that are the problem its the music i hope both magic and wctc fix themselfs and get back in the ratings game. also wctc shouldnt be getting 0.8 ratings they must be embarssed. what do you think is best for central jersey radio.

 

[wmgcbs]

its not the djs that are the problem its the music

Well, the DJs certainly aren't providing any compelling reason to listen either. There is no Al Bernstein or Valerie Smaldone on Magic. Maybe if they had personalities, they would be able to stand out a bit more.

 

[chuckydoll]

WMGQ has much less coverage....WKJY in Long Island frequently interferes with them in the fringes.....even the Catskills station sometimes sneaks in....not to mention WOGL @ 98.1.

Thanks to digital tuners you can lock in Magic all throughout Middlesex/Somerset/Union. If there's interference from K-Joy it's because both stations were allocated prior to 1964. WOGL is not a factor at all.

Magic is also one of 2 commercial-band FMs that are local to Market 39. That's why the station is always easy to tune in on non-digital receivers in the 3 counties.

In order to survive they must "super serve" Central NJ and stop trying to be a regional music intensive station. Do more "local " news and announcements and become involved more with the core communities they serve.

Greater Media runs its newspapers that way. Greater Media does not run its FM stations that way.

My earlier position still stands: Could we see Country 98.3 boot-scootin' its way to Market 39?

 

[wmgcbs]

Thanks to digital tuners you can lock in Magic all throughout Middlesex/Somerset/Union. If there's interference from K-Joy it's because both stations were allocated prior to 1964. WOGL is not a factor at all.

On a stationary radio, locking in WMGQ usually poses no problem. But listening in the car, especially in Middlesex County, is not that easy. Ever try to cross Wood Avenue into Colonia with WMGQ on? I have. The static is almost unlistenable after a while. Same goes the further one travels north in Woodbridge. Lots of interference from K-JOY there. Digital stationary tuners are one thing, but when someone's in the car, trying to listen through that amount of static is annoying.

 

[nd2023]

10-15 miles northeast of the transmitter, you lose Magic to K-Joy. I sometimes got K-Joy in downtown New Brunswick when the tropo was strong. 10 miles southwest, once you go over Sand Hill on Route 1 (where the water tower is in South Brunswick), you lose Magic on the average portable radio. 15 miles southwest, WOGL and it's IBOC hash start to wreck Magic's signal. I live about 20 miles southwest of New Brunswick, and I get Fresh and Lite stronger than Magic. I can hear Magic 35 miles northwest because there's no interference. I have heard WOGL a block away from the WMGQ tower on a car radio.

Magic is played almost everywhere in New Brunswick, probably because it's the strongest station and it can be heard well inside buildings, unlike the NYC stations. There's only a 5 mile radius where it is the strongest station, then it's about equal in strength to the NYC stations in Edison.

What could it flip to?
Soft AC like The Breeze wouldn't be good, since half the coverage area overlaps, most of it gets CBS-FM and to the southwest where you lose CBS, you get WOGL.
News/Talk wouldn't be good, since NJ 101.5 is strong throughout WMGQ's entire coverage area.
Country would be good, since there is no competition besides 96.1 in Allentown, 92.5 in Philly (or 107.3 in Atlantic City when the tropo booms in). WXTU even gets ratings in Middlesex-Somerset-Union despite a weak signal.

 

[myke25]

country might just work, however, think of the demographics around new brunswick. it's at the heart of central nj and it's filled with rutgers students.

why not dance? nyc ain't touching it soon, 90.3 the core does it fri nites and sat. mornings (well, at least on my show 8a-10a) and there's no other outlet..

energy 98!!!


your thoughts?

 

[wmgcbs]

country might just work, however, think of the demographics around new brunswick. it's at the heart of central nj and it's filled with rutgers students.

why not dance? nyc ain't touching it soon, 90.3 the core does it fri nites and sat. mornings (well, at least on my show 8a-10a) and there's no other outlet..

energy 98!!!


your thoughts?

If it's AC versus dance music, there's no choice to make. AC is a much more desirable format to advertisers. Magic is probably still billing well. Their commercial breaks are usually ridiculously long, chock full of local advertisers. If I were a bettin' man, WMGQ is here to stay with AC -- until the ratings (and billing) continue to decline to less than mediocre numbers.

 

[Corned Beef and Cabbage]

Philadelphia B101 Veteran Chris McCoy named as WMGQ's new morning man starting Thursday



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date: August 6, 2007


McCoy Named New Morning Host of Greater Media’s Magic 98.3FM in New Jersey

Somerset, New Jersey (August 6, 2007): Veteran on-air personality, Chris McCoy, has been named as the new morning personality of Magic 98.3/ WMGQ-FM. He will begin his new duties on Thursday, August 9, 2007.

McCoy previously spent a successful 12 years as the morning host of WBEB (B101) in Philadelphia . Prior to that, he served as the mid-day host for 15 years at Greater Media’s WMGK-FM.

“Chris brings an incredible amount of experience and past success to Magic 98.3,” said Magic 98.3 Program Director Tim Tefft. “To be able to grab such a broadcast professional to do mornings at Magic 98.3 is a coup! We look forward to Chris taking the station to a whole new level.”

McCoy replaces Steve O’Brien.

WMGQ-FM is owned and operated by Greater New Jersey, a subsidiary of Greater Media, Inc., the parent company of 20 AM and FM radio stations in the Boston , Detroit , New Jersey and Philadelphia markets. It also owns a modern printing plant and a group of weekly newspapers in central New Jersey as well as several telecommunications towers located throughout the United States .


###

 

[myke25]

let's see how long this gig lasts....

imho, i think he's wasting his time and talent going to magic. speaking of wasting and magic, i used to put it on to fall asleep faster. lately, that late night girl makes me cringe. i don't know if it's nasal or that she just isn't entertaining or both....

 

[wmgcbs]

lately, that late night girl makes me cringe. i don't know if it's nasal or that she just isn't entertaining or both....

Which one? The only two late-night girls I can think of are Valerie Lyn and Staci Dee. Both of them kind of fit your description...

 

[myke25]

staci dee sounds about right... i think she was on last night. a person snoring, chewing with their mouth full or dogs barking would be far more listenable than staci reading our central jersey forecast.

 

[wmgcbs]

staci dee sounds about right... i think she was on last night. a person snoring, chewing with their mouth full or dogs barking would be far more listenable than staci reading our central jersey forecast.

In all fairness to her, I think she could work if she just toned down the "cutesiness" of her voice. She's always trying to sing a lullaby whenever she speaks. If she picks up her energy and tries not to sound ridiculously happy all the time, she would be better. Regardless, I'd rather hear Staci than Valerie Lyn. I've learned to leave Magic off past 7:00 and on weekends. It's just better that way...

 

[myke25]

staci dee sounds about right... i think she was on last night. a person snoring, chewing with their mouth full or dogs barking would be far more listenable than staci reading our central jersey forecast.

It's just better that way...

LMAO!!!!

so true....

 

[kingofpain]

Wasting time, huh? Kind've like excessive chiming in on the radio board criticizing people you probably don't know. The people I am referring to are the 2 part-time gals on Magic 98.3, Staci and Valerie. Do you know them personally? Have you ever worked with either of them? Then who the hell are you to criticize them on how they sound on the radio? Have you listened to John Lisk lately, what's so great about him? He's kind've like going through the motions. The new morning show host is Magic's 5th morning host since and including Lou Russo (who was the best of all 5 by far). Jan is probably the only consistent jock on the station. I know I must be leaving a full-timer out. Speaking of going throught the motions, how bout Tim Tefft? Maybe that's the person you should be criticizing about Magic to, after all...he is the program director. So in the meantime, please leave Staci and Valerie alone. Thank you for your support!! Cheers!!!

 

[myke25]

hey kingofpain,

get off my **** mmm, k? thanks. anyhow, as THE listener, well, was the listener.. i found them to not be entertaining. not the kinda people you'd want to fall asleep to. are you a bitter magic employee or did you find your magic elsewhere? if you read my prior posts, you'd hear me only mentioning those two and the fact that this was when they were on at nighttime. I like Lou Russo. Always have, always will. I'm glad that he moved on to much better things. Let me state for the record that you're a high strung bird brain. I have not worked with them. I have not known them personally. I had to change the dial to 106.7 or 107.1 when I wanted to fall asleep. So keep smoking that magic crack and lend them your support. Cheers to you too!! Now go have another one!