Yellow pages

[broadcastguy]

Just received the yellow pages... WAMS 1260 AM is still listed. Awkward.

 

[Oscar Madison]

Yellow Pages? A medium even more obsolete than terrestrial radio.

Call the number listed and tell us if anyone answers. Maybe they still have an office and a land-line.

Land-lines? Yet another obsolete medium.

 

[frankberry]

Believe it or not Oscar, businesses DO have land lines. Many of them also have terrestrial radio playing for their customers.

 

[TheBigA]

Yellow Pages? A medium even more obsolete than terrestrial radio.

I thought so too. So I searched for a local tree pruner online. Found a bunch quickly. All of them were out of business! So I went back to the book.

The bad thing about online is it stays forever, even if you don't. But yellow pages is advertising you have to buy. They're still in business.

 

[PirateJohnny]

I thought so too. So I searched for a local tree pruner online. Found a bunch quickly. All of them were out of business! So I went back to the book.

The bad thing about online is it stays forever, even if you don't. But yellow pages is advertising you have to buy. They're still in business.

When you call, be sure and let them know you "let your fingers do the walking" in the yellow pages.

 

[Oscar Madison]

Believe it or not Oscar, businesses DO have land lines. Many of them also have terrestrial radio playing for their customers.

Land-lines: Agreed. Terrestrial radio: Fewer all the time. Mostly I hear SiriusXM these days. Some of the chains have their own music services (with their own spots promoting their own sales and specials). Apparently, Muzak is still in business, although no longer on an FM subcarrier (now on DBS satellite), but haven't heard anything about them for a long time. I suspect those extended commercial breaks are driving away retailers from terrestrial radio. Five minutes (give or take) of spots can ruin the mood and there's always the chance a competitor's spot will be heard.

 

[TheBigA]

I suspect those extended commercial breaks are driving away retailers from terrestrial radio.

You might think so, but they're not. I give advertisers the option of buying the first spot in the cluster, and they don't care. I also give them the option of buying an entire hour, so they're the only advertiser, and they say no. They know the statistics, and they buy random placement. It's what they want. It's why we sell it.

there's always the chance a competitor's spot will be heard.

We can schedule competitor's spots in other breaks, so it's not a problem.

 

[CTListener]

I also hear a lot of SiriusXM in businesses, but they're just straight feeds, complete with promos and DJ gab as well as plentiful IDs. I thought SXM for Business was supposed to be a clean feed. Are these businesses -- and a local McDonald's is one of them -- just hooking up a subscribed radio to the location's sound system? I thought that was forbidden by the royalty gestapo, just as pumping a local terrestrial station is.

 

[TheBigA]

I thought that was forbidden by the royalty gestapo, just as pumping a local terrestrial station is.

It is....at some point they'll get a phone call.

 

[TheBigA]

Actually I just went to Sirius For Business, and only 1/3 of the channels are clean feeds, so it's possible they're using one of the 55 other channels:

Using your high-speed internet connection and the new GDI-SXBR1 Business Internet Radio (designed exclusively for SiriusXM business music), you have access to 85 channels, 30 of which are programmed with no DJ or commercial interruptions. Great business music is all your customers and employees will hear.

 

[Oscar Madison]

You might think so, but they're not. I give advertisers the option of buying the first spot in the cluster, and they don't care. I also give them the option of buying an entire hour, so they're the only advertiser, and they say no. They know the statistics, and they buy random placement. It's what they want. It's why we sell it.
We can schedule competitor's spots in other breaks, so it's not a problem.

I wasn't talking about potential clients. I was talking about store owners or managers who don't want clusters playing in their stores. They are being driven away from terrestrial radio in their stores.

 

[TheBigA]

I wasn't talking about potential clients. I was talking about store owners or managers who don't want clusters playing in their stores. They are being driven away from terrestrial radio in their stores.

Some are, some aren't. It doesn't matter to us. Not like they pay us for the service. If they want to pay someone $25 a month, go ahead.

The point is it doesn't come up with clients. Most of them listen and came to us because they listen. They understand it's a competition. Their store is right next door to a competitor, so they get it.

Here's something I learned a long time ago: You can't win them all.

 

[BRUSSTAR]

A few days ago I was in a small cafe and WOGL was playing. Remarkable only because it's been so long since I heard an actual local terrestrial radio station in a business.

 

[MarcB]

A few days ago I was in a small cafe and WOGL was playing. Remarkable only because it's been so long since I heard an actual local terrestrial radio station in a business.

3 places I go in Connecticut have terrestrial radio on. Subway, Cost Cutters Salon, and KFC. I'm sure there are others too.

 

[landtuna]

Land-lines? Yet another obsolete medium.

Landlines? You mean that always-on, even during power failure, landline? That static-free service on which your voice can always be understood no matter how far the distant connection is? THAT landline? Whose cost is but a fraction of a mobile phone? THAT landline? And I have yet to hear that the landline device is able to spy on you while delivering its service.

You didn't mean THAT landline, did you?

 

[davideduardo]

Landlines? You mean that always-on, even during power failure, landline? That static-free service on which your voice can always be understood no matter how far the distant connection is? THAT landline? Whose cost is but a fraction of a mobile phone? THAT landline? And I have yet to hear that the landline device is able to spy on you while delivering its service.

You didn't mean THAT landline, did you?

Yes, that medium which is now not even installed in over a third of US households and shrinking fast.

With the sale of landlines to second tier operators, like the dismal Frontier which took over the Verizon landlines, quality and guarantee of service is no longer anywhere near what you describe.

 

[landtuna]

Yes, that medium which is now not even installed in over a third of US households and shrinking fast.

For people who don't spent most of their time inside their households it makes sense to have a mobile phone instead of one tied physically to their residence. OTOH, those same people seem to bitch constantly about the harassment by businesses trying to sell them product they don't want. My landline is able to screen those calls - I never actually answer that phone and I never give out my mobile number to anyone except close personal friends. I probably receive ten nuisance calls daily on the landline despite being on the Do Not Call list for several years. One push of a button and they all go away. It is especially useful during election season.

Also, I do not know one person, except me, who has not damaged their mobile phone and had to buy another....and another....and another.

And, it seems, most owners of mobile phone do not know how to tell when its battery is about to shut down since the number of excuses I get after not being able to reach someone is usually blamed on a dead battery.

About the only really useful feature (to me) is the texting capability. But even then, there are too many places where texting is either impossible, illegal or not a good idea.

With the sale of landlines to second tier operators, like the dismal Frontier which took over the Verizon landlines, quality and guarantee of service is no longer anywhere near what you describe.

Then I am fortunate to live in an area where the majority of customers are served by one of the Baby Bells. To my knowledge I have never been without a dial tone even in a total power failure.