It was the Greek philosopher, Plato, who reached an important conclusion nearly 3,000 years ago. When the going gets tough, we innovate. Or better put:
“Necessity is the mother of invention.”
That famous adage was the inspiration when a young visionary named Frank Zappa joined a band called the Soul Giants in 1965. He had a better music scheme…and a better name for the band. Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention became legendary, and yes, they were always a very innovative, non-traditional ensemble.
We’re learning it’s amazing how innovative you can be when you’re in the middle of a shit storm and your very existence is suddenly threatened. A favorite phrase of the Consumer Technology Association’s CEO, Gary Shapiro, is “Innovate or die.”
And Gary may have to do a whole lot of innovating to figure out what to do with CES 2021 set for Las Vegas in January – as always. Except next year, CES was supposed to move many of its exhibits into the brand new Las Vegas Convention Center’s North Hall extension. During COVID-19, there’s never a dull moment, but don’t get against Gary – he always finds a way.
We’ve seen Plato’s “NITMOI” mindset work in the suspenseful films, “Apollo 13” and “The Martian,” both space movies where the Tom Hanks and Matt Damon characters respectively find themselves in a life threatening, do-or-die dilemma, necessitating major invention. Spoiler alert: They do.
And we’ve seen this spirit become very tangible these past few weeks as the COVID-19 virus has rocked our world of broadcast radio.
Some people and certain industries are more under siege and therefore more vulnerable than others. As you look around the spectrum, it’s not hard to pick these pressurized sectors out. The concert business, sports, restaurants, casinos, travel – in short, any place there are sizable gatherings of people in close proximity to one another are threatened. Compared to them, radio is fortunate in that many people listen in settings where they’re alone, and have always done so.
But the bad news is that many of radio’s key advertising categories are in the same silos as the ones I just mentioned. I spoke to a Rock PD the other day who reminded me that so many of his stations’ content breaks are ticket giveaways and promo mentions for concerts, festivals, and events – none of which are happening right now. That compels many stations to rethink their content strategies to ensure breaks are as substantive as possible.
Many music stations – especially those in younger formats – depend on those summer festivals for both revenue and advertising. In public and Christian radio, many stations’ fundraising efforts have been disrupted or shelved altogether because of the virus.
And there’s no radio format more impacted than sports radio, especially stations that carry play-by-play broadcasts. Between the loss of advertising, 
rights fees, and of course, ratings, these stations are also hard-pressed for talk topics now that no games are being played anywhere.
Based on what we’ve observed over the past month, it is interesting to note the more challenged a business is, the greater the likelihood it will innovate the most.
Take OpenTable, for example. If you’ve never used it, it’s a clever web service that allows you to make restaurant reservations by locale. You earn points for every rez you make that accrue to earn you free meals.
So, thanks to COVID-19, most if not all restaurants are now closed our out of business. And that’s OpenTable’s clientele.
But many offer curbside pickup, delivery, or both. And in a flash, OpenTable redeveloped its app and website to incorporate these new features.
Now, when you open the app, you can still scope out local restaurants, read (and write) reviews, and check out menus. But now, you can also find an eatery that offers pickup and/or delivery. You can also buy a gift card for a favorite restaurant. Talk about a quick, innovative pivot, and one that was obviously spurred by necessity.
But OpenTable isn’t done. Their next invention born out of necessity will let you reserve shopping times at grocery stores, designed to keep crowds down, while creating a safe environment for both shoppers and employees.
Right now, this feature is limited to LA and San Francisco (first pilot, prove efficacy, and expand), but given the world in which we’re now living, OpenTable will most likely push this out to other markets. Reported by The Verge, OpenTable says it is now “in active talks with other national grocers/retailers.”
I’m betting some of these features will be in place long after this crisis subsides. Like so many other innovations born out of need, these new services would not have happened under normal conditions.
OpenTable is not alone. Other food-driven brands, pressed to save their businesses, are innovating as well. Papa John’s Pizza has developed “contactless delivery” to allay concerns about their delivered food being touched in the process of making it and delivering it.
Other fast food chains are working in similar ways to ensure their drive-thru system is as safe as possible. And realizing most children aren’t in school, Burger King is including two free “Kids Meals” when consumers order ahead on their app:
We know the auto industry is under intense pressure, too. So, what about buying a car from a dealership without having to actually walk into a showroom? While this type of process has been available with platforms like Carvana and TrueCar, the automakers and their dealerships are having to revamp their selling and delivery procedures.
And then there’s the creative financing that automakers are now offering to make purchasing a new vehicle financially palatable and possible during this cash-strapped times. The tone is changing, and every time you turn on TV, you see more and more ad copy that’s been modified to fit the current mood.
Hyundai is tracking similarly with their “assurance” program – designed to make a new car buyer feel like she has a little financial breathing room – not to mention, here’s a car manufacturer who “gets it.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEcHrFkqrpM
The list grows longer with each passing week, as brands re-examine their business model and their creative through the COVID-19 lens. And not only are they blowing up their pre-virus strategies, they’re changing up their messaging to be congruent with their audience’s current mindset.
We all come from different backgrounds, social strata, and life experiences. But the common thread to this crisis is that the world – and the U.S. is becoming the epicenter – is going through one of its greatest challenges in centuries. The suffering isn’t just on the health and financial fronts. It’s across the board. We are all feeling a range of emotions that shakes us to our cores.
And you can see brands addressing and adjusting to these stress-filled times by changing policies, altering messaging, and doing whatever they can to connect with their customers. But eating a pizza or driving a new Jeep Grand Cherokee isn’t going to make anyone truly feel better – beyond the momentary pleasure, of course.
That’s where a medium like radio comes into play.
From my listening, and the constant monitoring on-air and online that Mike Stern, Bill Jacobs, Seth Resler, Paul Jacobs, and Chris Firmage are doing, we’re seeing and hearing signs that many radio stations are innovating, inventing, and pivoting out of necessity – and common sense.
Some of the things we’re hearing aren’t as ratings-friendly as we’ve become used to. And that’s OK. Because we’re enduring a challenge that doesn’t conform to anything we’ve seen before. And that requires thought and actions that bend a rule or two in order to better serve the audience while speaking to their feelings and needs.
This week, we’re going to try to help that process along. Our web-based nationwide coronavirus surveys will be presented to the stakeholders who jumped into the fray with us to survey their email database audiences. We conducted three flash web studies just last week among commercial, public, and Christian music listeners (yes, there are some notable differences) to help guide broadcast radio’s COVID-19 strategies – programming and sales.
We’ll have timely information not just about media habits, but about the audience’s mindset. How are radio listeners feeling? Who do they trust? What’s worrying them? What are they missing most right now? And how do they think this episode will end?
All of the national brands are using audience research to hone and fine-tune their messaging, and now broadcast radio will have similar intel. We get smarter when we combine data with programming ingenuity, and of course, invention and innovation.
After all, this moment necessitates every radio station stepping up and re-thinking the givens. We’re in it with you.
So, wash your hands. Grab a face mask. And as Frank Zappa would advise, please don’t eat the yellow snow.
Jacobs Media has consistently walked the walk in the digital space, providing insights and guidance through its well-read national Techsurveys.
In 2008, jacapps was launched - a mobile apps company that has designed and built more than 1,300 apps for both the Apple and Android platforms. In 2013, the DASH Conference was created - a mashup of radio and automotive, designed to foster better understanding of the "connected car" and its impact.
Along with providing the creative and intellectual direction for the company, Fred consults many of Jacobs Media's commercial and public radio clients, in addition to media brands looking to thrive in the rapidly changing tech environment.
Fred was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2018.
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