Real-life Radio Advertising Adventures

Tempus Fugit. Indeed.

I opened this blog back in 2005, thinking it would be a neat thing to share personal stories, experiences, musings, and lessons I've learned over the many years I've worked in radio advertising.

Setting up a blog took less than a minute. Finding the time to do something with it has taken considerably longer.

That time has come.

2009 promises to be a challenging and eventful year for all of us in the radio ad business. Some broadcasters fear that the radio medium is becoming irrelevant in the digital age. Others, particularly in the small and medium markets, are thriving and optimistic. I prefer to throw in my lot with the latter group, believing (with a grateful nod to Mark Twain) that the reports of Radio's death are greatly exaggerated.

Just ask Randy Miller in Illinois, whose stations continue to serve listeners and advertisers and grow each year. His approach to selling in a recession: "Ask for BIGGER DOLLARS and long-term business...[give] the client enough frequency to MAKE IT WORK." (Small Market Radio Newsletter, January 22, 2009)

Or Wisconsin's innovative dynamo Roger Utnehmer, who early on recognized the potential of the Internet and made the investment necessary to harness it. His four local stations and companion website, Door County Daily News, now daily reap the benefits of their profitable synergism. Visit his online "newspaper" to see how he does it.

Then there's Jerry Papenfuss in Minnesota, whose Fergus Falls stations helped raise $55,000 to send their high school marching band to Washington, D.C. to march in the inauguration parade. Band members filed reports on their trip, aired by the stations for the folks back home. Think they left any sponsorships unsold?

I spent five-and-a-half wonderful years selling radio advertising at Jerry's stations in Winona. When I started working for him in 1974, he was the relatively new owner of an AM/FM combo. Today he and his wife Pat own and operate all 5 stations in Winona, along with combos in Fergus Falls and Blue Earth, and he's as committed as ever to making a difference in the communities he serves.

Broadcasters like Randy, Roger, and Jerry are the salt-of-the-earth of the Radio industry, and part of the backbone of the markets they serve. You're not likely to read about them in Radio Ink's "40 Most Powerful People in Radio" issue. Where you're more likely to find them is at their City Council meetings, serving on Chamber of Commerce committees, volunteering their time and effort in myriad community organizations. They're not looking for "power," only for ways to serve, to make a difference in the lives of their neighbors and fellow citizens.

That is why they - and broadcasters like them in communities across the land - will continue to thrive and succeed. In any economy.

This month, I enter my 37th year in the radio advertising business. As I reflect on things I've learned along the way, I'm going to take some time to write about them.

If you're a radio advertising salesperson, manager, copywriter, producer, or advertiser, I hope you'll find a few useful ideas in these posts. Thanks for stopping by!