Innholdsfortegnelse for January 6, 2020 i Radio Ink Magazine

Last month’s focus on tomorrow’s radio superstars included a roundtable discussion with managers about mentors who had influenced their careers. That feature reminded me of some of the professionals who have left a lasting impression on me and impacted my career. A few you may know, some you won’t. Some have been bosses, others associates and peers. Learning comes from many people who collectively write your personal book of wisdom. A smile will open doors. Home from college for the summer, I was looking for an internship at a radio station. Someone put me in contact with the late Ray Spahr, who at that time was the sales manager for WHIO radio in Dayton. They didn’t have any openings, but I will never forget his parting words: “Keep your smile.…

If you’re like most salespeople and managers in radio, you probably experience a good deal of “the blues” in January as your clients and prospects are slowly dragging themselves back from the madness of the holidays. You are just waiting for them to wake up, get in gear, and pay attention to your perfect, discounted deal. After all, they put you off until after the holidays, so now they should listen to you, right? Maybe not. Let’s rethink that approach. First, January can and should be anything but a “dead time.” Since business is most likely quiet for your clients and your prospects as well as it is for you, it’s the best time to get their attention. They’re probably as eager as you are to start seeing customers and…

We asked some top managers “What is the number one challenge you face every day as a manager, and how are you overcoming it?” The biggest challenge is having the time to strategize versus react. One of the things I love most about radio is the speed and dynamics of each and every day. There is such energy in all that we deal with in any typical workday. Unfortunately, that daily pace sometimes consumes me and prevents me from being able to work on bigger, forward-looking projects that are important but not urgent. I guess that is a long way of saying “time management”! At the moment, the biggest challenge is prioritizing my time among my various responsibilities and teammates. I’m overcoming that by not reacting immediately to everything that…

1993 Gary Fries 1994 Mel Karmazin 1995 Eddie Fritts 1996 James de Castro and Scott K. Ginsburg 1997 Bob Sillerman 1998 Steven Hicks 1999 Lowry Mays 2000 Randall and Mark Mays 2001 Jeff Smulyan 2002 Larry Wilson 2003 Lew Dickey 2004 Bob Neil 2005 John Hogan 2006 David Field 2007 Peter Smyth 2008 Jerry Lee 2009 Charles Warfield 2010 Bruce Reese 2011 Dan Mason 2012 Ed Christian 2013 Jose Valle 2014 Steven Price 2015 Don Benson 2016 Larry Wilson 2017 Caroline Beasley 2018 David Field 2019 Gordon Smith…

Key Performance Indicators are used for measuring departmental performance within a company. The goal of KPIs is continual improvement. The subtle danger of KPIs is that they can lead to prioritizing efficiency over effectiveness, and short-term objectives over long-term. In a successful company, it takes every department working together to increase top line revenues. But when departments are held individually accountable for department-specific criteria, teamwork goes out the window. A business owner recently asked me, “Who is responsible for lead generation?” Before I could answer, one of his branch managers said, “Selling is a numbers game. Double my sales opportunities and I’ll make twice as many sales.” I asked, “Who is responsible for lead generation in a restaurant?” “The marketing department,” said the branch manager. Looking across that group of…

Ransomware is one of the fastest-growing threats to the commercial broadcast industry. Ransomware targets businesses and government networks, as well as home users. An attack can lead to disruption of business operations, temporary or permanent loss of sensitive data, and financial loss due to the cost of restoring business operations and critical data — along with potential reputation damage. Ransomware may direct a user to click on a link to pay the demanded “ransom,” but the link itself may be malicious and could lead to additional malware infections. Some ransomware displays intimidating messages, such as: “Your computer was used to visit websites with illegal content. To unlock your computer, you must pay a $100 fine.” “You only have 48 hours to submit the payment. If you do not send money…

Gary Spurgeon spent 40 years in the radio business, working for Renda Broadcasting, Radio One, and, most recently, Salem. From 2014 to 2016, he was voted one of Radio Ink’s Best Managers in Radio. In late 2019, after leaving Salem, where he’d been working on special projects, Spurgeon jumped over to podcasting: he opened a brand new podcasting studio in Jacksonville called Studio Podcast Suites. Spurgeon rented a 12-by-12 room from Regis, invested about $12,000 in new equipment, and now sells studio time for $68 per hour. Radio Ink: What’s your plan to get the word out about your new studio? Spurgeon: I’ve had seven customers in my studio in the first three weeks, and I had an additional 10 lined up in week four. I’m marketing with Google Ads,…

It’s a good bet that if you talk with anyone who has been in the radio biz for any amount of time, the adjective crazy will eventually creep into the conversation. Adam Cox paints a somewhat familiar face on the trials and tribulations of the business in his self-published book, My Crazy Radio Life. From California to New York City and everywhere in between, Cox details his crisscross career from his start in 1988, driving a promotions van for a SoCal station at 8 bucks an hour, to his present unemployed status in Wichita, Kansas. “The toughest thing about working in radio is the insecurity, being unsure of what management is going to decide,” Cox says. “You know people who work in radio just love working in radio. They like…

Are you the top revenue producer on your team? How about in the market? Here are eight tips that can help you produce more income for yourself. Everyone wants to be a winner. In business and sales, it’s all about stringing wins together. It can be a small victory, such as picking up the phone and having the courage to make the call, or it can be securing a new business meeting to help a client solve one of their pain points. Perhaps you asked for a referral from a satisfied client to find a win, or you sold a service contract or another product to a current client. I believe all these small successes lead to big wins! It’s the energy and excitement you feel when you have accomplished…

Bob Pittman joined iHeartMedia (then Clear Channel) in 2010 as an investor. One year later, he was named chief executive officer and took a seat on the board. When Pittman took the top spot at radio’s largest company, he had two major tasks to tackle: to transform a very old radio company into a modern-day multi-platform media company, and to address the company’s massive debt. Goal No. 1: Transform The Company Since Pittman became CEO, Clear Channel has changed its name to iHeartMedia (2014), added big national events like the iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas, the iHeartCountry festival in Austin, Fiesta Latina in Miami, AlterEgo in Los Angeles, and the iHeartRadio Music Awards. The iHeartRadio app, which includes every one of the company’s 850 radio stations and hundreds of…

Nick Cannon, who took over mornings at Meruelo Media’s Power 106 in Los Angeles in June of 2019, is already being syndicated. Together, Skyview Networks and Meruelo have partnered to push out Nick Cannon Radio for afternoons, as well as Nick Cannon Weekends. Nick Cannon is already a superstar. He’s an actor, comedian, rapper, director, writer, producer, and television host. On TV, Cannon began as a teenager on All That before going on to host The Nick Cannon Show, Wild ’n Out, America’s Got Talent, Lip Sync Battle Shorties, and The Masked Singer. So, why radio? He tells Radio Ink that it’s all about the connection. Radio Ink: You returned to radio this year after being away from the mic since 2012. First, and most importantly, how is your health?…