Much of the focus the last couple weeks has been on Apple’s launch of its new streaming music service. While not an across-the-board perception, Apple has come under a great deal of criticism from many different camps.
Some predict their new entry will have little impact on Pandora, Spotify, and others because it offers nothing especially unique. And at $10 a month (with no “free” option) it doesn’t even offer a price point advantage. After a free three month test drive, the credit card payments kick in.
But the big headline came the other day when the most powerful force in music today – Taylor Swift – took Apple to task for not paying royalties to artists during the 90-day trial period.
To their credit, it didn’t take Apple long to reverse that call, so credit where credit’s due. The ability to be able to recognize a mistake (although Taylor Swift certainly got everyone’s attention) and correct it was a smart move on Apple’s part. But why didn’t anyone in Cupertino think of the downside of this policy prior to it being brought to their attention in the most high-profile, embarrassing way?
No one wants to be upbraided in front of the entire universe, especially by the universally adored and well-respected Taylor Swift. But Apple set itself up for this public lashing by not thinking its business model through prior to launch.
And somewhere out there, a few radio programmers must have had a little schadenfreude going, watching the mighty Apple have to walk back a key plank in the streaming policy of its highly visible new product. That’s because PDs, in particular, know the degree of difficulty of getting a new station or format off the ground without a speed bump or two along the way.
But if you look past this Swiftian embarrassment, there is something interesting about the launch of Apple Music’s Beats1 that broadcast radio might want to take note of.
In an effort to establish its key difference and position the three big personalities they’ve hired to curate and entertain – Zane Lowe, Julie Adenuga, and Ebro Darden – Apple put together a slick, compelling promotional video that puts their DJ team in an incredibly cool light. Titled “Music needed a home…so we built it one,” Apple tells their story and positions its new personality lineup in a unique way that just doesn’t exist with other streaming services.
>Email recipients: Click here to watch Apple Music video>
And it reminded me of the stories that many broadcast radio stations could be telling with their own personalities, shows, and teams – and how they impact their local environs. While the “93% story” just reaffirmed by Nielsen speaks to radio’s reach and impact in people’s routines, radio’s true brand strength goes well beyond the notion that more people listen to radio than watch TV.
There are thousands of radio stations across the country whose personalities and shows are doing incredible things on the local level, raising money for charities, throwing memorable events, connecting with their communities during trying times, and simply being their entertaining and informative selves.
To think that advertisers simply “get” this, and that they are attuned to what local radio personalities and shows are doing is presumptuous at best, and arrogant at worst.
Even if your best DJs have been around decades, web video provides stations and their best personalities to stay top-of-mind with listeners and with the advertising community.
Twenty years ago, a great 30-second TV spot, and a respectable advertising schedule might have cost local market stations upwards of six figures – even in medium and smaller markets. That’s the main reason why we scarcely see television campaigns for radio today.
But a smart, entertaining, and compelling video can be produced for a fraction of that cost. And it can have a life of its own on the station website, on YouTube, all over social media, and on other channels throughout the web. It can be emailed to the database, and seamlessly shared throughout online communities. And of course, it can be distributed to advertisers via email or better yet, in person, to rev up the excitement for local shows…and local radio.
The industry keeps talking about telling its story, but statistics, metrics, reach, and frequency won’t really move the needle. When radio is at its resonant best, it’s about the impact it has on people’s lives and local communities. Apple never uses schematics or performance data to market its products. It’s never about how many iPhones or iPads they’ve sold.
It’s always about how their gadgets and their technology make you feel and touch your life. Those are many of the same reasons why consumers come back to radio day after day, year after year. It’s not because everyone’s listening. It is because of the personal value that people derive from enjoying a favorite morning show, arguing with a talk show host, or having a great soundtrack over the 4th of July weekend.
There is magic when radio stations connect with listeners, face-to-face, in cities and town all over America. Every day, radio makes headlines. But rarely do we publish them, market them, or communicate them in a meaningful, memorable way to the people who are making those decisions to “buy more digital.”
Radio stations still possess amazing emotional brand power in markets as diverse as Baltimore and Bangor. The leadership they take every time there’s a disaster or major community issue continues to affirm personality, strength, trust, and influence. But to presume that advertisers and audiences are keeping score at home is shortsighted and wrong-headed.
Seeking out local video producers or even going back to a familiar name like Film House to put together a sizzling promotional story on video is something that most stations could easily do and afford. And it would pay for itself during its first 50 viewings.
Or if that’s cost-prohibitive, take the project in-house, and use the gift that Apple gave us more than a decade ago. Shoot and edit the whole thing on your iPhone.
To not have a great story in this environment is a problem. To have a great story and not tell it isn’t just a lost opportunity. It’s a crime.
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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A-effin-MEN!!
Thanks!
Is it just me…or is this video a little ‘tired’? There was just a lack of the startling freshness we expect from Apple. It was formulaic and in trying to be incredibly hip to the music scene, left me wondering..”… so what exactly is this…?”
And let’s face it…as radio geeks all know, this is way too broad to be anything but an image station. How likely is ONE curated station ever going to create an audience….?
Jackson, I think you hit on some of the challenges facing this Apple DJ model. But for local radio stations with great people & a sense of community, a clean, well-produced video could deliver an important, compelling message. Thanks for chiming in.
Fred, we know the power of video in telling a story. Radio needs to stop thinking in the past — yes TV marketing
is maybe not the absolute it once was, but there are so many other avenues now to tell your story, capture
the hearts and minds of your audience and keep your station front and center in your audience’s mindset.
I believe in the power of video more than ever, I’d love to have a conversation with other progressive
minded broadcasters – including the good folks at Jacobs Media –
David, you’ve been at in for a long time – telling radio’s story via video. There’s an opportunity here for all of us. Thanks for commenting.
Thanks for posting some pictures of the McCartney concert in Philly on Sunday night, Fred! Video is what everyone wants in social media these days, and we in radio have a golden opportunity to show our strengths this way.
And yes, Paul McCartney KILLED IT at the Wells Fargo!!
Andre, thanks for all you do and congrats on the way you bring enthusiasm and energy to MGK and Classic Rock.