These are the Trademarks of Successful Stations:

A well-rated station is built on a sturdy foundation of basics.  It begins with the 3 Ms – Music, Mornings, and Marketing (both internal and external marketing). These elements should be very evident when programming the station:

  1. The station plays the best-researched music for the target audience.
  1. The morning show is the best and biggest in the market. It’s the talk of the town.
  1. Marketing is innovative and constant. The station promotes aggressively.
  1. The station and talents are everywhere the listeners are. Visibility results in maximum awareness.  At-work listening is constantly promoted.
  1. Talent basics are flawlessly delivered; the station format is consistent regardless of the talent.
  1. The station name and programming benefits are not kept a secret! They are delivered frequently live and in imaging.
  1. Talents produce a positive level of enthusiasm. This is a “feel good” station!
  1. The station is the market’s Time Spent Listening winner. Talents consistently promote ahead, resulting in flow, and the website gets constant hits and long-time-spent-viewing!
  1. The major contest is promoted at least twice an hour, with constantly updated promos, liners, and screaming winners! Contesting occurs on the station’s website and social media, too.
  1. The station sounds like a winner. Great production, talent, execution, marketing, music, and strong program direction guide the station to the top.

Good ratings depend on great programming, strong station-name recall, and other “Radio Basics” that promote audience health. Consider these elements:

+   Constantly reinforce the station’s brand name; say the name 30-40 times an hour and sell the name with enthusiasm.

+   Brand every feature, attribute, and programming service with the station name.

+   Say the station name with great frequency and energy, like your life depends on it (it does!).  Your station name should include call letters for AMs and heritage FMs and the dial position for FMs.

+   Aggressively market the station & listener benefits on-air (this is internal marketing) to extend TSL and listening occasions.

+   Promote ahead often.  Practice the science of “Tease and Please.”  Always deliver a benefit-oriented promote-ahead just before a stopset to build expectancy and retain listeners.

+   Get more listening occasions.  Nielsen says the average TSL with PPM is just 10 minutes per occasion; push it to 11½ minutes for a 15% rating increase!

+   For diary markets, the average listener hears the station 75 minutes daily.  Divide by five tune-ins, and that’s fifteen minutes per listening occasion.  Get a few more minutes per occasion, or one more occasion, to grow ratings.

+   Have a great website and Facebook presence; each talent should use their show prep to provide one or two new stories daily for the website and Facebook.

+   All talents – full-time, part-time, and voice trackers – follow the station’s Programming Stylebook rules regarding show execution.

Pic designed by Freepik.com.

John Lund is President of the Lund Media Group, a radio programming consulting firm with specialists in all mainstream radio formats. Did you find this article useful?  You can leave a comment below or email John at John@Lundradio.com.