They probably are trying to get listeners from KQMV and KRWM while attempting to position themselves between Warm and Jack FM in a more contemporary way that is contemporary enough to get listeners from KQMV and KBKS.Your post compelled me to take a fresh look at their playlist. I must agree with you! This is one sloppily programmed station. Not sure it can be called Hot AC anymore. It's mostly a wide ranging mix of 90s and 00s music with a couple even older songs and a few newer songs (I did see some recurrents but not many). The occasional hip hop song is a weird touch, and the infrequent oldie (Fleetwood Mac) is a weird touch. They also play some library tracks that, in my opinion, have not withstood the test of time well enough to be worthy of a slot on a major market Hot AC station.
The mix strikes me as a station trying to wedge itself between Warm 106.9 and Jack FM while simultaneously trying to stay just contemporary enough to cross cume with the CHR stations. It is a messy hodge podge musically.
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Seattle-Tacoma Radio Ratings: June 2023
- Thread starter pjc1961
- Start date
I think the Moug & Angie Morning Show could be just one of the reasons why the ratings are so low rn. When they arrived on the scene the station has been in the high-1 to low-2 share in the market on average ever since. I think Kent leaving the station caused the station to try to revamp itself to try to get higher ratings than they were getting before Santa FM came though it never worked. I think before Kent retired the absence of Curt & Courine caused the ratings to be around the same as they are now. Santa FM not coming in 2022 also hurt 101.5 since their ratings would remain the same during that time though it may have helped 94.1, 106.9 and 105.3 get better ratings during the Holiday Season since all 3 stations went all-Christmas.
Whether a station does Holiday music means little to the ratings for the rest of the year. Sure, stations sell XMAS packages, but there are so damn many of them, the ad pie for special package slices gets that much smaller each time a station decides to go full or partial Christmas tunes. If anything, it's a good time to let your big AM show go on vacation while you compensate by selling holiday music packages. Jan 1, it's returning to normal programming already in progress. Doing XMAS isn't going to be a substitute for not having an AM show with a target-demo appeal.
That may be true, but in general, music selection doesn't appear to be a huge factor in driving the AC audience to listen. There's really nothing objectionable in the Star playlist, so a few abstract songs here and there aren't going to kill their ratings.
I don’t think Christmas music affect their ratings the rest of the year just during the holidays.
Obviously, each researched a slightly different age range and, possibly, one added some Hispanics to the sample too. They each seem to have a slightly different central core age range target.
Changes announced at KEXP:
Changes Afoot At KEXP/Seattle
• Seattle-based public broadcaster and music discovery nonprofit KEXP announced a series of upcoming changes to its on-air lineup, effective Sept. 13. Those changes include the launch of three new weekly specialty shows focusing on modern indigenous music from around the world, the music of...
ramp247.com
Hey, I've got an idea! We've got a good thing going, let's mess with it!
The challenge with Xmas music (especially if you’re the #2 or 3 station doing it), is that there’s good potential to boost cume and TSL during those few weeks of the year. HOWEVER….you’re also going to lose audience, with the challenge being getting them back on 12/26. Plus….agency buyers could care less about the Holiday book, unless of course they only want to buy Xmas music stations.
As the music at KEXP gets more obscure and niche, this is probably going to help KPNW, when some of those KEXP listeners decide to find something more mainstream and tolerable to listen to.Changes announced at KEXP:
Changes Afoot At KEXP/Seattle
• Seattle-based public broadcaster and music discovery nonprofit KEXP announced a series of upcoming changes to its on-air lineup, effective Sept. 13. Those changes include the launch of three new weekly specialty shows focusing on modern indigenous music from around the world, the music of...ramp247.com
Seems they need to find just the right balance. If their music becomes too mainstream (and it has veered a bit in that direction of late) their core listener base may object. But of course too niche may turn others away. As a non-profit, I presume they care more about listener financial support than ratings.
But, the more confirmed listeners you have, the better the odds of getting them to donate.
Years ago toward the end of my run at C89, the completely incompetent GM came to me one day and said he had pitched an idea to the school district that they loved: Now that we have so many listeners, let's educate them! I remember standing there slack-jawed that after all the work and success, he would even consider screwing with the formula, let alone something suicidal like broadcasting lessons. After over of being stunned, I asked the question; don't you think that as soon as the music ends and class is in session, listeners will flee to other stations that don't do stupid sh*t like trying to teach over the air? The GM (let's call him Mr. Clueless) now looked stunned and asked: Do you really think that's a risk?
Fortunately, the OCD school district forgot all about Mr. Clueless' ham-handed proposal, and the station never pursued teaching over the air.
Yep, that famous corporate mantra "It Ain't Broke --- Let's 'fix' it!" The New Coke theory of success.
KEXP is gettin' rid of Preachin' the Blues? That was a big show when they were still KCMU. A long run for that program.
Well, I think there still is an FM HD2 blues channel available in Seattle. The Metal HD2 channel on KISW bought the farm a while back, but I think the blues channel on another HD2 is still running
And Don Yates is retiring at KEXP. Man, time flies. I remember Don Yates at KCMU. A very cool guy.
Well, I think there still is an FM HD2 blues channel available in Seattle. The Metal HD2 channel on KISW bought the farm a while back, but I think the blues channel on another HD2 is still running
And Don Yates is retiring at KEXP. Man, time flies. I remember Don Yates at KCMU. A very cool guy.
That, in my opinion, is what keeps KEXP an online driven radio station. The format is weird, and they appeal to a very specific group of listeners. I’m glad they have their core base in Seattle, but it doesn’t seem like it would extrapolate to other areas of the market. KPNW is a good happy medium between mainstream and alternative.
The Blues channel on 94.1 HD2 bit the dust the same time they pulled the plug on the Metal Channel I am afraid. KNKX has a nice blues show on I think Saturday and Sunday nights.
A very well known national PD of one of the larger groups commented to me that half of all new Program Director hires failed.
Of those, half were intimidated by moving to a bigger market or bigger stations. They were afraid to do anything and the station fell in ratings because it got stale.
The other half... relevant to this subject... came into successful stations but felt the need to put their personal brand on everything and made too many unnecessary changes. Most of the changes were not needed, and they changed the "touch and feel" of the station. Ratings declined.
Remember Norman B on the X with his blues show?
And it seems like some markets are more fragile than others. Years ago I got dispatched to a station we had just purchased; WAXY Ft. Lauderdale, FL. Besides looking at physical assets, the group PD wanted my impression of how the format was working at the station, given it had been a solid 2nd place in-demo for years. AM and PM drive talent had been there since Christ was a corporal, etc. No sooner did I walk through the doors of the lobby, the GM commented: "I certainly hope the new owners don't plan on messing with the format even slightly because doing so will have grave consequences." Throughout the visit, it seemed like everyone was trying to discourage any changes, which honestly, is pretty common during TV or radio acquisitions.
After I returned to HQ and prepared my report, I made it a point to how insistent everyone seemed to be about any potential tweaks to the existing format.
The group PD initiated some pretty significant call-out research in the market, and found a fair amount of typical listener comments that used the terms 'stale', or over-played as related to music. Couple weeks after the research had been tabulated, the group PD decided to update the promos, buy some TV, add some new titles, and essentially did some what could be considered minor tweaks. Literally, the station went from something like an 11 in-demo to a 3, in one book, and never found its footing again.
YES! I remember Norman B. He was on 107.7 The End as well I believe
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