About This Blog

To the many people who picked up on this blog from Inside Radio, welcome. Big thanks to Mike Kinosian for the mention. If you’re new, I encourage you scroll down to the bottom and read from the bottom up to the most recent.

Today in Terrestrial Radio, you & I are fighting a battle on 2 fronts: Short Term & Long Term.
Short Term: Difficult economic times. Some companies won’t make it through the next 6 months.
Long Term: Threats from emerging technology. If your company gets through the next 6 months, how will you retain your assets’ value over the next 10 years?

There are lots of voices out there commenting on our industry:
- Some make good points (including INSIDE MUSIC MEDIA!)
- Others make noise with limited reality associated with their observations.
Based on what I read, I thought it was time to create a place where Terrestrial Radio Station Owners & Operators could read about these topics BY one of us, FOR us…so I created this blog.

Know this: You are not alone in this fight! Use this blog as a source for all of this information, without the now-standard kick in the teeth. I will be your watchdog. Remember, I’ve got a vested interest. (scroll down to my first post)

Also, know this: I’ll give it to you straight. I’ve done what you’ve done, sold what you’ve sold, managed what you’ve managed. I also fear what you fear and know that we have to attack our problems. When I have bad news, I will deliver it. (again, see my first post)

Bookmark this page…
Subscribe to my posts by adding ‘TowerstoBrands’ to Google…
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I will keep you in the know so that your company can survive in the short term, and our industry can succeed in the long term.

 

Tony Renda

Second Post: Taking stock

You need to recognize 2 things:

1) This asset you have is very powerful.
- You already know this.
- You’ve seen it drive traffic.
- You’ve run a client's ad for a month and the copy was attention grabbing and it increased sales: They re-signed for 13 weeks.
- You’ve been at a local business packed with people, the local owner and you are standing there while a jock is announcing someone’s name, giving something away, and you have that tangible PROUD  feeling of success.

Terrestrial Radio drives foot traffic.
Terrestrial Radio still drives music consumption.
Terrestrial Radio is a very profitable business. Not bankrupt like Sirius XM. Not losing money like on-line broadcasters. (Competing media would KILL to have your advertising revenue and profits, and they're going after your clients.)

…But this is today!

  

2) This asset’s value won’t last forever. Not in its current state. Won’t happen!
- Listeners are harder to reach and need more personal interaction.
- Advertisers want accuracy and accountability in their advertising, and the PPM is still the exception, not the rule.

So what’s your company’s plan to come out on the other side of this digital revolution with your asset intact? Not the short term, the long term. 2014. What about 2019? What will the value of your company be then? What actions will you have taken to remain competitive?

Time to strategize on HOW TO HOLD ON TO THOSE ASSETS. Time to build the plan.

RBC's plan is solid. I'm proud of the steps we've taken. I'll share these plans as we go, but before I lay it out there, you've got to accept the reality above. Sharing this info before that would be pointless. 

Tony