WLS-FM suggestion

[DavidEduardo]

I wasn't talking about Mom and Pop businesses...rather businesses like car dealerships, convenience store chains, furniture stores, etc which have money to spend and need to be called on by a local account rep.

You'll find that many car dealerships in large metros have local ad agencies... same with anything that is a chain. Big furniture stores, too.

Or they have an in-house agency, which operates a lot like a "real" agency and places transactional buys, farms out creative to boutiques, etc.

Yes, there is some direct. But in the largest metros, a full signal FM can't live off that money alone.

Remember, for any account capable of spending a decent budget, there is a small agency out looking to represent them.

 

[radioaircheck]

Everyone is talking about WLS-FM. Their ratings are better than WLS-AM. That station continues to slip.

 

[KFodor]

The problem is major markets like Chicago rely on regional/national agency buys. Those agencies are only buying 18-49 or 25-54. The boomers who have money to spend (far more than their parents) are stilly buying toys in their 50's and 60's but they are supposedly not important to retailers.

Bull.

Stations like WLS-FM who go after an older demo have to go after more local retail dollars and not rely just on on national/regional agency buys. Unfortunately, groups like Cumulus in markets of that size are not set up to do so and don't understand the concept. So, formats that appeal to older demos (35-64) who still listen to the radio as their primary source for music are being cut out.

Notice how in smaller markets Classic Hits stations are still viable. It's because they sell direct to people who own businesses and believe in that demo and format.

Hey, Marconi:

Have you ever gone to an ad agency buyer and argued that case? I have. Here's the answer you get:

"You're audience is too old. When are you going to start playing music that appeals to people in their 30's and 40's?"

And smaller markets are not immune to this, either. Just 2 hours away from Chicago, in what was then market 215, the oldies station lost 50 cents on the dollar about a decade ago because of a perception that the audience was "too old". And, by the way, local advertisers who used in house or regional agencies were also a hard sell, too. And, during that time, that station was #1 25-54 for a couple of years. It was the "perception", not "reality" the station's sales staff could not overcome. Bad sales staff? Or management? I can't say for sure. It's all water under the bridge now. I admit there were some other factors that may have affected this (the fact that the station was once a hybrid playing music up into the 80's, but was pulled backwards to the more traditional "oldies" approach.) Though an understandable programming decision at the time, it may have, given the direction the format was going, been a miscalculation as, perhaps, the advertisers thought the previous way (though certainly not well executed from a programmer's perspective) was more "cutting edge".

The classic hits audience, if programmed to correctly, reaches 35-54 year old listeners. They are wanted by advertisers. Over 55's is where you run into the real serious trouble. The ad agencies use means other than radio to reach those people. Most will not even entertain it. You're assumption here is that one of the main audience draws is 18-34. While that audience can be and often is very important (depending upon format and advertiser), it is not as important as 25-54. And it's not just the 25-34 component that is important to advertisers. If a format can deliver both demos, it's even better.

I agree with David, unfortunately, that the DJ's of the 60's and early 70's may not be the right talent to use in these stations. It might be better to go to the 80's for these stations, as those are the DJ's listeners in their 30's and 40's might be more "nostalgic" for.

 

[cyberdad]

Hey, Marconi:

Have you ever gone to an ad agency buyer and argued that case? I have. Here's the answer you get:

"You're audience is too old. When are you going to start playing music that appeals to people in their 30's and 40's?"

+1. And as often as not you're hearing that from a twenty-something assistant media buyer.

Marconi....I understand, appreciate, and empathise with what you said in your earlier post.

But let's say...just for the sake of argument...that you have a compelling argument for your "traditional oldies" major market radio station to be included in agency buys. Even if your argument is absolutely correct and airtight, it's probably going to fly directly in the face of the client's directive to the agency, not to mention "conventional wisdom".

Agencies are very conservative...or should I say timid...when it comes to media decisions. They can make sheep look like independent free thinkers. They almost never "go out of the box". Why? Theirs is an extremely cutthroat business. The last thing they want to do is rock the boat and upset the client. At any given moment, that client may be getting pitched by a half dozen other agencies all claiming to "understand their needs" better than the incumbent. Doesn't exactly encourage the agency do something that would be perceived as being "out on a limb"!

Meanwhile the whole approach of getting more salespeople in front of local businesses (most of whom don't need or want full market coverage), drives up the cost of sales. Probably exponentially. What GM or local or group operator would follow a business model that produces higher sales costs and lower ROI?

In a perfect world, this dynamic might not exist. But in the real world, it's what you'd be up against.

 

[andydallas]

One of the reasons virtually every business with any adv. dollars to spend has an agency, is that if they don't, they have 500 different sales people knocking on their door every month.

Every unrated station, billboard companies, every throw away magazine,, telephone book (yes they still have those), dozens of local internet sites,the list goes on and on, it can take up all of the owners time, so an agency, that will keep the sales reps at bay while they operate their business, if often the route they choose.

Agencies always have to have a 'reason' they made the buy, and using the book is the best way to "prove" it was a good buy.

 

[radiotower40]

WLS has to pick a direction here now with 93.9 changed a focus on the lighter classic hits could work for them. The problem with this is it would probably raise the age again which was why they had to change.

A place where WLS could go is classic hits with an 80's focused classic rock that rocks format. No station plays Metallica and groups like that could set them apart from the otther classic hits stations.

Right now except for the morning show with Miller, the dj's don't fit the music.

I liked the old WLS format, that is not coming back for the reasons stated, so they need to decide where to move going forward.

This format is not good and the repetative nature is wearing thin they need to pick a direction and go with it, this format is bad. cutting down groups like The Who and Joe Walsh to 3 minute songs from the original seven or 8 minute song is not a good idea when trying to court a classic hits crowd.