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Market Manager Search Cumulus Savannah

D

deals3rd

This was posted at Inside Radio:

"Cumulus is searching for a sales oriented Market Manager to lead our powerful seven station cluster in beautiful Savannah, Georgia! Great stations, strong staff, and a fabulous area of the country makes this the perfect opportunity for any top performing broadcaster."

Getting rid of "Lady Di" didn't happen soon enough.
 
So what's the deal in Savannah with Cumulus and their managers. Seems they have a new Market Manager or a new DOS every tiime you turn around. Stations seem to be pretty good and for the most part are holding their own in the ratings? Is it upper management that is just asking for way to much return on the market thant he stations can produce? Something has to be going on other than it just being "Cumulus".
 
It's just the way Cumulus is. Lew just won't come to grips with the fact that radio is not a growth business anymore and turns over his managers in every market where they have stations if they don't hit their numbers. No one hits the numbers. I'm trying to think of a Cumulus GM who has been in the same position for 5 years or longer. Anyone? I'm having trouble even thinking of a GM in any Cumulus market who has be in place for three years. I'm sure there are some, but not many, and I can't think of one right off the top of my head.

Cumulus is a place where they talk about "being held accountable", but that's only true up to the level of GM. Lew borrowed a ton of money to buy back stock years ago and he overpaid. I don't recall him taking a pay cut or being demoted for f_'ing that up. It's not really his fault. You should never own stock in a company where the CEO is also the Chairman and on top of that has control of the company because his shares have super voting rights.
 
WOW Saltydog why don't you tell us exactly how you feel! I agree with your comments but that is apparant in most corporate companies. Clear Channel, Cumulus, CBS, etc. they are all about that botton line and there is something to be said for management being held accountable. Accountability is one thing but unrealistic projections without promotional and progarmming dollars to help boost the ratings is an uphill battle. Just know that Savannah has had a number of MM and DOS's over the years and the market is not a "hot" market with tons of national and regional dollars flowing in. The last MM seems to have been there for a few years but guess she would fall into your 3 to 5 year cataegory. If they had the right person it might make a difference but we all know that CC is going to fight for every nickle there is and do whatever it takes to get it. The two companies are fairly well split with stations so it will be good to sit back and see where the dust falls.
 
Actually, the Cumulus MM job has turned over a lot in the past 5 years. The most recent manager had been there about 18 months. And yeah it's true that CC and Cumulus have similar ratings usually but the fact is that Cumulus has 5 FMs and CC only has 4. Craig Scott is the MM for CC there and he's been there around 4 years. From what I hear, CC has been killing them in ratings and revenue for the past 2 years in spite of having one less station.
 
Well I am sure there will be a new sheriff in town soon and the battle can start all over again.
 
Moonshine said:
I agree with your comments but that is apparant in most corporate companies. Clear Channel, Cumulus, CBS, etc. they are all about that bottom line and there is something to be said for management being held accountable.
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I get all that but Cumulus is really in a class by itself. Low class.
 
They are not as low as Triad and the MM they have. Please don't get me wrong, Triad is a good company but their MM and OM don't have a clue. Their programming strategies are the evidence and their billing now too. Cumulus can take Savannah with the right MM. Can Cumulus get any credit with their Heritage products? Cumulus is not as bad as you think. I see a CC and Cumulus brew coming and Triad is dead in Savannah and maybe SC too with new owners and a great new product for SC. May the best sales people win.
 
tower guy said:
I see a CC and Cumulus brew coming and Triad is dead in Savannah and maybe SC too with new owners and a great new product for SC.
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??? ??? ??? ???

G
 
I think you guys are giving the new SC owners a little too much credit before they have earned it. CJ's track record is not the greatest.
 
rcombs said:
I think you guys are giving the new SC owners a little too much credit before they have earned it. CJ's track record is not the greatest.
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Tow that company line Mr. Shirt Pocket Protector.
 
tower guy said:
They are not as low as Triad and the MM they have. Please don't get me wrong, Triad is a good company but their MM and OM don't have a clue. Their programming strategies are the evidence and their billing now too. Cumulus can take Savannah with the right MM. Can Cumulus get any credit with their Heritage products? Cumulus is not as bad as you think. I see a CC and Cumulus brew coming and Triad is dead in Savannah and maybe SC too with new owners and a great new product for SC. May the best sales people win.
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If you would like to come out from underneath your rock and play, I would be a willing participant. I love it when newbies show up on message boards to take shots and throw mud around, then again when you live in the mud, it's understandable. Let's begin by using your real name and stating your credentials, then we can have a professional discussion about your comments. Have you been a Market Manager? Or are you just an expert on Radio Market Manager positions from observation? Have you sold broadcast advertising? Managed your own business? How many years in broadcasting now? Looking forward to your comments.

These message boards can be invaluable if they are used to build up and help our industry and our craft. Opinions are wonderful, however, using these boards to insult, malign or enhance your feeling of resentment behind an anonymous user name is a true waste of time and energy. Just sayin'.

Jon Robbins
 
Local infighting aside, Cumulus has a well-earned reputation as a company to avoid for market managers, DOS/sales managers and account executives. A longtime friend put in a year-and-a-half as a sales manager with Cumulus in a market about the size of Savannah and watched 5 market managers come & go, along with 35 account execs. Sure, desperation can lead people to take terrible jobs just for the paycheck, but one would need to be especially desperate for this one.

The Dickeys don't quite understand the old adage about radio being a "relationship business." Relationships with advertisers aren't built in weeks or months--they take years to develop... many years. Can't just trade for a new QB or running back and plug 'em in and expect touchdowns to rain from the sky. When you change, you lose.

FWIW, Jon, I've been a market manager/GM for three decades, and wouldn't touch the Cumulus/Savannah gig with a 100-foot pole...
 
"Tow that company line Mr. Shirt Pocket Protector"

I tow no company line, knosall, just ask my bosses at corporate. As all my post say, any post is purely my opinion and my opinion only. And I agree with Jon, I sign my name to my post why don't you.
 
amfmxm.....why all the revolving door changes in Savannah MM's with the other companies and yet the CC guy has been there quite a while?
 
jharmon said:
amfmxm.....why all the revolving door changes in Savannah MM's with the other companies and yet the CC guy has been there quite a while?
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Well, the short answer is that the CC cluster has been the top-billing bunch in Savannah for a long, long time... and dealing from the top--dealing from strength--makes life better for everyone involved--the account execs, the sales manager(s), the market manager... the jocks, PDs, traffic people--everybody. Although Cumulus' Big Two (WEAS & WJCL) have performed well, Clear Channel generally has four of the top 6 stations in the market on a regular basis, so they've got a lot of bulk at the top. Cumulus' Little Three--the other FMs in the cluster--are tag-alongs, and have been for a long, long time.

The longer answer may be that the CC market manager may be very good, and may have made strategic decisions along the way (that we'll never know about) that have solidified the cluster's performance.

But never underestimate the role of Cumulus' Constant Chaos in making the Clear Channel cluster look great by comparison. Advertisers look at the revolving door and (rightly) figure that the organization is fu*ked up--and look elsewhere to invest their hard-earned money.
 
Those are some very good points, amfmxm. In my 10 years in the market, I have been through 5 market managers with Cumulus (the new one will make #6). In the same time period, I believe CC is on their 3rd, which is very good. There are markets for both companies in the Southeast that have been through 4 or more in a year. I do not believe we will see the loyalty that used to keep a GM at a station or group for 20 years or more for a very long time, at least not in the corporate radio world. If you do a great job then the company wants to move you up or to a market that really needs help, which is what happened to one of our former MMs here.
 
Rumpelstiltskin, Rumpelstiltskin, Rumpelstiltskin!





For the record, There isn't a chance in hell that Robert Combs wears a pocket-protector...that's a Wild Turkey stain on his shirt pocket.
 
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