There’s nothing that reminds me of my fallibilty more than going back into JacoBLOG archives to revisit my daily posts. Reading them now with the benefit of 20:20 hindsight is indeed sobering.
I pride myself on being able to look at a lot of “data” – not just research but also other evidence – and come away with logical observations and even predictions about where we may be headed as an industry.
Too often, the theme hits on a similar trope – it’s not so much that radio was better in the old days. That’s debatable. But I believe that by and large, radio “back in the day” often did things more strategically and tactically smart. Now some of you may argue that radio stations had more human and financial resources back then. And that, of course, is true.
But so many of the activities and promotions radio stations engaged in back then were instinctual, clever, and innovative. I think you’ll find an interesting look at radio just a few years ago. – FJ
October 2019
When the Classic Rock format started to take flight, my first big sign-on was KCFX in Kansas City. It was the very first station in the portfolio of Jay Hoker – my former boss at WRIF. There was a lot riding on this Class A station going up against the big dogs in a big market.
The station was called the Fox, and Hoker wanted a mascot. I did not. In my view, Classic Rock was too cool and credible format to have a cheesy, cartoonish mascot. But Hoker insisted, believing a friendly, animated version of the Fox would be a hit at locations and provide a persona to the station.
He was right. I was wrong.
The Fox mascot quickly became the face of the station. Jay bought a 30-foot high inflatable that was instantly embraced by advertisers, station fans, and their kids. Our furry Fox mascot (dubbed “Foxzilla”) helped humanize and brand our station that was trying to find its way through a tough competitive battle.
As I learned in the process, it gave a fledgling radio station presence at concerts, community events, and other locales it would not have had. And in many cases, the bigger-than-life symbol of our radio station helped grow The Fox’s awareness and cume.
Jay ended up licensing his Fox to more than a dozen other stations, including WRFX in Charlotte, another station I helped sign on. More than three decades later, KCFX, WRFX, and other stations are still proudly using that Fox mascot.
Dan McClintock, program director of market-leading KCFX, tells me the station continues to lean heavily on “Foxzilla.” There’s even a “junior” version (20-feet) as well as a “Sly Fox” version – a suit an intern (or whomever) wears at promotions to hang with kids and high-five adults.
And thanks to smartphones, taking selfies with these versions of KCFX’s mascot has become a popular pastime, especially on game days for the Chiefs, many of which get posted on social media fan pages. Dan tells that even “guests” who support the opposing team love these photo ops with “Foxzilla.”
KCFX has been the flagship play-by-play station since the days I was there, a deal originally put together with then-GM Bill Newman. Today, the Chiefs and KCFX represent one of the most successful long-term radio/NFL relationships.
And at the core of the station’s brand identity is the Fox character, a vehicle that has helped this radio station stand apart from the scores of other radio outlets in Kansas City for more than 30 years.
And that got me to thinking about how more radio stations are using audio to brand themselves as well. In the past year, I’ve had the chance to learn more about Veritonic, a company that tests the power and memorability of audio signatures.
We’ve blogged about their methodology, a fascinating way to better understand the power of audio for brands. It turns out that some of the dullest businesses – especially insurance companies – have made great use of sonic logos to set their brands apart.
Nationwide, Liberty Mutual, Farmer’s, and others have made brilliant use of these audio logos that get in your head and help make forgettable brands very memorable. After all, most of don’t enjoy buying insurance, and it’s easy to confuse the many different companies selling it. So, when those sonic signatures are strategically and cleverly produced, they get in your head, creating strong awareness for brands that used to get lost in the shuffle.
But as I started thinking about these insurance giants, it also occurred to me that most are now using cute, clever, witty, and snarky mascots to drive recognition, recall, and positive imagery. Consider the following:
GEICO’s gecko
AFLAC’s duck
Liberty Mutual emu
The Hartford’s buck
And then there’s Progressive’s Flo and Esurance’s Dennis Quaid (who are, for all intents and purposes, mascots).
Mascot are everywhere, and they’ve been around forever. The Michelin Man, Mr. Clean, the Jolly Green Giant, Mickey Mouse. Even Santa Claus is a mascot – perhaps the best known and most loved of them all.
Fast food chains have been especially active in the mascot game, starting with McDonald’s and their clown, Ronald. Wendy’s, KFC, Long John Silver’s, and so many others make use of iconic mascots.
Then there’s Burger King. Personally, the King has always creeped me out, but the brand has stuck with him. And last week, Burger King put their royal mascot to work, showcasing a new partnership with Uber Eats.
In what sounds an awful lot like a radio promotion, the King delivered Whoppers to several hundred L.A. area homes.
And of course, there was a tech angle to the promotion. The agency, Mullen Lowe, scouted homes for Ring doorbells, ensuring great video opportunities for Burger King’s social media pages.
Not to be left out is KFC, these days cleverly using different actors and comedians to play their mascot, Southern gentleman Colonel Sanders.
Their newest promotion deal is a StubHub “subscription package” built around the NFL – “Seasoned Tickets.” Door to door delivery is the priority here, too, and of course, KFC went right to their spokes-mascot to pitch it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2w-Kl86vu8
So, it begs the question why more radio stations don’t take the opportunity to humanize and personalize their brands with mascots. It is clear from so many brand marketing success stories that mascots simply work.
And when we shift to radio, there are enough eagles, bears, bulls, sharks, and yes, foxes on the airwaves. There’s even a rat in New Jersey and that iconic pig in St. Louis.
Why wouldn’t more radio stations create mascots or breathe life into existing ones, and turn them into your “6th man” – or pig? At a time when many brands are hard-pressed to fulfill sales and promotional commitments, a mascot can be better than sending a part-time jock (with all due respect) to a car dealer, phone store, or mattress outlet.
At a time when radio stations have to work harder to stand out, popular mascots that garner attention from multi-generations can be smart marketing tools.
Smart like a fox.
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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During my Connecticut radio days, we were considering adding a live costumed mascot for our FM side, 98Q. I suggested a large cartoonish pickle character named “98-Q-Cumber: the Prize Pickle”.
This was around the time the Parents Advisory kerfuffle was shaking out, and after a polite giggle, they decided a 6 foot tall cuke was “too phallic.” So they instead went with the “Q Kangaroo” and his (her?) “Prize Pouch.”
Oh well… A+ for effort and participation.
You must have been a fun presecne in those brainstorming meetings, Alan. Whether it’s a logo or a mascot, you have to work hard to make sure you’re visualizing all the possibilities. Thanks for a great story.
WOW! The fact that’s it’s past noon and there has not been a single comment on this excellent point Fred, is proof enough for me that (sadly) as I’ve been preaching for some time now, “nobody cares.” In my opinion, the best known mascot in radio is, by far, The Buzzard at WMMS in Cleveland. In the 80’s and through the early 2000’s, if you wore a shirt with the famous rendering of that bird originally designed by David Helton, you didn’t even need the call-letters or the frequency! You just knew it was WMMS, home of The Buzzard. The K-SHE Pig, who has a name “Sweet Meat,” has similar status in the Gateway City. Then we can’t forget the WEBN Frog, a staple in the Queen City of Cincinnati. Seemingly ALL the country stations that copied the “Froggy” name also had a frog mascot. Radio consultant Pierre Bouvard said it years ago: We in radio go out to businesses and say “if you don’t advertise people won’t know who you are” and what is it that we (in radio) don’t do? Advertise ourselves! A mascot is a visual form of promoting the radio station just like bumper stickers, t-shirts, billboards and TV spots, most all of which have all been cut out of the budget at most radio stations these days. Stop the insanity and do something creative!
Art, I’m happy to report the comments picked up as the day wore on, especially on my socials for some reason. You’ve pointed out some of the biggest, most bombastic mascots in all of radio. Interestinig, Rocky the X Pup here in detroit for WABX (originally, the same owner as KSHE) didn’t have a much impact (or they didn’t market him as well as good ol’ Sweet Meat). Thanks for adding to one of those mainstay radio topics.
How can you leave out the brilliant Ted Gianollis as the KGB Chicken?? He put the rest of them in the shade.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Diego_Chicken You can (and probably should) read the story of the comedic capon as Ken mentioned. His activity in promoting a radio station was “egg”zactly what the station needed. In Rochester we had “The Magic Moose” for WMJQ. In both cases the mascot was “too involved” for the station(s) to continue with. The “Moose” became the mascot of the local hockey team-with continued success!! But I ask-what’s more important, a 7-12 midnight “personality”? Or a mascot? I’m just sayin’ radio needs people. Finding the right people for both-is a real challenge.
He was the original, Ken, and set the tone for the entire mascot movement. Thanks for the reminder.
Fred — I was at KCFX during those early Foxzilla days under Bill Newman. Foxzilla was not the easiest mascot to haul around and setup at remotes, but once up, it was well worth it. I remember when we set him up at our NFL pre-game remotes on Sunday mornings at Arrowhead, Foxzilla was like a magnet. The parking lot tailgate crowds were drawn toward our broadcast area and those fans came running in droves. Fun times! The “Fox” branding and Foxzilla’s association really helped with station awareness, as we were also preparing for a frequency swap (from 100.7 to 101.1) and signal upgrade from Class A. Well worth the expense (at the time).
You could OWN an event with that Fox inflatable. On windy days, however, not so much fun. For a station trying to build awareness and cume, Foxzilla was huge (sorry), a great way to get kids and their parents at the same time. Thanks, Fred.
The podcast “Twenty Thousand Hertz” did a good episode about insurance company jingles on 3/22/2023.