I don't go to work... I go to war!
I
've heard many phrases epitomize the way
people view their jobs. None have had
an impact like the above nine words.
I'll attribute them to Promotions Director Jim Marchyshyn
and/or Program Director John Gorman who, in the early days
of FM, took WMMS Cleveland to the top of national recognition.
(One person recalls owner Milton Maltz said this to Jim & John.)
Conversation with a number of early staffers, including my
wife who worked there 15 years, never determined which of
them first spoke the words. But, as someone who competed with
with them for market share I'll attest, it was their battle cry.
It's now my Mantra. Has been for a long time... however, is it relevant today?
Now we fragment, split, divide - whatever you call it - a market's
listeners into neat groups of demographics. And, with today's
market usually comprised of two or three major groups each going
after their own little niche, we've quit trying to beat the other
guys. There's no incentive anymore.
We've become complacent because we know our target
demo really doesn't have anywhere else to turn.
Programming has become dull. Promotions have become routine
and non-relevant. (Even stations that do holiday ‘community
service' events like "Coats for Kids", "Shoes for Kids" and
"Feed a Family" do so with blatant self-promotion tones.) The desire to beat the other guy has diminished because,
in many cases, the other guy is us.
Our industry's competitive thrust has shifted from the
programming side to the sales side. The objective, get
the largest piece of local advertising dollars - to meet
projections, and those never ending demands from the
real string pullers to increase revenue. Their weapon
is a package covering the group's market reach.
It's a lot different from 20 years ago where the dominant
station was truly ‘dominant' in a market. In our yesterday,
we'd go after everyone who fit a very general category--
rock, country, easy listening, or news talk. And if you
dominated your core you'd go after fringe-listeners of
other formats. Sales didn't have to try too hard because
they had the only game in town.
Today's GSM has the responsibility of showing how their
stations cover an entire demographic spectrum, and why
the advertiser's dollars would be better spent buying
a multiple of their stations; because they are the
only game in town.
Back in the programming shed they simply take
instructions from corporate on what record to play,
which contest to run and what image voice to use.
There is no war anymore. Today the programming
side has been neatly sliced into segments that
cumulatively don't cross paths, but gather the
same general audience yesterday's dominant
stations used to deliver.
Station Group ‘A' delivers the females. Station Group ‘B'
delivers the men. And neither group tries to peel away
layers from the other because each has their own little niche.
Things have gotten boring.
Things need to be shaken up.
My mind settles on the scenario of a General sitting
in a foxhole, totally surrounded by enemy troops.
The lowly lieutenant asks "General, why are you smiling?"
He turns and says "because now I can attack in any direction."
I don't go to work. I go to war.
I just don't know who the enemy is anymore.
