The Jacobs Media Blog

Today, our social media maven, Lori Lewis, takes a look inside Mark Zuckerberg’s letter to investors.  There’s a thesis or a dissertation here – five philosophical tenets that speak volumes about Facebook and the changing face of companies around the globe.  Later in the week, we’ll look deeper into Zuckerberg’s letter and even give you […]

jacAPPS head honcho and sales maven, Paul Jacobs, takes a closer look at all the hubbub surrounding Facebook, and what the mobile future holds for radio. With all the attention circulating around Facebook’s IPO disclosure, this quote was “best in show” in our opinion: We all know that radio, like many other industries, has struggled […]

With all this talk about Facebook’s IPO, there’s been an incredible amount of attention in both the digital and financial worlds about this amazing company.  So I won’t bore you with any financial predictions or even attempt to advise you about the wisdom of “getting in on the ground floor” of Facebook. But the open […]

Every programmer and promotions/marketing person knows exactly where I’m headed – especially at heritage stations where annual promotions get locked in.  The challenge is how to make them better, more compelling, and more profitable every year. That’s why while reading Mr. Prep (the prep service put together by our good friends at Mr. Skin), one […]

Our friend Mike Anthony made some nice contributions to our blog in 2011.  One of his ongoing themes revolved around partnerships – the need for radio companies to explore smart alliances that can enhance content and/or distribution – all under the umbrella of financial responsibility and just plain common sense. Late last year, the New York […]

I recently returned from a visit to Philadelphia, and on a follow-up conference call with the WMMR management team, the idea of non-traditional dayparts came up.  At least that’s what we now call overnights and even nights. PD Bill Weston mentioned that his station has a live jock in overnights, the flamboyant up and comer, Jacky […]

Traditional media is so easy to bash, and radio has its share of bashers.  I hope that through the posts of this blog – now celebrating its 7th year – you’ve come to know us as strong supporters of the medium.  But we’re always hoping for better.  We are definitely core supporters of broadcast radio, […]

It’s a weird thing about HD Radio.  Like the topic of abortion on Talk/Radio, it is guaranteed to bring out extreme reactions.  So while I’m expecting the usual negative comments from the usual naysayers, I hope the rest of you take a few minutes to read and consider today’s post. It’s about HD Radio from a different […]

Lori Lewis has now been with us for nearly a year, during which time our company continues to gain a better sense for how radio can best utilize social media resources – and how that interrelates to its overall digital strategy. As we’ve discussed on this blog before, many stations, clusters, and even companies are engaged in “random acts of […]

You may have read some of our observations from this year’s Consumer Electronics Show.  We saw some amazing technology, met some bright people, and learned a lot about where the media world is headed.  In the middle of this tech version of Disney World are thousands of smart, tuned-in professionals, start-up pros, and simply dreamers. […]

On Monday, we addressed the way the radio broadcast industry often reacts to the competitive threat posed by Pandora.  Today, we’ll take a deeper dive into some alternative ways to think about Pandora and its impact on both traditional radio programming and sales.  But first, the question that many in radio are (for some reason) asking: Is Pandora […]

Today, a post from Tim Davis, a child of the storied Kodak company.  Here’s his perspective watching a once-great corporation deny change, and ultimately declare bankruptcy. OK, full disclosure: Kodak is a company near and dear to me.  My dad worked there through his retirement, and was instrumental in what (small) gains were made in their […]

The last couple weeks of 2011 were a mixed bag featuring several strange days indeed for broadcast radio.  At a typically slow time of year around the holidays, it seemed like there were big events happening daily.  Like in every other business, things move in cycles, and the big story even during the supposed quiet days […]

At no other moment in our business lifetimes has the phrase, “the way we’ve always done it,” been more harmful to the health of our companies and our industries. Leadership books and articles are less than a dime a dozen.  They are ubiquitous and yet, true learning and insight are hard to find especially in an […]

In today’s post, Paul Jacobs dusts off those old rate cards and motivational cassettes to provide some serious insight into the challenges facing traditional radio sales staffs in a rapidly growing digital environment. A recent article in Inside Radio notes that as digital revenue grows, the number of digital-specific sales reps is shrinking.  That’s right […]

As consultants, we are exposed to more radio than most radio professionals at the local level.  I don’t know if this makes us smarter, but it certainly provides us with a deep and broad perspective regarding who and what creates buzz, talk, and of course, ratings. This past week provides more evidence that going to extremes […]

It’s hard not to get caught up in the metrics at CES – the sheer magnitude of the event is staggering and it’s fun to try to quantify the size and scope of this show. A number of you have asked me what it’s like at CES.  Some of you also tell me that it […]

Last month, I wrote a blog post about a campaign that WRIF’s Meltdown initiated to get Detroit Red Wings goalie, Jimmy Howard, into the NHL All-Star Game.  Inexplicably, Howard had been left off a ballot that contained 18 other goalies.  Here’s the original post. So we promised to give you the results of the write-in campaign, […]