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WJYE Backsell
- Thread starter benson86
- Start date
Apparently, the numbers agree with you.
Are they still airing the robo-backsells?
I dunno if the Lite station here in my market still does that or not. Last time I caught them (in an Arby's) they were, but that was over a year ago, maybe two. I feel myself aging at least five years every time I hear that format. Ten years for the new "supersoft" ACs.
Talk about the wrong answer for an ongoing issue with music stations. Or is it an ongoing issue, especially now when many radios display the title and artist...and stations that don't backsell every tune (which is most of us) don't appear to be hurt.
I dunno if the Lite station here in my market still does that or not. Last time I caught them (in an Arby's) they were, but that was over a year ago, maybe two. I feel myself aging at least five years every time I hear that format. Ten years for the new "supersoft" ACs.
Talk about the wrong answer for an ongoing issue with music stations. Or is it an ongoing issue, especially now when many radios display the title and artist...and stations that don't backsell every tune (which is most of us) don't appear to be hurt.
The robo-telephone-EQ'd backsells do nothing for this listener. But then again, I'm in the male 35+ demo. I wonder how Women 25-49 feel about them?
That having been stated, here's a true story about backsells: I'm a Country P-2. Last week, while listening to my favorite Country station I heard a song that had a lyric line that was neatly crafted. Country music is so lyric and story oriented, which is one of many reasons why it's successful. I prob'ly shoulda known the artists, but didn' and the title escaped me. The song wasn't back sold. I's workin' in the yard, full o' dirt and I couldn't check the media base for airplay. Nope, didn't have my iPad, smart phone or laptop in the wheelbarrow... an' my radio didn' have RDS.
So later, while chatting on Facebook with a friend who's a PD at a Country station (a Pittsburgh boy whose name you'd recognize, Chas), I recalled my dilemma and asked about the song. Turns out it was Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, "I Need You." Mega hit! But this P2 was comin' up empty. The line that struck a chord was "I want to dance to the static of an AM radio."
So to the issue of backsells, I think they have value. What's one of the most prominent comments we see in Arbitron listener verbatims for music stations? "They never tell me the name of the song." (DJ responds, "C'mon, we play that song 30 times a week!") Artistically and execution wise, radio is a forward momentum medium. Everybody knows the drill, roll song, do liner/position statement/PPM content and frontsell. Herein lies the conflict. Why not just DO the backsell in full voiced audio rather than the EQ'd robo motiff, which BTW, doesn't really "cut through" in some receivers and some people's hearing range.
Sometimes we in (and out of) radio are too hip by one half. BTW, guilty as charged.
That having been stated, here's a true story about backsells: I'm a Country P-2. Last week, while listening to my favorite Country station I heard a song that had a lyric line that was neatly crafted. Country music is so lyric and story oriented, which is one of many reasons why it's successful. I prob'ly shoulda known the artists, but didn' and the title escaped me. The song wasn't back sold. I's workin' in the yard, full o' dirt and I couldn't check the media base for airplay. Nope, didn't have my iPad, smart phone or laptop in the wheelbarrow... an' my radio didn' have RDS.
So later, while chatting on Facebook with a friend who's a PD at a Country station (a Pittsburgh boy whose name you'd recognize, Chas), I recalled my dilemma and asked about the song. Turns out it was Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, "I Need You." Mega hit! But this P2 was comin' up empty. The line that struck a chord was "I want to dance to the static of an AM radio."
So to the issue of backsells, I think they have value. What's one of the most prominent comments we see in Arbitron listener verbatims for music stations? "They never tell me the name of the song." (DJ responds, "C'mon, we play that song 30 times a week!") Artistically and execution wise, radio is a forward momentum medium. Everybody knows the drill, roll song, do liner/position statement/PPM content and frontsell. Herein lies the conflict. Why not just DO the backsell in full voiced audio rather than the EQ'd robo motiff, which BTW, doesn't really "cut through" in some receivers and some people's hearing range.
Sometimes we in (and out of) radio are too hip by one half. BTW, guilty as charged.
JustPastBuffalo said:
And IMO, any jock offering that response in AD 2013 is simply out of touch. We now know peoples' actual listening occasions are more like eight minutes at a time. You could play a tune 30x/week for a month and still not have it registering in the consciousness of the average P1. Although I'm no expert, I'd double that for a P2.
My company's policy is to highlight and give the title/artist on all currents...presell/backsell, if it's a C going into a spot break it may get both.
A station I joined in 1991, WMMO/Orlando, and programmed for a while, has these basic format promises:
This station was originally described as "Rock AC," an adult contemporary format with roots in AOR instead of CHR. The presentation was intended to create the feel of early progressive FM, which really stood out. It's been at or near the top of 25-54 in the Orlando market for almost 20 years, so the whole "forward momentum" thing may be highly overrated. It's always meant more to us than to listeners, I think.
Playing a song 30 times a week is meaningless if it's not backsold 29 of those times. And it's not just about currents. Real listeners don't know title/artist of some songs which are staples of classic rock, because they haven't heard them backsold in 30 years!
I hate the robo-backsells, but it probably got started because live jocks blabbed on about everything BUT what the listener thought was the jock's job - announcing the name of that last song. Some researchers will tell you that when a jock opens his mouth, listeners are conditioned to hit another button for that very reason. That's the genesis of the whole "forward momentum" thing - starting the next song so the listener won't hit that button. The expectation that a jock's voice signals the start of useless babble is also probably what spawned the robo-sells, and it's a reasonable tactic if that's true.
- We tell you the title and artist of every song we play, every time.
- The jocks never talk over the songs. (Not even the intros!)
- We play songsfrom start to end, and let them fade till they're finished.
This station was originally described as "Rock AC," an adult contemporary format with roots in AOR instead of CHR. The presentation was intended to create the feel of early progressive FM, which really stood out. It's been at or near the top of 25-54 in the Orlando market for almost 20 years, so the whole "forward momentum" thing may be highly overrated. It's always meant more to us than to listeners, I think.
Playing a song 30 times a week is meaningless if it's not backsold 29 of those times. And it's not just about currents. Real listeners don't know title/artist of some songs which are staples of classic rock, because they haven't heard them backsold in 30 years!
I hate the robo-backsells, but it probably got started because live jocks blabbed on about everything BUT what the listener thought was the jock's job - announcing the name of that last song. Some researchers will tell you that when a jock opens his mouth, listeners are conditioned to hit another button for that very reason. That's the genesis of the whole "forward momentum" thing - starting the next song so the listener won't hit that button. The expectation that a jock's voice signals the start of useless babble is also probably what spawned the robo-sells, and it's a reasonable tactic if that's true.
I discovered an old co-worker is now doing mornings in Louisville, KY (102 the Max) and checked out the stream one morning. Even though the show is live, all the music had the female robo voiced back-sells. That was just too weird.
As a listener I always liked it when the jocks talked about the music they were playing.
chas108 said:
Do you talk over the intros?
chas108 said:
My kind of DJ!
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