GENUINE COUNTRY RADIO

Recently, I was having a discussion with someone about how country radio's biggest asset is how real and genuine we are (or should be).

I know what genuine means, but I looked it up anyway. Genuine is defined as "not fake or counterfeit, not pretended; sincerely felt or expressed."

Right on!

The problem is, when I listen to country radio all over the United States, I don't hear a lot of genuine radio stations. I hear a lot of stations that play country music, but not a lot of genuine country music stations.

We need to make sure we look at everything on our radio station and be as genuine, real and authentic as we can be.

None of the air talent on your station should sound like “a DJ.” They need to be conversational, talking to the listener, not at them. They need to open themselves up and be real. Look at the success of reality shows on TV. People like watching and getting to know real people. With great personalities and all of our story songs, country radio has a BIG opportunity to be genuine, real and authentic.

When writing and producing your imaging, use real listeners talking about your station and the area you live. No hype. Use language real people use, not “radiosisms.” Look at how many TV commercials you see where real people are “talking about” and endorsing the product. Ford, Apple, Microsoft are all using this strategy and its working.

Whether you are the PD or the air talent, your goal at the end of the day is to make the listener think of you as a friend, not “that person on the radio."

Connect with the listener. Be more than a “DJ." Be a friend and companion.

Who wants to be friends with someone who is fake and contrived?

BE UNIQUE

For air talent in all formats, there's a million different types of show prep. Some good, some bad. Most of it is essential for a topical show and I fully recommend having access to as much show prep as possible.

But you should try an experiment.

If all the show prep you have available to you (including the Internet) were to go away, would you still be able to do an entertaining show? Do you have enough of a life outside of radio to be relatable and entertaining with your own experiences? Or as talent coach Tommy Kramer calls it, "your own camera angle?"

Show prep sites and services are really important, but don't let that be the only thing on your show. We all have access to the same Celebrity Birthday's and Hollywood Gossip. Bring your own personal stories, experiences and relatables to your show.

Talk about things that only YOU have, not what everyone else is talking about.

Be UNIQUE.

Be YOU.

...AND I QUOTE

It's time for some Leadership and Motivational Quotes. Feel free to share.

"Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail."
Harold R. McAlindon

"The real leader has no need to lead, he is content to point the way."
Henry Miller

"Not the cry, but the flight of a wild duck, leads the flock to fly and follow."
Chinese Proverb

"A leader is a dealer in hope."
Napoleon Bonaparte

"Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity."
George Patton

"Where there is no vision, the people perish."
Proverbs 29:18

"Leadership does not always wear the harness of compromise."
Woodrow Wilson

"What you cannot enforce / Do not command."
Sophocles

"Opportunity does not knock, it presents itself when you beat down the door."
Kyle Chandler

"Quality is not an act, it is a habit."
Aristotle

"One of the true tests of leadership is the ability to recognize a problem before it becomes an emergency."
Arnold Glasow

"Men can be stimulated to show off their good qualities to the leader who seems to think they have good qualities."
John Richelsen

"Never forget that only dead fish swim with the stream."
Malcolm Muggeridge

"Tell me, I will forget. Show me, I may remember. Involve me, I will understand."
Chinese Proverb

"A man who wishes to lead the orchestra must turn his back on the crowd."
Jack Lee

"They may forget what you said, they may forget what you did, but they will never forget how you made them feel."
Carl W. Buecher

"Treat people as if they were what they ought to be, and you help them to become what they are capable of being."
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

"You do not lead by hitting people over the head -- that's assault, not leadership."
Dwight D. Eisenhower

DO A "SHOW", NOT A "SHIFT"

In radio we tend to call the time we spend on the air a "shift." Instead, how about calling it a "show?" That’s what we should be doing, “shows” not “shifts.”

What’s fun and entertaining about a shift? It’s not “The Tonight Shift with Jay Leno." The word “shift” has a negative connotation attached it. The word “show” doesn't. Make your show fun, compelling and entertaining.

Radio needs to do a better job of being entertaining and that starts with calling what you do on the air, a "show.”

PD’s, don’t let your jocks say “shift." It should always be a "show." Start with that in the hallways and hopefully it will spread out to the speakers.

THREE TIPS TO WINNING WITH CHRISTMAS MUSIC

We all know how powerful "All Christmas Music" stations are this time of year. Stations that go all Christmas in December will roll in big numbers. Probably many in the double digits.

But, you can’t just play all Christmas music and expect to win. There’s a strategy. Here’s three tips to winning with all Christmas Music:

IT’S ALL ABOUT NOSTALGIA
The more you can remind people what it was like to be eight years old on Christmas Day the better. Take them back. Make them nostalgic for yesterday. Do this with imaging and features.

PLAY THE CLASSICS
It’s what people want to hear. I would have a classic/standard every other song. Bing, Perry, Burl, Johnny Mathis, Andy Williams, etc are the artists that bring people back. Have a nice balance between the classics and newer Christmas music. Run a tight list. Play the hits and play them often.

MAKE YOUR STATION “FEEL” LIKE CHRISTMAS
Not just with music, but with imaging, promotions and features. Use little kids. Embrace a charity and give back. Make it about memories, family, and traditions. Don’t think that just playing Christmas music is enough.

Here in Denver, Studio 1430 KEZW does a great job. They are now 24/7 Christmas playing only the classics. The ones that remind people of being a kid. They also are running :60 features talking about different Christmas traditions and how they got started. The whole station is full of nostalgia and it sounds great. Even their website is nostalgic. Check them out. www.kezw.com.