The Jacobs Media Blog

The results are in, and for the fifth consecutive year, Classic Hits and Classic Rock earn “Format of the Summer” honors in the Nielsen PPM ratings. Meanwhile, CHR audience numbers declined, perhaps a contradiction during a period when kids are out of school and the record labels work hard to produce big summertime hits. Of course, we have a theory – and some data to back it up – for why gold-based radio stations continue to win the summer ratings wars. See if you agree.

It’s hard not to be fearful of the world around us – especially when it comes to our changing, disrupted professional lives. It’s FOFB – or the fear of falling behind. Not to worry – we’ve got a dozen ways to overcome and conquer that fear. And most are fun, painless, and inexpensive. Dive in.

As a smart obsesrver of media and technology recently quipped, “The revolution will be vocalized.” Today’s post takes a straight-on look at the voice revolution, what it means to broadcast radio, and how some of the habits acquired during the early PPM days won’t work so well in the era of voice. Alexa, open today’s JacoBLOG.

E-commerce companies are increasingly moving into the retail space – building physical stores to extend their brands. For radio companies, this raises some key question about digital transformation, and how to pull it off. Today’s post takes some important lessons from Amazon, Wayfair, and other e-tailers to make the point that it’s always been about building great brands.

A recent story in the Columbia Journalism Review declares America’s local news are in a “death spiral.” While public radio has benefitted from the decline of newspapers and local TV news programming, commercial radio’s music station’s have a chance to provide something that most media outlets have abandoned – their sense of place.

In our age of specialization, just about every taste is served by a radio format or streaming pure-play. But there is a group with an audience of over 86 million that has gone without its own audio entertainment – until now.

Heads up, Alexa – Amazon’s huge lead in the smart speaker race may be dwindling, thanks to an all-out effort by Google Home. How is Google doing it? And what are the implications for radio stations and the companies that own them? That’s the topic of today’s JacoBLOG post.

What do these names have in common? Maggie Haberman, Peter Baker, Glenn Thrush, Michael Schmidt, Megan Twohey, Frank Bruni. They’re all star reporters on the staff of the New York Times who are also frequently seen on cable news channels CNN and MSNBC.  They’re like the morning shows of journalism.  To many viewers, they have achieved celebrity […]

At many of the conferences I’ve atttended in 2018, podcasting and smart speakers often emerge as the hottest topics in radio circles. But are they additive or erosive to broadcasters, and how are smart companies developing strategies for these new platforms. In today’s post, we’ve got some brand new research to share, as well as some observations.

In a time when the national conversation is consumed by politics, music radio DJs are linstructed to avoid the topic. So when Seth Resler heard a radio DJ talk about Paul Manafort on the air following the recent verdicts, it caught his attention. Here are 12 conflicting thoughts about music, radio, and politics from a thoughtful observor of the medium.

Research has shown that when radio personalities acknowledge fans, good things can happen. But our newest Techsurvey indicates an even more pronounced trend pointing to the fact that social media acknowledgment has become even more important for radio stations and their on-air staffs – even in the ratings.

Evergreen radio station events may be successful – for both advertisers and listeners. But even the biggest and best promotions will get stale or become the “same old same old” if they aren’t evaluated and updated. Today’s post looks at 6 steps a station’s team can take to ensure big events stay fresh, vital, – and profitable. And help prevent that dreaded “déjà vu all over again moment.”

The term “podfade” describes a podcast that has run out of steam and eventually dies off – despite a great deal of initial enthusiasm and excitement. But this phenomenon isn’t exclusive to podcasting. Broadcasters know this problem very well, given the formats, morning shows, and digital endeavors that have suffered the same fate. How to avoid this sorry condition and recognize when it’s smart to stay with the program is the subject of today’s blog post.

WFAN icon, Mike Francesa, has been back on the radio since last May. But he’s looking down the road, and he’s tying his future to mobile. Today’s post looks at radio and personality brands, and how apps are the engine that will drive them on mobile devices.

We’ve talked a great deal about the wisdom of parternships to help broadcast radio brands make that leap into an unpreditable digital future. Yesterday, the world of public radio shook when it was announced that PRX and PRI have merged. If you’ve never heard of these organizations, you may be missing a great example of digital media strategy. It’s happening right now down at the left end of the dial in public radio.