October 2003 RAP
October 2003 Highlights
Feature: Hmmmm... Interesting (What about that USP?)
By John Pellegrini
Fooling around in Agency land for the last couple of years has given me
the opportunity to observe techniques and ideas that desperately need to be
implemented in radio. And one of those ideas is the fact that it is now time
to throw out USP... the Unique Selling Proposition. Get rid of it entirely.
Interview: Mike Carta - Super Sweepers, Knoxville,
Tennessee
By Jerry Vigil
Mike Carta is one of radios veteran voice talents. He's currently the
imaging voice on over 50 radio stations and is heard to some degree on
nearly 400 radio stations. He also does all the major NASCAR race promos,
bumpers and intros for The Motor Racing Network (780 affiliates strong), and
does the narrations for XM Satellites NASCAR Classics Races. You'll also
hear Mike on the intros and most of the promos for all the major Winston Cup
and Busch Series tracks. Its the classic story of a hot voice talent making
the jump from radio into a successful voice-over/production business. In
this months RAP Interview, Mike tells us how he made the transition and
offers some great advice to anyone wanting to follow in his footsteps. Be
sure to check out Mikes demo on this months RAP CD.
Radio Hed: Character Development
By Jeffrey Hedquist
Are you different now than you were last year, last month, yesterday, a
few minutes ago? Were all changing. So should the characters in your radio
commercials. As difficult as it may seem, you want your audience to be
interested in those characters.
Test Drive: Spectron - DX Multi-Effects Plug-In from
iZotope
By Craig Jackman
You probably know iZotope from their freeware plug-in Vinyl which
emulates turntable noise, which may be the cleverest bit of software I've
ever seen. You may know them from Ozone (see RAP January 2002), which is a
really nice complete mastering plug-in. Ozone is a bit of a resource hog,
but on a powerful enough processor it does exactly what they say its
supposed to. If you follow what this clever little company from Boston does
on a regular basis, you may know them from their two newest plug-ins: Trash,
which does distortion and amp modeling, or the focus of this review,
Spectron.
Q It Up: The RAP Network Speaks - What's the first thing
you tell an intern who wants to do what you do?
Q It Up: You just acquired an intern who says, "I want
to do what you do." What is the first thing you tell them about being a
Production Director, Creative Services Director, Imaging Director, and/or
Commercial Production Director? Then what is the second thing you tell them?
Production 212: Out of Context
By Dave Foxx
One of the biggest flaws I hear in production everywhere is a producer
twisting things around just to get a funny drop in the promo. The problem
is, it turns the whole production around the wrong thing. Every promo has a
Unique Selling Proposition (USP), which is the point of the piece that sets
your station apart from the others. Every element in the piece should point
to that ONE thing that gives your station value.
Feature: Forget the Warm Fuzzies - When Institutional
Equals Ineffective
By Blaine Parker
Randy's new to radio, but not to business. He's a veteran of the trenches
and hand-to-hand sales combat. Because of his background, Randy thinks a lot
like his clients. This can be good. But it also means Randy is easily
infected by an enthusiastic clients Creative Idea -- even if its bankrupt.
Feature: There's a Spec of Contribution in Your Future
By Albert Berkshire
I'm a firm believer that the top performers in a radio station are also
the top producers. I see this time and time again with salespeople who bring
in the big contracts. And the best ones really do work hard. They bring
clients to the table, ideas to the creative team and contracts to the GMs
office. They are the "top" because they accept and expect only the best from
their team. And they offer only the best to their clients. When these top
reps come to us for a SPEC, they're serious. They really feel the need to
have that extra "closer" when they meet with a perspective client. And in my
experience, the top reps rarely ask for specs. They usually don't need them.
Feature: The On-Air Campaign for Audience and Store
Traffic
By Jeff Ogden
Can we ever forget how important the production department is to the
entire array of weapons radio has in the fight to create audience that turns
into store traffic? Remember production is not only a sales tool but a
programming tool as well. The better the production, the longer the
listening, and that converts to a greater AQH. I've never heard of audience
turning off a station because the commercials were really funny and creative
or cool. I have never heard a client say, "I wont buy your station because
your production is too creative." Its a real battle out there to keep
clients businesses packed with shoppers and your stations packed with
listeners.
...And Make It Real Creative:
By Trent Rentsch
This is how the cookie will crumble. You talk the client out of a jingle
simply by mentioning the cost, "Oh no, we cant afford THAT kind of coin
right now!" You do offer to put something together, but stress that this is
really last minute. "Hey, I trust you! The sales guy says you're the best!"
An hour later the rep pops his head into your studio. "Not done yet? Man, he
really wanted to hear his spot today!" Not much later, the phone will ring.
It will be your General Manager. "Buttwater just told me that he's been
waiting around all day to play a commercial for his client what's the
status?" Somehow, you manage to pull together something halfway decent and
leave the commercial on the clients voicemail. Then, you wait.
The Monday Morning Memo: When Good Ads Fail
By Roy W. Williams
One of the greatest myths in marketing is the belief that advertising, by
itself, is able to drive steady traffic into a business. This perception is
supremely evident when a businessperson looks at an ad professional and
says, "My only problem is traffic. If I had more traffic Id sell more
customers. Traffic is your department. Bring me customers. Now." What makes
good ads fail?
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