• Get involved.
    We want your input!
    Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.

    After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
    If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.

    After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
    https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/

    Thanks in advance and have fun!
    RadioDiscussions Administrators

A Slight Alternative To All-Christmas -- Would This Work?

M

Michael1973

Guest
Every year at this time, the old debate begins over the all-Christmas format (Do they start too early? Is it overkill?, etc.) Obviously, the format brings in huge ratings, so it's not going to go away, but I had a thought this morning.

Could a station benefit from going 50% Christmas? In other words, every other song is a holiday song, while the rest is standard AC music. They could start this anytime in November or December.

Here's my reasoning. Such a station still attracts the advertisers, because they're playing a heavy amount of Christmas music. Also, people who thrive on holiday music know that this is a good station to find it. However, people who don't want to be overloaded so early in the season aren't totally driven away because they're still playing songs off the regular playlist as well.

Would this idea fly? Or not? What are your thoughts?
 
> Would this idea fly? Or not? What are your thoughts?

I am a huge advocate of starting light on Christmas music, and getting heavier as the day draws closer, and going all-Christmas on Christmas Eve day, or maybe the day before. When to start? Well...<P ID="signature">______________
narniabanner.jpg
</P>
 
> > Would this idea fly? Or not? What are your thoughts?
>
> I am a huge advocate of starting light on Christmas music,
> and getting heavier as the day draws closer, and going
> all-Christmas on Christmas Eve day, or maybe the day before.
> When to start? Well...
>


I have used a variation of your idea successfully for a number of years.
The start date was generally the day after Thanksgiving..when 1 out of 4 songs
would be Christmas..the nest week, 2 out of 4; the following week, 3 out of 4;
then all-Christmas until Dec. 25, but then we'd kind of reverse the pattern by days rather than weeks, keeping some Christmas music on until about New Year's
Day.

Keep in mind, this was way before going all-Christmas became a "fad format."
Also, this was a Christian-format AC station at the time. <P ID="signature">______________
Proudly remembering the days of the hometown "country giant" radio stations now at
http://www.live365.com/stations/alanmccall</P>
 
> I have used a variation of your idea successfully for a number of years.
> The start date was generally the day after Thanksgiving..when 1 out of 4 songs
> would be Christmas..the nest week, 2 out of 4; the following week, 3 out of 4;
> then all-Christmas until Dec. 25, but then we'd kind of reverse the pattern by
> days rather than weeks, keeping some Christmas music on until about New Year's
> Day.

I thought this was S.O.P. until "All Christmas Music" Thanksgiving to Christmas came along.<P ID="signature">______________
"Radio on the Internet is yet another world-shrinking example of what communications analysts call 'death of distance.'" - Tim Jones

<a href="http://saltydog.5gigs.com">
The Salty Dog</a>
</P>
 
> Would this idea fly? Or not? What are your thoughts?

I am guessing that it would. This is what I grew up with. the local AC in my area would do this during most of the dayparts. For an hour ach weeknight and on weekend afternoons the station would play all Christmas music and would increase airplay as the Season progressed. A week before Christmas the station would play all Christmas music during the work day and 24/7 on the weekend before. Then of course wall-to-wall during Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Then once the clock struck midnight and the calandar switched to December 26th it would be all over. It is still the same way today and I resent that. I still want to hear the tunes through the Holiday season. Apparently radio stations would do this before I was born, playing Christmas Music through New Year's. But of ocurse those days have passed. Except if you have Music Choice on your digital cable which goes overboard and doesn't stop playing Christmas music until February 1st on "Sounds of The Season" (They start playing Christmas on November 1st) <P ID="signature">______________
In Harmony
From the Bop Shop,
Brian "BD Bopper"</P>
 
> > I have used a variation of your idea successfully for a
> number of years.
> > The start date was generally the day after
> Thanksgiving..when 1 out of 4 songs
> > would be Christmas..the nest week, 2 out of 4; the
> following week, 3 out of 4;
> > then all-Christmas until Dec. 25, but then we'd kind of
> reverse the pattern by
> > days rather than weeks, keeping some Christmas music on
> until about New Year's
> > Day.
>
> I thought this was S.O.P. until "All Christmas Music"
> Thanksgiving to Christmas came along.

It pretty much was, with some variations.

An AC I programmed from 1978 to 1981 used this method:
Beginning Monday after Thanksgiving: One Christmas song per hour, alternating hours (even hours on even days, odd hours on odd days)
As of December 1: One Christmas song per hour, every hour
December 8: Two Christmas songs per hour
December 15: Two Christmas songs per hour, adding a "non-hit" by a core artist every third or fourth play
December 22: Four Christmas songs per hour, "non-hits" remain 25-35% of plays
December 24-25: All Christmas songs, hits and non-hits in equal amounts plus one "religious" song per quarter-hour

KOST in Los Angeles (now well-known as the originator of the "All Christmas from Thanksgiving" approach) adopted much the same policy when they went AC in the mid-80s.<P ID="signature">______________


</P>
 
Would This Work?

I doubt it would work.

Part of the charm of the All-Christmas Music stations is that it's wall-to-wall. Their TSL goes up so much because people who are really into the holidays can (pardon my Ron Popeil-ism) set it and forget it. Half & half would feel empty to those who want it all.

What I would be interested in seeing is a station with a so-so signal going All- Christmas all year long! Split a bad simulcast of two rimshots and take one of them All-Christmas. It would have to be a situation where they'd have nothing to lose. We might be surprised.

>
> Could a station benefit from going 50% Christmas? In other
> words, every other song is a holiday song, while the rest is
> standard AC music. They could start this anytime in
> November or December.
>
> Here's my reasoning. Such a station still attracts the
> advertisers, because they're playing a heavy amount of
> Christmas music. Also, people who thrive on holiday music
> know that this is a good station to find it. However,
> people who don't want to be overloaded so early in the
> season aren't totally driven away because they're still
> playing songs off the regular playlist as well.
>
> Would this idea fly? Or not? What are your thoughts?
>
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.
Back
Top Bottom