I found your November issue very useful, especially the interview with Peter Rosler. There are many books about advertising, but not many about HOW to advertise, and even fewer which describe ways and techniques in using advertising. Here is my personal "reading list" for you to pass on to your readers:
Guerrilla Marketing, and Guerrilla Marketing Attack by Jay Conrad Levinson: These books, especially the latter, describe best ways to use all the media, but Levinson's comments on radio are a must read for copywriters. He firmly believes in radio, but does not recommend letting a station write or produce an advertisers commercial. Read on in Guerrilla Marketing as to why, and what your station can do to "disprove" Levinson. Guerrilla Marketing Attack is a great follow up book and has a terrific list of marketing myths. These should be shown to every salesperson or copywriter who lets an advertiser either write his own copy or twist and warp a good piece of copy into an unintelligible mess.
Three "must reads" are Positioning, Marketing Attack, and Bottom-Up Marketing, all by Al Reis and Jack Trout. These books are indispensable with helping define how a product should position itself in the marketplace and against its competitors.
I would like to see continued exchange of information through Radio And Production. Copywriting is such a gray area of knowledge. There is no one right way, and even if you create a spot that you think will move tons of product off the shelves, it may not suit the advertiser's personal taste.
Also, if you could pass on or publish the following in regard to Peter Rosler's interview:
About his phone number comments: Referring consumers to "look in the yellow pages" for a client's phone number could be worse than anything. The Yellow Pages is where every single one of his competitors resides. It's much better to tell them to look in the White Pages or tell them to call information. This way, competing businesses don't gain anything through your client's advertising.
Keep up the good work. I'm looking forward to the Radio And Production Awards!
Michael Hershey
WGMG-FM, Athens, GA
Michael,
Thanks for the reading list! Regarding continued information exchange about copywriting, we plan to more evenly distribute information about copywriting, voice work, and the technical aspects of production throughout the year. Thanks also for the comment on the Rosler interview. You make a valid point! We're also looking forward to your entry to the First Annual Radio And Production Awards!
I mentioned a Question and Answer column; well, here's my biggest question: How does one get a "killer" mike sound? I've got a Neumann U87 and I'm experimenting with different kinds of processors, but I've heard guys with lower-dollar equipment get a nice, crisp, booming, loud, clean mike sound. That sound has eluded me so far.
Could you give me any tips for creating a "killer mike chain?" Or maybe even put together two or three "models" (on paper, of course) in different price ranges? This is my biggest frustration, and it has followed me for years. Is it my ears? My equipment? Or something else?
Dan Popp
Colors Audio, Akron, OH
Dear Dan,
What you call a "killer" mike sound may not be what the next person would call "killer." He may call it distorted, or muddy, or too bassy. Subjectivity aside, my personal preference is the very mike you're using plugged into the Orban 787A mike processor or the Symetrix 528. However, I really think you'd get better input from some of the guys who are out there making "killer" bucks in the voice business. Soooooo, how about it, all of you in our Sweeper/ID Services listing? Whatever you're doing is working for you. Take a minute to jot down your "killer mike chain" and send it in. Rick? Brian? Joe? Mitch? M.J.? Randy? And the rest of you? What's are the links in your chains?
A question regarding the upcoming Radio And Production Awards: I would like to submit a series of three teasers (produced for an Australian tour) under the one entry. Is this possible?
Jeff Thomas
Triple M/FM105, Sydney, Australia
Dear Jeff,
We can't see any reason why not. We will allow a series of teaser promos to be entered as one entry as long as the entry meets the following criteria: 1) The teaser promos must all be for the same promotion. 2) The teasers should be recorded one right after the other without leader tape or "dead space" between them, or you may insert a short tone (less than one second) between promos to indicate the end of one and the beginning of the next. 3) You may include as many teaser promos in the entry as you wish, however, the total length of the entry cannot exceed sixty seconds. 4) To avoid any confusion, be sure to label your entry "Teaser promos for..." and check the "Promo" category on the entry form.
As always, if there are any questions regarding the upcoming awards competition, feel free to ask. Call with questions at (214) 254-1100. Fax us at (214) 259-1912, or write to us at the address on the back page. As this competition unfolds, we also want your input. Any suggestions you have that will improve the competition are more than welcome.
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