Yesterday’s post about Pandora’s full frontal assault on broadcast radio via the “connected car” generated a lot of comments – as intended.
But if you think the story is confined to the C-suites of major radio companies, automakers and their suppliers, think again.
One of the major impetuses revolving around our second DASH conference was to ensure that all broadcasters – from the big boys in Chicago to the smaller players in Chattanooga – have a seat at the “connected car” table. That’s because key issues facing radio about the digital dashboard impact stations of all sizes.
It’s why NASBA – the National Alliance of State Broadcasters Associations – got behind DASH. And it’s why Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Indiana, Illinois, Virginia, Oklahoma, and Missouri all sent their chief executives to the conference.
They realize the paramount of importance of the “connected car” to their constituents in markets big and small. That’s because it impacts Main Street commerce in cities and towns all over the U.S. (and Canada).
The local car dealer now has a starring role in this drama. And that’s why for both DASH Conferences, we put together dedicated sessions to educate broadcasters about what dealerships and dealer associations are thinking and doing when it comes to selling cars, training buyers about the “digital dash,” and placing advertising that generates showroom traffic and online sales.
As this year’s DASH, we heard from two Metro Detroit area dealers – Bob Shuman and Chris Wise – both of whom have invested in creative marketing campaigns. In Shuman’s case, radio has been a primary focus, but both dealerships are utilizing a wide array of direct and online marketing tools.
Creative matters – and that’s an area where radio has the legacy and the track record. But how much are broadcasters truly contributing to the dealership creative process in 2014?
Advertising agency maven Lee Alan Reicheld asked that question, and took us on a journey in the “Wayback Machine” by playing back successful radio campaigns that made millions of dollars for the dealers who ran them back in the ‘70s and ‘80s. And Select Marketing Group’s Mike Hillstrom pointed out how his Chicago-based sales marketing firm utilizes key radio “influencers” (yes, local DJs and teams) as spokespeople for his company’s multi-platform marketing campaigns.
But Mike also offered this challenge to the broadcasters in the room about how they can continue to remain viable at the local dealer level:
“We (radio) need to sell more cars for these guys and that’s where great creative comes in.”
And while the dealer execs on our panel each expressed an openness to working with local broadcast stations to facilitate better customer training on their vehicles’ digital dashboard systems, the truth is that radio has a long way to go in order to engender viable partnerships with dealer groups.
You can see that in the following training video from a Metro Detroit dealer, Victory Honda:
>Email recipients: Click here to watch Victory Honda video<
But it runs deeper than that. Here’s a video created by the Detroit Area Honda Dealers, extolling the virtues of the “center stack,” with a very prominent mention for Pandora.
>Email recipients: Click here to watch Detroit Area Honda Dealers Video<
Both videos – along with our DASH dealers sessions – are reminders that while there’s still tremendous potential for radio to assert itself on the local dealer level, broadcasters are falling behind. But as an industry, radio has a lot of work to do – not just with executive action, but at the local grassroots level when consumers pick up their vehicles at their dealerships.
For radio, the stakes are heavy. That’s because it goes beyond losing the dashboard. It has everything to do with losing the dealership. As Paul Jacobs reminded everyone at the DASH Conference during his panel introduction:
“Radio stations can sell cars. But radio needs car dealers to sell radio.”
WWJ/CBS Radio’s Jeff Gilbert – host of The Car Chronicles – moderated a session about Apple and Google’s foray into the “center stack.” He reminded both the automakers and broadcasters in the room of this fact:
“Consumers still refer to the tech in the dash as the ‘car radio.’ We still have the high ground.”
But for how long?
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.
- Radio + Thanksgiving = Gratitude - November 27, 2024
- Is It Quittin’ Time For SiriusXM? - November 26, 2024
- Radio, It Oughta Be A Crime - November 25, 2024
Wow…even for this blog (which sets a pretty high standard) what a fascinating couple of reads…some of your best work. Well done.
Much appreciated, Dave. And you have the added context of having been in attendance (and on stage) at DASH. I hope I’m representing the situation accurately and with the right amount of concern. The more time I spend in the “connected car” space, speaking with OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers, and car dealers, the more it reinforces the importance of the automotive to radio. Thanks again for taking the time.
This is a massive issue to our industry. The in car share of listening in LA is now 84%, which is huge. 10 years ago it was 90%. We have lost market share in the car over the years but it is now being lost to a mobile service that has scale and is selling ads. My voyage and goal to conquer Pandora on the streets has fallen on deaf ears. Our industry has allowed them to kick in the door and they just keep coming. If it were not for our industry being so riddled with debt and so lazy and unwilling to fight, P would not have made the inroads that they have. Now their access to the end user is becoming easier for them in the car. They have dealers pitching P which satellite was never able to do successfully. In my estimation Pandora is taking at least $50m directly out of the LA radio market in 2014 while we sit back and watch it happen.
I predicted it 4 years ago and have been fighting it with all my might ever since. We allowed all of this to happen and now we’re paying the piper. Great piece Fred.
Much appreciated, Peter. Radio needs to fight that good fight – the car is a battle that is essential to radio’s future. Your LA POV is valuable because there is no other metro where the car is so much a part of the market. Thanks again for all you do.
Product availability and newly accrued habits trump anything we could discuss here.
Ask most people what they’re interested in when it comes to listening, and tech and brands like Pandora, Spotify and other personal narrow cast possibilities pop up. No matter that in reality, many still go back to the spoon fed broadcast options. It’s only a matter of time when radio is a page two option on the smart dash, radios are harder and harder to find in most stores and at Christmas, nobody is asking for a clock radio.
Again, product availability (radios) and new shiny habits rule the day.
In the end it comes down to a content issue and not a delivery issue. That, is being ironed out right before our eyes and ears.
Radio will have to fight hard to retain its Page 1 status in dashboards, Sean. But it still comes down to what are we broadcasting and does it matter in people’s lives? As you point out, that overshadows the hardware and the software. Thanks for taking the time to comment.