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?