All request radio? Pride/LGBTQ radio? On a main signal? In Buffalo?
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WEDG Big Announcement
- Thread starter LandofFa
- Start date
Well, that article in the News mentioning Townsend's new plans had a bit that seemed to slam the door shut on Val EVER coming back to radio(at least in this market).
Nor am I. But while Pride and Channel Q can be found on HD subchannels, the format is, by its nature, not mass appeal. As for request shows, they almost always end up being dominated by regular callers -- some of whom request the same song every time, some of whom delight in asking for stiffs and obscure tracks. It might be fun on a Sunday night but its appeal would fade quickly as a 24/7 format.
IMO I'd say this type of terrestrial station devoted to that particular segment of the market would be tough to keep afloat. According to this article from 2021, about 5.6% of the US population identifies as LGBT, and the breakdown within that 5.6% is further fractured: LGBT Identification Rises to 5.6% in Latest U.S. Estimate Consider how many terrestrial stations that are supposedly mass appeal, have well-planned formats and solid on-air staff and good sales departments have failed for whatever reason...Then try and make that type of model work when the demographic its aimed at is composed of just 6% or less of the population. Seems like a tall order.
Also consider that, with a much wider understanding and acceptance of the LGBT community even within the past 20 years, gays are no longer relegated to "their" communities or "their" bars and clubs, "their" beaches, etc. - members of that community are now much more integrated into everyday society. With that also in mind, I'm not sure how well a station devoted to that demographic alone would fare, or if the intended audience would even really pay it much attention.
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Lets be honest here Val was HORRIBLE
If the S&R move was all about their age then why hasnt Janet and Nick been A. FIRD or B. Fired and hired by WEBR? Janet and Nick have grandchildren that listen to kiss. Janet needs to move to a oldies station for sure. Janet doesnt get into get car and listen to kiss, she turns in SirusXM 60's on 6
If the S&R move was all about their age then why hasnt Janet and Nick been A. FIRD or B. Fired and hired by WEBR? Janet and Nick have grandchildren that listen to kiss. Janet needs to move to a oldies station for sure. Janet doesnt get into get car and listen to kiss, she turns in SirusXM 60's on 6
98.9 gets an upgrade ?
I'm getting a VIBE that 107.3 and wblk
need someone to worry about
I'm getting a VIBE that 107.3 and wblk
need someone to worry about
A Simulcast is running the same Programming on two signals. Moving S & R to another station is essentially the same thing, unless their show will be much different. There's no guarantee that listeners will follow them to the new location. Have you read many of the Social Media comments?
Any "New" listeners will come at the expense of The Edge. That station will sink further. This move doesn't create growth. The Radio ships are sinking, so Cumulus is using 97 Rock as the lifeboat hoping to survive a while longer...
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... on two signals simultaneously. That's why it's a simulcast. It is not "essentially the same thing". And again, they're successful because of what their show is, not because of the signal it's on.
No one said anything would be guaranteed but there is good reason to believe that the vast majority of their listeners will follow them to 97 Rock. And yes, I did find the 3 or 4 Facebook comments of unhappy people. I would not call that an acceptable sample size to come to the conclusion that everyone is angry/upset with this move, nor is S&R on 97 Rock destined for failure or whatever you're trying to argue. People don't like change at first but in most cases they come around to accept it.
We're aware of the former point, but it gives The Edge a chance to reinvent itself as it now is the sole alternative station in the market. I do not believe they will go syndicated in mornings as that strategy has not worked out for WBUF, and the in-house Westwood One options don't seem to fit the bill for the demographic of WEDG.
WGRF will grow in both audience following S&R there, as well as musically progress to add more 90's rock or even early 2000's as other classic rock stations will, to no detriment of ratings or success in the market. I would be strongly surprised if the music mix did not change as a result of this move.
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You don't know that 97 Rock WILL get higher ratings. That's speculation. Unless you work there, you don't know if the playlist will be changed in any noticeable way. 97 Rock is not about musical progress. It's way too late in the game to change the image of this station.
I know they are not simulcasting S & R on both stations. The point was that S & R is not a new product. It's just been moved to a different aisle...
I never mentioned higher ratings. My point is that it the ratings won't be negatively affected by the new morning show, and that the station would continue to be successful irrespective of the morning show change.
Cumulus isn't trying to change the image of the station either, and you're being ignorant if you're going to say that 97 Rock won't add (at minimum) 90's rock to their playlist in increased frequency, as nearly every other classic rock station has. 90's rock is becoming classic rock whether you accept that fact personally or not.
Read your post. "WGRF will grow in audience"... That's what you wrote.
As for adding 90s music to the playlist, what are they waiting for? 1991 was 30 years ago. 97 Rock is the Zeppelin, Floyd, Skynryd station. I don't listen (I've looked at the online playlist). I don't see any 90s tracks. The average 97 Rock listener must live in a Time Warp. They'll be shocked when "New" bands like Nirvana and Pearl Jam are on the playlist...
Agree
How does it feel to beat a dead horse? Many threads ago, I respectfully asked a particular poster what he would do if he was a PD in this market. The response: Crickets. No problem. But man, week after week, year after year, a few people here keep grinding the same pepper mill. Look... no malice intended: a lot of people like 97 and 104. Maybe they're not your bowl of chili, but a lot of people like classic rock and classic hits. A lot of people like country. A lot of people like hip-hop. Personally, I've heard the songs that 97 and 104 play hundreds of times in my life, but I don't begrudge the stations for playing them. If I'm listening to the stations and they play a song I don't like, I punch out. What format hole exists in this market that would provide a station with a viable, salable share immediately and for the future? The last viable format hole years ago was oldies, and that was successfully filled by 102.9. For certain, the silver bullet format isn't what was on 107.7 sixteen years ago.
"Those Who Can, Do. Those Who Can’t, Criticize."
97-Rock doesn't need to grow its audience much. It's already Top 5. It does need to shift the demographic because their audience is aging out of the saleable demos. Shredd and Ragan can help with that. The Edge is likely to do what 97-Rock did after "The Fiasco" - go with a "more music" morning show for a period of time to let the changes settle in.
I guess we'll all just have to listen to see where both stations go from here. If you have an idea, perhaps you should present it, along with some kind of data that shows your idea has a chance of success in 2021, to the people at James E. Casey drive. Maybe they'll give you a job. After all, they have a new PD there who might welcome local input from an experienced, qualified consultant with a track record of success.
97-Rock doesn't need to grow its audience much. It's already Top 5. It does need to shift the demographic because their audience is aging out of the saleable demos. Shredd and Ragan can help with that. The Edge is likely to do what 97-Rock did after "The Fiasco" - go with a "more music" morning show for a period of time to let the changes settle in.
I guess we'll all just have to listen to see where both stations go from here. If you have an idea, perhaps you should present it, along with some kind of data that shows your idea has a chance of success in 2021, to the people at James E. Casey drive. Maybe they'll give you a job. After all, they have a new PD there who might welcome local input from an experienced, qualified consultant with a track record of success.
I'm aware of what I wrote. What's factually incorrect about the fact that WGRF will get new listeners from S&R, as in their audience moving there. Does that mean that their ratings will substantially increase? Most likely not. Will the station magically start outperforming WYRK or WBLK? No. But SirRoxalot is correct: the station is already doing well, and by moving S&R there has the chance of allowing the station to shift their demo.
If I had to guess it's likely their fear of cannibalizing the ratings of WEDG. They are playing 90's songs from Petty, Ozzy, GNR, etc., but haven't played grunge bands (having actually listened to the station). But then again, this is a smaller market and they likely didn't want to mess with success. It's never too late and it's ignorant to think it won't happen and that, as you probably see it, that everything will fail and die because The Lake, the greatest format in Buffalo radio history, was offed years ago.
Not really. Using the Apr-May-Jun book, they are 4th overall, 4th in 18-24 and 18-34, 5th in 18-49, 3rd in 25-54, 5th in 35-44 and 3rd in 35-64.. Yes, they have some 55+ but they perform very well in all the subsets.
If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Pretty decent spread. It appears the station has strong numbers 45-54 and 45-64. WBUF probably sees that as a juicy target... not that it's likely to steal much of it.
Of course, as you've said many times ratings don't guarantee revenue. If things are so swell, there was no need to move The Edge morning show to WGRF. Cumulus is obviously trying to fix something...
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