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Finally, a broadcaster has stepped up and done what radio people have been talking about for a decade. In case you missed it, Saga Communication has dispatched their ad insertion streaming apparatus and is now simulcasting its terrestrial programming on its digital streams. Broadcasters have wrung their hands about this for years – for all […]

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First, it was rock and pop stars dying on the weekend. Then it was tornadoes. Now Mitt Romney chooses Saturday morning at 9am ET to announce his new running mate, Paul Ryan. For some reason, big news keeps happening on Saturday and Sunday when many media outlets are staffed with part-timers – or worse, automation […]

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Bruce Springsteen blew through Boston this week, another leg of his 2012 Wrecking Ball Tour.  And one of his biggest fans, Greater Media Boston programmer (WROR and WBOS), Ken West, was on hand and taking copious notes.  This morning, Ken brings us six lessons that on-air talent and personality shows could glean from observing The […]

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If about half of your company’s sales leads came from one key source, something tells me that you’d do everything you could to keep that financial reservoir happy and healthy.  When your best opportunity for exposure, sales, and word of mouth emanates from a single source, smart executives would most definitely laser focus on keeping that fire hose […]

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Remember the first time you saw the PC/Mac commercial featuring these two guys? In a smart series of ads, Apple reinforced many deep-seated beliefs about Microsoft and the differences between the two companies. It was powerful, memorable, and effective. Image matters. So does design. That’s why when I saw this new Charles Schwab spot for the first […]

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Last week, we devoted a post to Radio Ink’s “40 Most Powerful” list – its dominance by CEOs and SVPs, and the role of programming, programmers, and talent in the grand scheme of all things radio. The post was highly read and circulated, sparking a number of comments that I believe are pertinent to the […]

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Jacobs clients and those who have seen us speak at conferences over the past couple of years have likely heard us say, “Everybody in the audience has an audience.” That’s a quote from social media author (and former Arbitron employee) Greg Verdino.  Speaking at one of our conferences a couple of year ago, Greg reminded […]

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In our ongoing dialogue with clients about how to best utilize social networks as a marketing and communications tool for radio and its personalities, we keep running into questions about how many “likes” or “friends” a station have in fill-in-the-blank market size. Lori Lewis, in particular, is adamant about how thinking about the numbers of friends misses […]

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Another year and another ranking of Radio Ink’s “40 Most Powerful People In Radio” is on the streets and on coffee tables at stations everywhere. And guess what?  It continues to be comprised of CEOs, EVPs, and other heads of companies.  This is nothing new.  Now I know that inside the corner offices, those fortunate […]

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The Wall Street community always amazes and confounds me at the same time.  (Remember I suggested that Facebook would be a good buy.) So when it comes to investing in media, are you smarter to commit your portfolio to up-and-coming new media outlets like Pandora OR stick with traditional media companies?  Or Treasury Bills?  Or Apple? […]

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I have a feeling that if President Obama were in radio, he wouldn’t be a big fan of nationally syndicated programming and voicetracking. How do I know this? Well, if you look at what his campaign is up to this summer, you can see that despite having the incumbent’s advantage in holding photo ops from […]

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Jacobs Media’s Ralph Cipolla takes a backwards look at tactics that you just might not want to use in your customer engagement strategies.  Or in other words,  “what not to do.” Below is a recent Seth Godin blog that caught my eye. It’s easier to love a brand when the brand loves you back by […]

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Now you find out your marketing budget has been slashed as you head into the fall book.  What do you do? Easy – it’s time for some research. On the assumption that you have a database, it may be as basic as putting together a short questionnaire, serving it up to your loyal listeners, and collecting the data. […]

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Techsurvey8 dedicated a number of questions to better understanding the Internet environment among the radio listening community.  And to no one’s surprise, Pandora has a huge lead over everyone else in the pure-play world. While well more than 40% of those who stream listen to Pandora, only 5% say they tune in Slacker.  And they’ve […]

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Maybe it’s a chicken-egg thing between Instagram and Facebook.  Instagram was already growing quickly when Facebook acquired it.  But now an Android & iPhone app, lots of buzz, and Instagram now sits at 80 million users – and growing. In just the last 13 weeks, Instagram has witnessed a 60% increase in those using its […]

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One of the nagging broadcast radio problems that no one wants to talk about is the industry’s ability (or inability) to recruit new, young, fresh talent to the programming and performance ranks.  Larry Rosin – who wrote a great guest post here last week – has long talked about the need for the infusion of […]

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A lot has changed in the broadcast mindset in just the past couple years.  I derive a sense of pride when I see so many broadcasters focusing on digital, buying mobile apps, setting up texting platforms, and promoting their streams. When we wrapped up the “Goin’ Mobile” study for Arbitron a couple of years ago, we […]

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As the wave of social media has swept over our culture in just the last few short years, it’s fascinating that it has all occurred organically.  You’ve never seen a Facebook television commercial that explained how the site worked or testimonials from satisfied users sitting behind their computers. And you’ve never seen a billboard for […]

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Today’s post comes from an “outsider,” but a FOJM for many years, Edison Research chieftain, Larry Rosin.  Here are his observations about the state of radio’s perceptions. “Reports of Radio’s Demise Greatly Exaggerated” So said the headline of a July 16 press release from Alan Burns & Associates. And we have heard this claim before […]

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