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Will we see more oldies radio stations popping up?

F

fordranger797

I have a friend in Saint Louis, MO who introduced me to the coolest station, KZQZ 1430. It's a newer station in Saint Louis that was built from the ground up, and broadcasts solid gold oldies of the 50's and 60's. The coolest thing, the owner of this station appears to be running the station only because he wants to serve the loyal niche of oldies listeners.

Anyway, I found it interesting that an oldies station really IS working. The station seems to have listeners of a wide audience from all around Missouri, as this station is a 50kw blowtorch.
 
It is working here at WLBE 790 in Leesburg, Florida. We have a decent signal and play oldies (1955-1975) eighteen hours a day. Music from 2 PM until 8 AM - local programming the other hours - Swap Shop, auction show, etc.. Station is in a retirement area and is doing very well. No satellites - all locally originated including the music. All local commercials all the time. www.my790am.com
 
ok walters said:
It is working here at WLBE 790 in Leesburg, Florida. We have a decent signal and play oldies (1955-1975) eighteen hours a day. Music from 2 PM until 8 AM - local programming the other hours - Swap Shop, auction show, etc.. Station is in a retirement area and is doing very well. No satellites - all locally originated including the music. All local commercials all the time. www.my790am.com
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It should work in Florida.............lots of retirees down there.
 
As more and more oldies stations...pardon me, I mean classic hits stations...drop all the 1950s and '60s hits and add more '80s-'90s hits, I want to believe that some 1950s-'60s oldies stations would start up. In almost any major city, such a station would have the format all to itself and would attract all the listeners who love the music from those decades. But, as longtime programmers David Eduardo and Michael Haggerty have noted in other threads, radio stations (and their advertisers) covet listeners in the 25-44 age group. We all know that people in their 50s and 60s and 70s do not buy food or clothes or automobiles, and they do not buy insurance or pharmaceutical items, and they do not use banks or plumbers or electricians, and they do not travel or stay in hotels and resorts. Why should radio program to them?
 
Thanks for the input, guys! Keep it coming!

I have shared this with people in the Seattle-Tacoma board before, but I have a dream to one day own an oldies radio station. I always thought it would be impossible, but then I discovered KZQZ. If I was ever in a financial position to purchase a dying AM frequency, I would love to make it my own and run a station that doesnt follow these "demographics"
 
LARadioRewind said:
As more and more oldies stations...pardon me, I mean classic hits stations...drop all the 1950s and '60s hits and add more '80s-'90s hits, I want to believe that some 1950s-'60s oldies stations would start up. In almost any major city, such a station would have the format all to itself and would attract all the listeners who love the music from those decades. But, as longtime programmers David Eduardo and Michael Haggerty have noted in other threads, radio stations (and their advertisers) covet listeners in the 25-44 age group. We all know that people in their 50s and 60s and 70s do not buy food or clothes or automobiles, and they do not buy insurance or pharmaceutical items, and they do not use banks or plumbers or electricians, and they do not travel or stay in hotels and resorts. Why should radio program to them?
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Absolutely! Don't they know that we are all supposed to die by the age of 50? (That's the age that I will hit on my next birthday!) This is how the "affordable" health care act will be "affordable." They intend to kill us off!
 
I'm afraid for most markets Oldies Radio is deader than Nixon. Advertisers don't think we buy anything anymore and don't want to put money into that format.
 
I'm in the 11th year of running a station that is a hybrid Oldies/Standards format. www.qx-fm.com It has a loyal, but older,following. Nobody is getting rich doing this, but we haven't gone broke either. Nobody's paycheck has ever bounced and we've been able to afford decent equipment. In fact this year we added a sister AM station and a couple of FM translators doing Classic Hits.

Almost all of our sponsors are local. A high percentage of them actually listen to the station and find their advertising attracts like-minded customers. Selling it usually means finding the right type of customer. It's a little harder, but it certainly isn't impossible.
 
The majority of people who are 55 or older have probably finished paying their home loans and mortgages so they probably have a lot more "disposable income" than people in their 20s and 30s. Why don't radio stations and advertisers want to target those older listeners? And why is it that hundreds of older actors and actresses appear in movies and on television but, when it comes to radio formats, the musical tastes of older people are ignored? Maybe I should quit being a radio listener and become an actor. :)
 
I don't think it is the radio stations, but the ad agencies and other potential advertisers who aren't interested in older listeners. Most people think the product of a radio station is its programming, but that really isn't the case. The real product is the attention of listeners ears. The more you have, the more desirable your station is in the eyes of many advertisers. For many of them, the younger the audience, the better. For instance, if you were Dr. Pepper, you'd be more interested in persuading 18 year olds to drink your product, than you be interested in trying to persuade 60 year olds to drink it. If an 18 year old starts drinking just one of your products every day, that's 42 years (times 365) more products to sell. That is a pretty significant number.

This causes stations to program toward the wishes of their potential advertisers. It is easier, and generally more profitable. Most of the major market stations are owned by publicly traded corporations; their duty is to make a profit for their stockholders, so quick and easy income is the path they take. Even though I don't really like it, it's just the way things are. You are more likely to find stations with interesting programming in smaller markets, where the cost of doing business is more reasonable. That can allow the station owner to do what he or she wants, not just what the agencies dictate. It is a rare privilege.
 
The AM band is still a viable place for an oldies format. Yet it still remains a tough sale, especially to agencies. But in small markets where a talk or sports format don't work, it along with classic country and standards can still be sold. We have one in rural TN. Solid Gold 16 WMAK.
 
Whiplash said:
The AM band is still a viable place for an oldies format. Yet it still remains a tough sale, especially to agencies. But in small markets where a talk or sports format don't work, it along with classic country and standards can still be sold. We have one in rural TN. Solid Gold 16 WMAK.
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Here is his Facebook page for those of you interested.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Solid-Gold-16-WMAK/183039215217278

So far, I have heard '60s, '70s, and '80s on it.
 
LARadioRewind said:
The majority of people who are 55 or older have probably finished paying their home loans and mortgages so they probably have a lot more "disposable income" than people in their 20s and 30s. Why don't radio stations and advertisers want to target those older listeners? And why is it that hundreds of older actors and actresses appear in movies and on television but, when it comes to radio formats, the musical tastes of older people are ignored?
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It's about return on investment.

Advertisers have plenty of data on the costs of each sale, whether that sale is a car or a Coke.

Older consumers require more "coaxing" to buy something new or to change brands. That means more ads to make the sale, and that means more money.

At some point, the advertiser finds that selling to certain groups costs so much tat there is no profit on the sale.
 
That frequency is the former WIL which had the likes of Bob Osborne and maybe Jack Carney. At that time St Louis was glorified with 3 AM rockers, WIL, KWK ( with King Richard) and KXOK. What an era!
 
Check smaller markets like Peoria, IL for WIRL 1290 or Helendale, CA for 1450 KQTE, they stream, but they love mixing CWO into the mix. A delightful station to my ears. If you're on I15 try them from Barstow to the Cajon Pass and enjoy.
 
howardm said:
That frequency is the former WIL which had the likes of Bob Osborne and maybe Jack Carney. At that time St Louis was glorified with 3 AM rockers, WIL, KWK ( with King Richard) and KXOK. What an era!
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Also, Dan Ingram, Ron Lundy, & Bob Dayton all worked at WIL in the early 60s.
 
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