Many -- maybe most -- stations use Facebook WRONG.

[Holland Cooke]

Scrambling to follow-the-money...

There's a sense of panic on the part of radio management that they MUST have a social media presence.

With good reason, as you'll see in this morning's trades, which report Borrell Assoc.'s forecast that ad spending on Social Media will double in 2012; while the radio spend has flatlined.

 

[borderblaster]

Your audience is ALREADY on Facebook. To ignore that is like the station owner I worked for who pretended that television didn't exist. Yes, there are other things people do besides listen to your station. I agree that a station should have a strong, interactive web presence. When you send someone to the station's Facebook page, done right, the Facebook page should send them back to the station.

Silliest thing I see on Facebook, mostly from TV stations, are posts that say, "We'll have details on this story at 11". No, I want payoff now or I'll find it somewhere else. About as silly as the promos that say "Will it rain tomorrow? We'll have the forecast at 11". I can get the forecast anytime I choose!

 

[Holland Cooke]

And SPEAKING OF Social Media...

a station should have a strong, interactive web presence. When you send someone to the station's Facebook page, done right, the Facebook page should send them back to the station.

YAH-mon!

Thus my enthusiasm for the specific take-aways you'll take-away from that "Let's Get Engaged" presentation.

Download + digest @ www.HollandCooke.com.
Scroll down my home page to "If you couldn't make it to Baltimore..."

And SPEAKING OF Social Media, I -- often accused here of being an early adopter -- am, admittedly, the-last-on-my-block to Tweet.
But I'm there now.
Follow me.
Just TRY.
@HollandCooke

HC
Covering next week's 2012 International Consumer Electronics Show for Talkers magazine and "America in the Morning" and "The Jim Bohannon Show"

PS: HAPPY BIRTHDAY DIANE KEATON, who won an Oscar, and stole America's heart, as "Annie Hall" (her real name).

 

[Tom Wells]

My opinion, FWIW, is that the RIGHT way for stations to use Facebook is not at all! Station should keep their websites up-to-the-second (which most do not.) WXYZ.com should be THE place for listeners to go for information about the station.

Social media is destroying the Internet! It's taken us back 25 years to the days when users were segmented into Compuserve, Prodigy and AOL "communities." When people discovered that the World Wide Web allowed them to break out of those insular groups, they embraced it and in a very short time everyone was virtually connected.

There's a sense of panic on the part of radio management that they MUST have a social media presence. Suppose management at the dawn of television had simply panicked, given up, and taken the position that, "We're TV without the pictures," -- then tried to send listeners away to their co-owned TV stations because, "You can SEE it on CBS-TV!" Radio might have died right then as some predicted. Instead, radio changed and became a strong competitor for advertising dollars.

Radio is not "TV without the pictures," nor is it an interactive media. Its strength is its simplicity and its ability to captivate with sound alone. There's no effort required by the listener other than to punch a button or two. Once listeners are tuned in and engaged, they should be able to enjoy the programming without constantly being reminded to go to Facebook, go to Twitter, or anywhere else. Other than perhaos a reminder along with the station ID, " ... also streaming at WXYZ.com" ... the goal should be to keep the listener TUNED TO THE STATION -- not sent elsewhere!

Hearty agreement, and I have felt this this for years as radio began to "recognize" televison and newer media more and more.

I always enjoyed hearing a host squash TV related talk within a second or two with a quick tv putdown.

The perspective changes along with media, but there's no wise way to unwish your existance, nature, and usefulness
to chase the fleeting currency of fads.

The usefulness of real-time voice communication being far more useful, it's the technology that needed to get
developed as a proirity. So radio came along first because it was the greatest felt need.

Why didn't radio stations set up CB chat desk "openings" on channel 13 at 8 PM in 1976 to be cool with the new social media?
They would not "dignify" such a "media" by stooping to that level.
That's what's changed.
Instead of being itself, radio is busy looking over shoulders of its "competitors", and giving more power to the new media.

The was some radio that tried to bring that feel to radio during the CB days.
The closest it came for me was John Records Landecker's "Boogie Check" which was a thinly moderated telephone evening teen call-in
event that had ALL the misbehavior of a CB channel for a few crazy minutes. It was fun in that short dose.

I suspect many more people will tire of what seems to become obligatory eventually.

 

[Holland Cooke]

RE "Why didn't radio stations set up CB chat desk?"

The one I worked at in the 70s did, and had some 400 traffic tipsters.
Back then, we had an 11.5 share.
Just-in PPM numbers for the same station PLUS a FM simulcast we didn't have back-in-the-day: 3.8.

But hey, enough of this on-topic stuff.
Shameless subject-change:
HELP WANTED: NEWS/TALK ON-AIR PD, IMMEDIATE AVAILABILITY.
Great -- not good, great -- non-insane owner.
Details atop www.HollandCooke.com

"Now, back to our regularly-scheduled topic..."

 

[borderblaster]

Some of the overnight trucker's shows did monitor CB.

Social Media is here to stay. Maybe not Facebook, maybe not Twitter, but it will be here in some form. I don't see people giving up the ability to interact and deciding to be passive consumers of entertainment and information again,l especially if they've always grown up with it.
Not to mention having your website optimized for mobile.

 

[Signal_Faded]

Great content Holland...I was at the conference and agree that is worth attending.

Putting up a FB page and not engaging in the conversation that can take place is worse than having a 'brochure type' of web site. There is an expectation on FB that the listeners will be able to interact with the station/personalities in a more authentic way. It removes a barrier and allows them to feel like they truly are friends.

Bottom line...if you do it...DO IT! Be there. Be intentional. Be engaged. Your tribe will love you for it and will, in the end, fight for you!

 

[MC]

There was that book "Mega Trends"... I saw one at the give away bin at a local library. For the most part, it was hard to say if a prediction about the future came true. It was sort of, "well that did not happen because of such and such made it irrelevant..." So what technology will develop in what fashion is hard to say. A brain wave feed, verses audio might change both phones, computers, and radio.

 

[Dr. Daliah]

Welcome to Twitter, Holland! Looking good as usual!!!

I agree with all above regarding facebook presence, and for any station or host its a must, but I tell you, its beginning to look like a college billboard. Thousands of posts with no one having time to read them. Most people post and run (mentioned earlier in which we should engage and answer back), but its taking 20 minutes to read posts posted in the last two minutes. Unless someone actively seeks you out, your page/personal post will be missed due to thousands of other friends posting afterwards. Similarly, your tweet will only be read if someone is reading the feed at that moment in time.

My belated point.....a station/host has to post frequently and continuously to maintain presence. Considering its free advertising, this may be the reason stations hire social media employees specifically for this. But for the rest of us, 24/7 is pretty laborsome.

But that's our society now...we eat, we breathe, we tweet....


#DrDaliah...weren't CB handles more fun??

 

[landtuna]

Re: Scrambling to follow-the-money...

With good reason, as you'll see in this morning's trades, which report Borrell Assoc.'s forecast that ad spending on Social Media will double in 2012; while the radio spend has flatlined.

It took me about 7 seconds after my first experience with social media to install an ad blocker. I can't imagine that the younger demo doesn't do that even more intensely than I. I seriously wonder whether (a) any but a very few actually see media ads and (b) whether they pay any attention to them (actually buy the service or product being viewed).

With the advent of the Internet my buying habits have changed 180 degrees. No longer do I pay attention to any media ads. When I am ready to buy something, particularly a big ticket item, I hop on my computer and research it. Once I have made my decision I hop on my computer again and go price shopping.

Ads may still work for things like concerts, where personal preferences rule, but even for relatively inexpensive things like movies and restaurants I tend to research before committing. There are a ton of people out there like me and we don't research on social media.

 

[jas2525]

But that's our society now...we eat, we breathe, we tweet....

No, actually it isn't.

MOST people DO NOT tweet, and for good reason. Like the rest of social media (and you can maybe include blogs in that), it's all about deefing ones own ego. People love to throw the most inane comments up just because it came across their mind. Nevermind if it has even one iota of relevance or entertainment value.

That is the problem with it all. It's a friggin mess! People are more interested in making a comment just to make a comment...and it shows.

Any radio station that encourages their talent to waste time trying to respond to countless mind-numbingly empty tweets or Facebook posts is wasting manpower (and even more egregiously during these times of cutbacks) taking their eye off the ball. New technology and gadget gurus will never understand this, since they become easily enamored with the idea of integrating whatever comes down the pike.

Waaaaaaaay too much emphasis is being put on this fad. Way too much. And yes, it IS a fad. I know a number of people who used to be all into it, but have cooled on it after realizing how ultimately unproductive and shallow it all is.

 

[Dr. Daliah]

Will agree with you there. Its become extremely cluttered and less people read the actual posts....and in theory, that's how Facebook will eventually self destruct.

It also blows my mind when I see TV commercials spend valuable advertising dollars asking viewers to follow them on Facebook and Twitter. Really??!!!

But people are changing. Internet addiction will continue to rise, and what seems like a waste of time, quality time to us, is entertainment for many folks. The average person surfs the net 3-4 hours a day...and is surpassing television watching.

TV advertising is already seeing a difference. More and more people are Tivo'ing their shows, so they FF over the commercials. Advertisers also are aware that viewers are surfing the internet during commercial time they can't FF through, so we are seeing the trend of advertisers focusing on social media.

Let's face it, our society is putting more attention on their computer than their TV and family. And sadly us doctors are seeing more "mouse wrist", "tweet thumb", computer-screen induced migraines, of which I'm starting to develop, so I'll end here....

 

[Holland Cooke]

RE "MOST people do NOT Tweet"

Correct.
Twitter AWARENESS is high, real high.
Twitter USE is still single-digit % of the population (its "rating").

And those who do Tweet are showing us that -- for all the "noise" -- the crowd has become the media.

Twitter was the first warning many had that the East Coast earthquake was coming…before wireless network congestion set in.

Ditto information-derived-from Google search data, which The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been using it for several years now to plot influenza outbreak (based on symptoms keyword searches).

Good afternoon (PT) from Las Vegas, and the 2012 International Consumer Electronics Show.
Hear my coverage on "America in the Morning" and "The Jim Bohannon Show."
Also posting @ www.HollandCooke.com

HC

 

[jas2525]

Re: RE "MOST people do NOT Tweet"

Correct.
Twitter AWARENESS is high, real high.
Twitter USE is still single-digit % of the population (its "rating").

And those who do Tweet are showing us that -- for all the "noise" -- the crowd has become the media.

Twitter was the first warning many had that the East Coast earthquake was coming…before wireless network congestion set in.

Ditto information-derived-from Google search data, which The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been using it for several years now to plot influenza outbreak (based on symptoms keyword searches).

Good afternoon (PT) from Las Vegas, and the 2012 International Consumer Electronics Show.
Hear my coverage on "America in the Morning" and "The Jim Bohannon Show."
Also posting @ www.HollandCooke.com

HC

Pure and simple:
I DO NOT want amateurs being my entertainment!

I do not want amateurs dominating radio, TV or movies.
The internet has mostly always been about amateurs and their antics. I repeat, I go to TV/radio/movies for actual, thought out, polished fare.

Read through some facebook pages or twitter tweets or internet messageboards...and you'll notice that, as I said, it's mostly a bunch of scatter-brained, disorganzied, uninteresting nonsense.

You can say the public IS the media all you want. But it isn't really true. I don't look to the average Joe for my news or entertainment...and never will---no more than I'd pull somebody off the street and expect them to fix my washing machine. I'll get a pro to do that...because I want it done well.

 

[Holland Cooke]

To save us all another-several-pages...

THE most-frustrating thing one can tell a communicator is "I don't hear you."
Accordingly...

Pure and simple: I DO NOT want amateurs being my entertainment!

Puh-LEEEEEZ sleep-like-a-baby tonight, secure-in-the-knowledge that you've made that point, about your personal preferences...at least a half-dozen times. Your disdain/incuriousity for the useful third-party data offered for download resonates like early 70s Top 40 AM radio reverb.

GOT it.
Promise!
In 6-foot red spray-painted letters.
Honest.

Rather than frustrating your point about Social Media clutter by cluttering this Social Medium via repetition, KNOW that future, less-repetitive, interaction-I-have-with-others on-topic here is not intended to refute what you have offered.

Peace,

HC
www.HollandCooke.com

 

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

Re: RE "MOST people do NOT Tweet"

Pure and simple:
I DO NOT want amateurs being my entertainment!

I do not want amateurs dominating radio, TV or movies.
The internet has mostly always been about amateurs and their antics. I repeat, I go to TV/radio/movies for actual, thought out, polished fare.

Read through some facebook pages or twitter tweets or internet messageboards...and you'll notice that, as I said, it's mostly a bunch of scatter-brained, disorganzied, uninteresting nonsense.

You can say the public IS the media all you want. But it isn't really true. I don't look to the average Joe for my news or entertainment...and never will---no more than I'd pull somebody off the street and expect them to fix my washing machine. I'll get a pro to do that...because I want it done well.

Part of me wants to say (as I often do): "May Your Tribe Increase".

I want my life to be in good hands. No amateurs in the airline cockpit, please. No amateurs in the surgery suite, please.

But part of me snaps back with a vengeance:

I'll take home-cooked (amateur?) meals over "professional" restaurant food any day.

The political world today is topsy-turvy because it has become conventional wisdom that career politicians are evil because they are... <drum roll please> professionals. Today's political process is being driven by people turning to amateurs on the Internet who are churning out some of the most un-professional tripe imaginable.

And here in Radio-Info and other forums on broadcasting and programming, we hear this constant hunger, thirst and demand that radio recapture "the good-ole-days... we use terms like live and local... but what we really long for is the day when people (like me) produced content on the radio that was NOT professional. Yes, I like others, were paid to do it and we made a living at it. But down deep, the term professional tends to be tied to persons with advanced training... probably at an institution of higher learning... and maybe using skills that required licensing or certification.

Before you hurt your arm patting yourself on the back, sit down and think your way through more of the processes and decisions in your life. I'll bet there are more amateurs in your "supply chain" than you are thinking about.

In the big scheme of of today's definitions... was Elvis an amateur or a professional?

 

[borderblaster]

Elvis was an amateur before he was a professional, I suppose.

In my early radio career, in a small town but certainly not isolated from the signals of bigger markets. In addition, most of the people who worked there were transplants from somewhere else, many of them grew up in major markets.

Most vof us wantedm to be professional enough to make an aircheck that would land us in the next bigger town

 

[Dr. Daliah]

Sorry, had to tweet....

An Excedrin recall just happened, guess stray meds are winding up in their bottles.

and after I just took one for my headache....

Amateurs...I'm sick of them too......

 

[Holland Cooke]

RE "Amateurs...I'm sick of them too..."

FUNNY, and pertinent, line from Bob Newhart, accepting an award at the NAB convention:

Before he became "funnyman Bob Newhart," he was an accountant...who-happened-to-be funny.
One thing led to another.

He talked about sitting in the green room at The Ed Sullivan Show, chatting with Buddy Hackett.
When Hackett learned that Newhart was an accountant, he said, "so you don't have to do THIS."
Newhart replied, "Yeah, I really do."

It may irk some that "American Idol" is TV's #1 show, but it is.
Today's amateur could be tomorrow's pro.

 

[jas2525]

There's a reason we in society seek out pros when we want a job done well. Callers are amateurs and are only as good as the PRO host makes them. Nothing I hate more on talkradio than listening to a host read tweets or Facebook entries. In fact, doing so encourages others to NOT call, but rather tweet. From a talkradio perspective, Facebook and Twitter are counterproductive. That's right. I said it: COUNTERPRODUCTIVRE.

And I never ever understood why TV newscasts will say: "If you want to read more about this story, just go to our website". WHY? I'm sure your advertisers will be thrilled that you are sending people AWAY from the TV right in the middle of the program. I wish TV and radio (especially) would stop trying so hard to be in on what all the cool kids on the block are into, and worry instead about making their primary content more compelling. THAT is the real problem.

And Holland, you are a class act and I hate disagreeing with you. Your posts are always interesting and colorful. You're quite dynamic and often inspirational.

A real PRO.