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Z93 stunting!

Dear Nedsmith 2007: I really dont know who you are, and obviously could care less.

All you do is misinterput my posts, and that frankly pisses me off. I said, they care about making money...who doesnt. If you owned a 50,000 watt mothership and was only billing 2 million a year in a market where you should easily be doing 5 million minimum, what would you do? Your investors sure wouldnt be happy campers.

Mainline is concerned about the money. However they also did what Clear Channel and Cox didnt do. They spent money on research. Wow, what a concept [EDIT]. Research asks the listeners what they wanted.

[EDIT]


[EDIT-inflammatory]
 
mustardz said:
What kind of Research did MainLine do?? Obviously most of us didn't want this "Change"
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Much of nothing. They figured it'd work just like it works in Richmond. Different city idiots! Different market! Different people! And here it's a stronger signal.
 
Most of you didn't want this change? It doesn't matter. Radio listening doesn't require a majority. The top two stations in the market during the Summer 2007 survey didn't even have 10% of the population listening on the average quarter hour. Most people don't want any format, let alone any format change. If more people want a change than want the current format, it's, at least in theory, a good change. That number, however, will never be a majority.

If you want to know my position on this change, I have mixed feelings. There's no question something had to be done. Z-93 just hasn't done well over the last few years. Radio One definitely neglected the station and did a lot of things that weren't very popular, not only to Z-93 but with the entire cluster. However, I also don't buy the idea that a station's heritage is a liability. There's nothing more promotable than heritage, and killing a heritage station is always risky. I was living in Kansas City in 1997 when ARS killed AOR KY-102 and its 23 year heritage. The station that replaced it didn't even last 18 months, and its best ratings were lower than KY's worst. I also grew up in Texas and Oklahoma and remember listening to "Texas' Best Rock" on Q-102. It changed formats in '98, and I read an article about how upset people were to be losing such a heritage station. However, when the same people were asked when they last listened to Q-102, they said something to the effect of, "Oh, I don't know, maybe 5 or 6 years ago!"
 
Kent, you hit it right on the head of the nail. Radio One screwed the station out of its missery and something needed done.

Research. You know who wanted the station still? Who is complaining? Radio People, People who like to meddle in the radio business.

Research is extremely expensive and its extremely effective. They didnt ask the thin air, they asked people who were in the money demo, Women 25-44. Thats who they asked. Not little 3 year old girls and women over the age of 100. They have a demo and set out to find out what that demo wants.

Mainline is a great broadcaster in the fact that they believe in the market, and they understand 2 things. Radio is about making your demographic happy and making money to keep the thing on the air.
 
kentuckymedia said:
Dear Nedsmith 2007: I really dont know who you are, and obviously could care less.
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Dear KY: I do know who you are. And as for me? Obviously you do care. If you truly didn't, you'd have ignored me.

Enough of your lecturing about how Mainline listens to the listener. That is until the listener tells you something you don't like. Then you lecture the listener and protest about how those "people" just don't understand why Mainline has to do it your way. Double standard.

My "sources in Dayton" tell me that your reputation is less than stellar. I have to suspect that Mainline is less than happy about your posting of confidential research information. Sorry CC fired you. Good luck at Mainline.
 
Who speaks for "most of us"? And who exactly is "us"? I will say I hear more songs I like on Fly than I do on Mix. Of course, I'm out of the demo. For the displaced Z fans, if you were a loyal listener just before the flip, I feel your pain. If the last time you listened was 1992, sorry. I remember when WABC flipped from music to talk in 1982.. they did a big sendoff for Music Radio. People called so sorry that MusicRadio WABC went away. When asked when the last time they listened was, it was almost invariably years previous to that. I'm sorry my favorite station growing up, CKLW, went away (from its top 40 format). But if the Big 8 was playing Eminem today would I be listening? Nope.

The flip is the shakeup Dayton has needed for a long time, another adult choice that's not a flanker (as WDPT was).
 
mustardz said:
What kind of Research did MainLine do?? Obviously most of us didn't want this "Change"
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Now that's funny. I guess a few RADIO people on this board are a representation of what the entire Miami Valley wants or doesn't want. HA! That's good.
 
Has the signal been increased for the station I have been getting it in as clear as I would if I was in Dayton here in Delhi (Cinncinati). I usally like last week could not pick it up verywell had losts of static in it or was not listenable at all.
 
FLY SUCKS! 945 needs to add Dj's.... don't mess with Hot at all and everyone will be okay. Most of the music played on 945 was what was played on Z... anyway Fly 929 sucks it really does and i don't care what anyone else says
 
gr8oldies said:
Who speaks for "most of us"? And who exactly is "us"? I will say I hear more songs I like on Fly than I do on Mix. Of course, I'm out of the demo. For the displaced Z fans, if you were a loyal listener just before the flip, I feel your pain. If the last time you listened was 1992, sorry. I remember when WABC flipped from music to talk in 1982.. they did a big sendoff for Music Radio. People called so sorry that MusicRadio WABC went away. When asked when the last time they listened was, it was almost invariably years previous to that. I'm sorry my favorite station growing up, CKLW, went away (from its top 40 format). But if the Big 8 was playing Eminem today would I be listening? Nope.

The flip is the shakeup Dayton has needed for a long time, another adult choice that's not a flanker (as WDPT was).
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I do agree this is the shakeup Dayton has needed in a while... although I am very sad to see Z-93, it was time for change sinc Z-93 played more rap and hiphop than they did regular top40... im sure other stations in the dayton market will be making a few format changes to make up for what was lost on Z-92.
 
SteelersBRSeven said:
Oh and if anybody misses Rick Dees you can listen online to G1013.com They play that guy on Sundays 8am to Noon.

http://g1013.com/

There music is so bad if you listen to it at other times. Wish they would change their format.
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I wonder if G 101.3 will become the default station for Z-93 listeners in Richmond.

Richmond is one part of the Dayton market that is now completely without a CHR since 94.5 doesn't come in due to the Joy-FM translator.
 
Well, let's review what people on this board have said about "Fly 92.9" so far:
Great music
Bad imaging
I hate it! Change it back to Z-93!
Well, let's get one thing clear: Z-93 is gone. Radio One didn't give a diddly $--- about Z...As I said in an earlier post, HOT was their main priority. Z had been dying since Radio One put HOT on the air, because it basically took away some of Z's audience. Also, what about the people that lost their WING-FM/Classic Rock fix for HOT back in 2001(Just as recently as yesterday I mentioned this to someone and it still ticked them off)? At least with this flip, Mainline gave Z's listeners fair warning that a change was coming...Radio One didn't even care about WING-FM's listeners enough to tell them a change was iminent. If I remember right, they went from Iron Butterfly or "Stairway to Heaven" into Juvenile's "Set It Off".
I agree with the crappy imaging...I do like the jet noise though(Sorry marketweis!).
The people that say Fly sucks are obviously disgruntled, not to mention displaced Z-93 listeners, and yes, even though I do like Fly, I do feel for them. I guarantee if you ask the average listener when is the last time you listened to Z, they will probably answer sometime in the 90s. The name Z-93 was a known, however, seriously damaged brand with a stigma that could never have been overcome("Oh, that station that plays music the kids like" is a typical answer I usually would get.)
As far as the part about great music, I totally agree. I will admit there are a few tunes i've never heard of(Probably the 60s stuff, which sounds out of place if you ask me), but 99% of what i'm hearing is familiar...I've still yet to hear a song repeat. Also, let's remember that Z played a TON of 80s music back in the 90s as part of their "Lost 80s Classics" and "Lost 80s Lunch"/"Retro Room".
A previous poster also alluded to heritage stations that have been blown up and it IS extremely risky. However, he's right...SOMETHING needed to be done for 92.9. This is the shake up that Dayton radio needed.
Also, to the poster that said Jason has a pony in the race, yes, he does...and he has in my opinion been very unbiased in his posts on Fly 92.9. The Eagle does a similar format in Classic Hits and they have everything to lose as well.
 
best thing about the whole flip is we don't have to listen to Campy anymore. He never sounded like he prepared ANYTHING...
 
Alan said:
I like "Fly 929" so far...I've heard stuff I haven't heard on the radio in awhile(Like "Urgent" by Foreigner).

Well Alan if you listen to MIX you would of heard Urgent twice last weekend. My husband caleld in for it on Saturday afternoon and then tehy had it on Nina Blackwoods Totally 80's or whaever its caled.
 
Rowdy said:

I wonder if G 101.3 will become the default station for Z-93 listeners in Richmond.

Richmond is one part of the Dayton market that is now completely without a CHR since 94.5 doesn't come in due to the Joy-FM translator.
[/quote]

God I can't stand them. I only have them on when I on the computer in the basement for background noise. I have an XM satillite radio and listen to 70's and 80's upstairs. In the bedroom I listen to MIX. In the car its XM. The DJs suck.
 
alans613 said:
I've still yet to hear a song repeat.
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I heard them repeat a song the very first day, though it might have been an error.. "It's Your Thing" by the Isley Brothers. That was within four or five hours of the flip.

I'm torn. The format is interesting, and there were a few surprises; "Domino" by Van Morrison? Stellar! "Let's Go" by the Cars? Radio tune no doubt, but I can't remember the last time WTUE played it. Lots of good '60s numbers, but "96 Tears" wasn't the best song to play IMO. And I think they could do without current Top 40 stuff. Mixing old songs with proven hits is alright, but then Gwen Stefani comes on and just kills it for me. But that's honestly just me, some of you might disagree. They do seem to like Sugar Ray though, they played two of their songs within the first few hours. :lol:

I listened for about four or five hours straight the first day, as I drive a large part of my job. After that, I flip it on whenever I'm in the car, and usually if there's a song I like on, I'll keep it on. First few flips to it, I didn't stay, as they were playing a song I didn't like. Then I flipped and they were playing a good 60's song.

I find myself listening to 101.5 and Flyer Radio more than Fly though.
 
I don't know any of the players in this game. I don't care who they are.

Frankly, KyMedia didn't publish anything most of us in radio in this market didn't already know or suspect. For example, there are radio people here who knew darn well a "format finder" was being done in the market this past summer. No one was surprised. We suspected it was Mainline.

A lot of us guessed correctly what that research may have apparently showed. (Why? Other broadcast companies periodically also do this research. Even if you don't have research behind you, if you've got some knowledge of how programming works, you could have guessed most of it. It's not "rocket science". A lot of that has been speculated in programming offices all over town for some time.)

But here are the important points to remember:

The Z-93 "brand" had become fatally flawed. The time to have repaired the brand was, actually, as far back as the late 1990's. Yes, Radio One's lack of attention and caring to the station contributed, but a lot else played a part. (I can remember driving through Dayton in the late 90's, hearing an afternoon jock on the station that sounded like he was fresh out of the International College Of Broadcasting. By the way, I teach there...that's not a rip of the school. But, he sounded like he was on his first radio job. Z was too big of a station then...to have someone in a drive-time spot, sounding like he was in his first radio job.)

The changes 92.9 did were based on, apparently valid research information.

Mix and Lite have been the dominant players in the A/C market for quite a while. Because they had no competition, they have been able to roll up big shares. But there's a lot more A/C listening in Dayton than any other format. That made them ripe for competition. However, Clear Channel is not stupid. (Though I know some of you would love to debate that point.) Yes, I was mildly critical of their performance on Friday. But rest assured, I know darn well they have lots of experience in defending these kinds of attacks, and I have no doubt that they will. What could be shaping up here is a classic A/C radio war. And, it'll be very interesting to see how it develops. Folks remember: this is a major game of programming "chess" that has been set into motion. Not all of the players have shown all their moves yet. Wait, watch and see.

Lastly: the argument about "radio listens until the listener tells you something you don't like."

How many times have I, as an oldies radio programmer, been told all we have to do to be a great radio station is "play every song that hit the Billboard Hot 100" from 1955-1975? Tell me that and, yes, I will ignore you. Why? Not because you told me something I don't like. But because you're telling something that I have reams, and reams and reams of valid research data on that says: you're wrong! Did you ever consider...you (and "all your friends") may be in the minority?

I've said it on these boards any hundred times. But get it into your heads. Despite what you may think, most radio companies (with a few notable exceptions) are not stupid. Most of the major players succeed because, they do the research, they execute the strategies the research suggests and, if they do them well, they win.

It will be interesting to see how all this plays out.
 
Hi all, I've been a reader of this board for quite some time and I finally decided to make a name and chime in.

A little background on myself, I have worked for WULM in Springfield, WYCT/WNRP in Pensacola, Florida, and was recently hired at a company back in Dayton.

Now before I open my mouth on this subject and risk sounding ignorant I will say that I am by no means a professional nor do I claim to be, and I can, however, guarentee that I have a better understanding of radio and how it works than many people that post here. (I won't name any names but you know who you are, or sadly, you probably don't)

Anyways personal feelings about loosing Z93 aside, I will admit that it was indeed time for a change. Personally I do not think that "Fly" will take down "Mix" or "lite" however I do think it has the potential to do some serious damage to one, if not both stations. I also do not think that Mainline would take out a heritage station if there was any chance their research was inaccurate so enough with the "faulty research" crap already. Also, it is not fair to judge their music selection this soon after the flip. I noticed some people were complaining about it within the FIRST THIRTY MINUTES of the station existing! Give it time, it can and probably will improve.

Moving on to the CHR discussion. You can make all the noise you want about how 94-5 need's DJs and imaging or whatever but here's the bottom line; Clear Channel dumped money into that station for nearly a decade as a CHR. First as 945 The Beat, 945 Kiss FM, and the current Channel 945. Over the course of the decade the station only beat Z93 a handful of times in the 12+. They (CC) finally realized that they could do just as well, if not a little better, by pumping practically no money into it and that is more than likely how it will stay. As for the comments about Channel 945 becoming mainstream, I only potentially see that happening if Hot 1029 indeed shifts to CHR/Rhythmic. By the way, mainstream on 102.9 won't happen, If Mainline wanted a mainstream CHR they would have blown up 1029 instead of Z93. I could be wrong but I'm probably not. It's all purely speculation at this point anyway.

I saw a post somewhere about CHR potentially showing up on a strong frequency in the future. To that I ask where. The powerful signals in the market are as follows: 929, 991, 999, 1029, 1047, 1077. Clear Channel owns three of those, Cox owns one (and it goes w/o saying that K99 isn't going anywhere), and Mainline owns the rest. Like I said before CHR/Rhythmic on 102.9 is very possible, Mainstream CHR on 1029, possible but not probable. And Clear Channel isn't going to move CHR to one of their powerhouse signals unless something drastically changes.

So there my friends is my first radio-info.com post. If you are a professional, feel free to citicize it, rip it apart, tell me what an idiot I am, whatever. I'm here to learn  :)
 
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