The Jacobs Media Blog

The future of our business may be centered on how effectively radio markets its content to advertisers more than any other factor.  It’s noteworthy that the new Lonestar in Dallas (the former KZPS) is attempting bold new sales marketing architecture.  Guess what?  Its success will ride almost entirely on the sales reps at that station.  […]

Jacobs Media consultant Ralph Cipolla has truly mastered life on the road.  He has harnessed the technology that allows him to capture his must-see TV shows.  It was all working well, until that fateful Monday night… It’s the kind of horrible thing that always happens to someone else.  Sure, you hear stories from time to […]

Is it an ad for a Mercury or for Sirius?  It may take you a few minutes to decide, and we still might not agree. Somehow, the corporate strategists at Lincoln Mercury have decided that what moves the needle is satellite radio.  There’s no real language about quality, resale value, gas mileage, performance, safety, or […]

Internet Specialist Tim Davis is more than the guy who can make your websites look great.  He’s a keen observor of our business, and takes on the ever-changing role of the DJ in today’s guest blog: Unless you have kids, you probably haven’t given a second thought to watching the latest iteration of the "High […]

Is there anything more powerful than a great story about a product or service? Is there anything more exciting than a listener telling a great story about your radio station?  Or your heritage morning guy? In another great extension of CGM, Cadillac is letting their owners – just plain folk – tell their stories.  It’s […]

Radio has many challenges that have been discussed constantly in the press, as well as in this space.  Unfortunately, many of the factors facing terrestrial radio – economic, technology, etc. – are out of our control.  How are we going to take iPods out of people’s hands?  How can you stop TV viewers from using […]

That IS the question. As technology grows and morphs at breakneck speed, our Tech Poll questionnaires have had to cover more ground.  This year, we spent a considerable amount of time on the subject of HD Radio. Why?  Because so many of you are investing a great deal of money and time on technical improvements, […]

Think about it – every time you’ve ever seen a "prize test" in research, the same item is sitting at the top of the most-desired list – $1,000 (or some other cash denomination). But that result may fall under the column of "what they say" rather than "what they feel."  The problem with cash prizes […]

A lot of the buzz at ad agencies these days is trying to figure out how to generate buzz for a product in different venues and arenas.  You may remember that before "Desperate Housewives" debuted, there was a clever campaign using dry cleaning bags (dirty laundry, get it?) printed with the show’s/ABC’s logos.  Not only […]

A lot of the buzz at ad agencies these days is trying to figure out how to generate buzz for a product in different venues and arenas.  You may remember that before "Desperate Housewives" debuted, there was a clever campaign using dry cleaning bags (dirty laundry, get it?) printed with the show’s/ABC’s logos.  Not only […]

Today’s blog from Jacobs Media’s Keith Cunningham is all about content, preparation, and relevance – qualities that are so critical for radio in this overcrowded media world. What do Will Ferrell, Dana Carvey, Adam Sandler and Chris Farley all have in common? Yes, they were SNL cast members.  But what they also have in common […]

It’s not just a Detroit story anymore.  The big news is that Toyota officially passed General Motors in global vehicle sales.  While this has been coming for awhile, the fact that this unbelievable victory has finally occurred is a stunner. This isn’t like a station beating its competition in the Winter book, anymore than it […]

It’s not just a Detroit story anymore.  The big news is that Toyota officially passed General Motors in global vehicle sales.  While this has been coming for awhile, the fact that this unbelievable victory has finally occurred is a stunner. This isn’t like a station beating its competition in the Winter book, anymore than it […]

Jacobs Media’s Ralph Cipolla joins us to discuss using HD2 channels for talent development: Radio continues to grapple with how to approach the programming of its HD2 channels.  Some stations have actually thought out the process, and have devoted some time and resources to these secondary channels that the HD Alliance is heavily marketing.  Most […]

The news that Clear Channel is debuting social networking sites at a dozen of its stations this summer comes as no surprise to us.  Our recently released Tech Poll III clearly shows the power of social networking sites like the mighty MySpace, as well as the up-and-coming Facebook.  Even Classic Rockers are in the game, […]

I’d like to welcome Jacobs Media’s Bill Jacobs for a guest posting today: Many of you recall the "Fish" video we’ve shown to you and your staffs as part of our "DJ Presentation." It’s a great story about the Pike Place Market in Seattle and how — among a slew of other fish vendors — […]

I’d like to welcome Jacobs Media’s Bill Jacobs for a guest posting today: Many of you recall the "Fish" video we’ve shown to you and your staffs as part of our "DJ Presentation." It’s a great story about the Pike Place Market in Seattle and how — among a slew of other fish vendors — […]

Today brings us another guest posting from Jacobs Media’s Keith Cunningham: In a climate where every marketing dollar must count, use this as a reminder to revisit your vendors and their mailing lists, or you could be wasting a lot of money.  For six years now, I’ve lived at the same address here in Santa […]

A few months ago, we put out an advisory about "Guitar Hero," Activision’s cool video game that lets the player jam to great Rock songs.  (It’s the game that supposedly injured fireballer Detroit Tigers pitcher, Joel Zumaya’s arm during last season’s Playoff/Series run.)  As video games make a great comeback this year, "Guitar Hero" has […]