MARTY FORBES
checks in from Arizona

Dateline: January 26, 2010 – Scottsdale Arizona.


            Marty Forbes and Rick Dees

I spent the day at Jerry del Colliano’s “Media Solutions Lab’ with some of the businesses brightest minds.   The head of CBS Radio news was there – Rick Dees – top Programmers – Music Producers – Owners, Managers, Program Directors – “fans.”

Edmontonian’s like HOT 107’s John Yerxa was there – long time media guy Keith KJ James too.

We were all there to discuss “Digital Media.”  I didn’t use the word ‘radio’ because convergence has changed everything and “media” now is all-inclusive.

Discussion during the morning session was brisk and ‘interactive.’  I have no intention of “retweeting” Mr. Colliano’s hard work (except for any Radiowise Inc. clients) – but thought I’d throw out a few highlight comments.

-Steve Jobs brilliant new Ipad was discussed, as was the Apple effect on media.  Interesting to note that Apple didn’t want a ‘radio’ in their early Ipods – nor did the general public ‘demand’ it be included.  

-It’s all about APP’s – there’s now 140,000 ‘apps’ available for IPhone/ITouch and ‘that’s only the beginning.’

-(on innovation) “The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago.  The next best time is now.”  Winners innovate during down times.  Winners view mistakes and ‘fix them.’

-the Advertising community is trying to find the fastest way to get to the consumer.  Radio is often getting by passed in this process.

-radio rates ‘will’ rise over the next few years; simply because we’ve been under charging for so long.

-we’re heading for a transmitter-less world;  lifeline (US) 5 to 10 years.

-the FCC (CRTC) can’t keep up ‘today’ – what’s tomorrow going to be like?

-2010 is the year of “mobile media.”  It’s here.  If your platform isn’t available on mobile media you’re going to have a tough time.  That’s where the consumer wants it.

-listener comment from focus group  “commercials are SO OUT.”  Clients (and stations) paying ‘way more’ attention to creative – and ‘lengths.’  US using more ‘live’ reads than ever before – more timely and sincere when properly written/presented.

-attention span is the new litmus test for this generation.  They don’t have time to waste.  We want what we want when we want it.

-content “on demand” is the template.

-sociology will be more important than technology.  (friends!)

-social networking is moving ‘beyond’ Facebook and Twitter.

-PPM is radio’s ‘bitch.’  We have all this information and don’t know what to do with it.  Operators are panicking and ‘blanding down’ their radio stations.  Getting rid of long time features/personalities is the biggest mistake you can possibly make.

-radio has ‘brands’ that are important to people – constantly changing your brand is a death knell.

-build for the next generation.  Think different.

-the fate of music and radio are linked together ‘forever.’

-hire and don’t fire.  People are ‘scared’ to work in a business that constantly is turfing people (entire staff’s) – Young broadcasters especially are avoiding our business.

-focus to know what the ‘customer’ wants.    PPM is the ‘book’ but ‘research’ is the answer.

The highlight for me was that this was a total focus ‘forward’ on a business that has survived for the past 50 years by being innovative and creative.  There is a view that ‘something has to be broken to get fixed’ and that there are many creative minds looking on how to get radio back to the illustrious image that it had for all those years.

It’s too easy to say what’s WRONG with radio.  It’s fun to think about what is RIGHT about the business and there are a ‘great number’ of people working on the next generation of “media.’

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I wonder if Dees colors his hair.

Excellent stuff Marty!
Sure hope that all the suits in Canadian radio buy into many of those ideas because at this point they've done mostly the complete opposite.