Slam! Take that Frank!

[ThreeFer]

I nearly just spit milk out thru my nose. Did anybody hear that bit WBLM just aired completely making fun of Frank's feelbe attempt at A to Z? They even called them out by name. This is what good, creative, outside the box radio sounds like. I'm sure the Captain will play it again in the morning, it was hilarious. (Argytunes, i hope you heard it. This is what you've been hoping for!)

Frank's A to Z is done. They started days after WBLM started theirs. WBLM is still only on "R".

I think it's safe to say that Frank blew any amount of credibility they may have once had. Thanks for insulting our intelligence yet again! You've been schooled, Frank. Who's your professor now?

 

[Oldbones]

I nearly just spit milk out thru my nose. Did anybody hear that bit WBLM just aired completely making fun of Frank's feelbe attempt at A to Z? They even called them out by name. This is what good, creative, outside the box radio sounds like. I'm sure the Captain will play it again in the morning, it was hilarious. (Argytunes, i hope you heard it. This is what you've been hoping for!)

Frank's A to Z is done. They started days after WBLM started theirs. WBLM is still only on "R".

I think it's safe to say that Frank blew any amount of credibility they may have once had. Thanks for insulting our intelligence yet again! You've been schooled, Frank. Who's your professor now?

And where does the Blump stand in the ratings w/r/t Frank? Just what I thought. I'm sure both of the Blump's listeners enjoy hearing a bunch of obscure songs in alphabetical order.

 

[Radiodeity]

And where does the Blump stand in the ratings w/r/t Frank? Just what I thought. I'm sure both of the Blump's listeners enjoy hearing a bunch of obscure songs in alphabetical order.

And Frank's two listeners are pretty disappointed too - since Blimp and Frank are tied with the same ratings in the Spring book.

So your point would be that Frank and Blimp equally suck?

What is your employer going to say now that you pointed this out?

 

[Clint in Cumberland]

So BLM is still in their A to Z? And they're only on the "R" songs? OMG! That means they're playing obscure songs that the majority of their listeners don't even know...just so they can show everyone "We've got a big library." Forget the fact that most of their listeners don't really care.

Ask yourself this, would I rather have the opportunity to win $100 an hour weekdays 9 to 5, and a chance to win $10,000 or hear "Lunatic Fringe" by Red Rider. I'll bet the average listener will go with the money.

BLM can take pot shots at Frank all they want. That sort of thing only helps FNK in the long run. I've never heard them directly acknowledge BLM even exists. All you have to do is ask around on the street who people listen to and you'll hear Frank more than BLM. People want to hear the hits, not some rare live Neil Young
B-side. The hits...that's what Frank plays.

 

[Underminer]

"All you have to do is ask around on the street who people listen to and you'll hear Frank more than BLM." Ummmm..have you seen a book recently, Clint? Looks like BLM, Coast and JBQ more than Frannie, lately, sweetheart.

 

[adbuyer1]

Sorry Chief.
Clients really determine what stations any agency buys. Always have and always will. Clients dictate their desires based onwhat their cutomers listen to and where they feel they can reach more of them. Even today, it's still Frank, Frank, Frank. Sorry, I mean Franne. Franne still gets the dollars and the vote.

 

[Radiodeity]

Clients dictate their desires based onwhat their cutomers listen to and where they feel they can reach more of them.

OK, I'm not trying to be a wise guy but if WJBQ, WPOR, WMGX, WYNZ and WHOM are ahead of both Frank and the Blimp, why would a client want to "reach more listeners" by purchasing ad time on 6th and 7th rated stations? I don't understand.

Really - I really don't get it. ???

 

[Underminer]

Frank says, "It doesn't have to make sense! Just drink the Nassau Kool-Aid and you'll have a job! At least until the next book comes out. By then, Frank will be sniffing the Bone, if you know what I mean."

 

[adbuyer1]

"OK, I'm not trying to be a wise guy but if WJBQ, WPOR, WMGX, WYNZ and WHOM are ahead of both Frank and the Blimp, why would a client want to "reach more listeners" by purchasing ad time on 6th and 7th rated stations? I don't understand.

Really - I really don't get it. "

Radiodeity - Good question.....

First, I don't know what ratings you're refering to, but when it comes to Adults 25-54 WJBQ, WPOR, WYNZ and WHOM are not ahead of Frank. That is simply fact.

Second and far more important. Portland is only a one county metro; that being Cumberland. Most of the Portland stations cover five counties very well. Those counties are Cumberland, York, Androscoggin, Oxford and Sagadahoc. Many businesses, certainly many of those you hear on radio, rely on people in many of these counties for their business livelihood, not just one. In this area, WFNK is the top station.

Here's a thought for you. Each week WFNK reaches over 164,000 people in the Portland TSA. The number 2 station is almost 40,000 less. Yes, 40,000 less.

I'm not quite sure where you received you ratings data, but it is not correct. Really, not even close.

 

[argytunes]

This one is for ThreeFer.

Good Creative Radio....as rare as it is these days...is totally embraced by YOURS TRULY!

I confess I didn't catch the show on either FRANK or BLM on Tuesday. [If I told you what I was listening to instead of them...you'd probably 'bust a gut?'].

As far as the two "annual ratings books" go....we can pit THE BLIMP against FRANK or any other station....but what comes out in the wash is based on whether the desired demographic (aka desirable listener age) a station is looking for is MET?

I liked the earlier reference to "the lunatic fringe"-----which was actually a term coined by satirist and ad-guru, Stan Freberg! (You'll find it referenced in Volumn 1 of "Stan Freberg Presents the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA").

Come to think of it...you could apply the term "lunatic fringe" to just about any radio station in any market! Especially if you discover that 'they're treading on their past' or honestly attempting to give current listener(s) something a little different?

Why is "Same Old Song and Dance" playing inside my head as I write this? Must be the late hour?

argytunes

 

[Radiodeity]

Portland is only a one county metro;

I'm not quite sure where you received you ratings data, but it is not correct. Really, not even close.

They can be viewed at http://www.radioandrecords.com or http://www.allaccess.com and various other places. But we all know they are 12+ numbers. As far as the other counties outside the "metro", how are listener ratings determined if the ratings don't cover those counties? Where do the numbers you quote come from?

Still not understanding... ???

 

[adbuyer1]

Arbitron sends diaries to listeners in all of these counties. What you see on 12+ numbers posted is just the ratings for Cumberland County only. Arbitron measures listenership in all the counties I previously mentioned. These counties, plus a few other are called the Portland Total Service Area or Portland TSA. You can look at ratings for just York county or just Oxford or Androscoggin or anything you want. They are all measured by Arbitron.

The reason I look at the Portland TSA numbers is that they provide a much larger sample, thereby a better representation of a true station's audience.

 

[Radiodeity]

Arbitron sends diaries to listeners in all of these counties. What you see on 12+ numbers posted is just the ratings for Cumberland County only. Arbitron measures listenership in all the counties I previously mentioned. These counties, plus a few other are called the Portland Total Service Area or Portland TSA. You can look at ratings for just York county or just Oxford or Androscoggin or anything you want. They are all measured by Arbitron.

The reason I look at the Portland TSA numbers is that they provide a much larger sample, thereby a better representation of a true station's audience.

Thank you for the help trying to understand this so far.

The information I’ve found indicates Cumberland County, part of the Portland Metro, has an estimated population of 273,505 and is the largest county by population. Next is York County, in the Portland Metro, that has an estimated population of 200,359 and Sagadahoc County, in the Portland Metro, checks in with 36,927 for a total population so far of 510,791. Then Androscoggin County gets added, which is in the Lewiston-Auburn Metro, with 107,022 and finally Oxford County, in the Portland TSA, with 56,614. This brings the grand total population of the Portland TSA to 618,483.

If WFNK is reaching over 164,000 persons weekly that leaves over 454,000 persons to listen to the other 30 stations (that subscribe to Arbitron) in the TSA. So if we divide 454,000 by 30 that figures to around 15,000 (average) listening to the others. That’s over 40,000 less by far.

Okay, so NOW I’m really confused… ???

 

[Erie_Lackawanna]

(Snip)
If WFNK is reaching over 164,000 persons weekly that leaves over 454,000 persons to listen to the other 30 stations (that subscribe to Arbitron) in the TSA. So if we divide 454,000 by 30 that figures to around 15,000 (average) listening to the others. That’s over 40,000 less by far.

Okay, so NOW I’m really confused… ???

that's not Exclusive listening... an overwhelming majority of in-tab listening estimates include multiple radio station listens. there may 164,000 (estimated) listeners to a station in a week, but 98% of those listeners also noted listening to other radio stations. ('fnk had a 2% "exclusive" estimate, 'blm was 7%) as it is, both 'fnk & 'blm trailed the Q, POR, Coast, Oldies, HOM in total week estimates, listeners aged 12 or older. and little WJTO had the most loyal listeners based on exclusive percentage totals.

 

[ray ting]

Adbuyer1, I understand your rationale in looking at TSA numbers instead of metro figures. And I certainly wouldn't argue with your approach. But the scary thing about TSA numbers is that, in the non-metro counties, the per-person diary value can go way high. Sometimes, single non-metro diaries get TEN TIMES the weight of metro diaries. Therefore, as few as one or two diaries can greatly inflate the TSA numbers of any station. That's the caveat.

 

[Radiodeity]

Sometimes, single non-metro diaries get TEN TIMES the weight of metro diaries. Therefore, as few as one or two diaries can greatly inflate the TSA numbers of any station. That's the caveat.

And that's the idea.

I knew there was a reason.

Thank you.

 

[Clint in Cumberland]

Frank says, "It doesn't have to make sense! Just drink the Nassau Kool-Aid and you'll have a job! At least until the next book comes out. By then, Frank will be sniffing the Bone, if you know what I mean."


Hahahahaha. Keep dreaming Underminer. You and the rest of your bunch skip on downstairs to the Dunkin Donuts and dream about the good old days of The Blimp. Re-live those days in the mobile home, tokin' up out back, playing the live version of Freebird, and think back to the way it was 10 years ago when you were the only game in town. Then when you wake up with sprinkles from your donut on your face, and hot coffee in your lap, maybe you'll realize that Glory Days from Bruce isn't really playing in the background, and this isn't a movie but real life and that Frank is here to stay. They aint like the other also rans from the past that came in for a year or two and were just annoying. No this is a BIG gorilla sitting on your back and there isn't anything you'll be able to do after this book.

It's really going to boil down to who has a larger checkbook for marketing, contesting, etc. and we all know it isn't Citadel. Go ahead Underminer, say hello to your new daddy.

 

[ray ting]

Radiodeity, I wasn't trying to argue with the method to Adbuyer1's madness. He's dead-on correct in saying that many Southern Maine businesses need a regional clientele, not just Cumberland County customers.

But those TSA numbers can bounce all over creation. If Frank is at or close to the top of the TSA ratings book after book, that's all any time buyer needs to know. These numbers are estimates after all, as Arbitron agrees and will be the first to remind you.

But I'm not trying to either diss or support Frank or WBLM.

Nor will I argue with Adbuyer1's purchasing strategy, which I would assume to be working.

 

[Underminer]

You ASSume, Clint, that I work for Citadel. That, along with almost everything else you've written in all your posts under all your other screen names, would be incorrect. I'm quite gainfully employed by a top-rated station here in Portland, and I guarantee that you have heard of me, along with all of the listeners that you love to play to the lowest common denominator to, have as well. Frank is nobody's daddy, I assure you. Well, maybe the Bone's.
Speaking of which, if BLM's parody on Frank's A-Z only helps Frank, then what kind of logic dictates that The Bone mention BLM in almost every one of their positioners? Welcome to Nassau!

 

[Radiodeity]

(snip)
Radiodeity, I wasn't trying to argue with the method to Adbuyer1's madness.
If Frank is at or close to the top of the TSA ratings book after book, that's all any time buyer needs to know. These numbers are estimates after all, as Arbitron agrees and will be the first to remind you.

But I'm not trying to either diss or support Frank or WBLM.

Nor will I argue with Adbuyer1's purchasing strategy, which I would assume to be working.

I too wasn't trying to argue the way adbuyer1's logic is working either. If clients are buying, hey - who cares? I can sleep ok at night knowing I haven't bent a 2 to look like an 8 or got a little dyslexic with a 6 or 9. If it’s working to keep adbuyer1 in wool socks and clean underwear so much the better in this wacky world of radio.

And I have to agree with you – I’m not trying to support one station over another. At times though the thread gets a bit heated and unbalanced and that’s where I get my shorts in a knot because in today’s radio business you are here today and gone tomorrow. And there are those who frequent these message forums "fighting to the death" to support a radio company who most likely doesn’t even know they exist. But, egos being as they may, like to believe their little slice of the broadcast day is greatly influenced by them.

Too bad. This isn’t the 1960’s when listeners would want to hear what you had to say because it was informative, news worthy or entertaining. But when you are now relegated to reading liner cards and repeating the “brand” between every song – you aren’t that person we used to know and love back then. You have no creative control which, I believe, is why radio today seems so cookie cutter and boring. Sorry guys – you could be replaced by a computer and no one would be the wiser - or even care.

Sometimes the truth sucks but it’s the truth none the less. Sorry.

Now back to our regularly scheduled station bashing….