THE GRASS ISN’T GREENER – IT’S RED, WHITE, AND BLUE A ByrnesMedia Guest Article Steve Jones It is simple human nature to wonder what it is like on the other side of the fence. Is the grass really greener over there? Early in your career you wonder what life is like in a major market, and when you reach that point you realize that great radio is great radio no matter what market size. Later you wonder what life is like across the street at your competitors. And when you eventually merge with them and work there you realize that although there are differences, great radio is great radio on either side of the street. And many of us have wondered what working in radio would be like in a huge American market, and I can tell you that the same truth applies: great radio is great radio on either side of the border.
Last July, after 20+ years in radio in Canada (the past five as NewCap Radio’s VP/Programming), I was fortunate enough to be given an opportunity to take on the challenge of programming WMKK-FM, a new Boston station in the burgeoning Adult Hits format owned by Entercom. Since landing at Logan Airport on July 14, life has been a whirlwind of personal and professional adjustments that have taught me many valuable lessons.
The biggest lesson is simple: Great radio IS great radio, in Bobcaygeon or Boston… in Newfoundland or New York. But there are some pronounced differences between the way the radio industries operate in each country. These differences between the Canadian and American radio industries boil down to a few key elements, most of them based on the simple fact that this country has ten times the population of Canada.
The Stakes Are Higher. Here in Boston almost $1 million a day is spent on radio advertising. In fact, the radio advertising money spent annually in Los Angeles alone exceeds the amount of money spent nationally in all of Canada. Those high stakes make one major market radio station’s success incredibly valuable, and makes even the slightest failure extremely costly. Because of the multiples of dollars involved, decision making becomes a different process. High performing stations need to fiercely protect every share point, since losing any ground can cost millions of dollars in lost revenue. Meanwhile, under-performing stations are more likely to take bigger risks, change formats faster, and have less patience with something that isn’t working. For an under-performing station, gaining even small ground has incredible financial upside. And when a promising new format like Adult Hits (Jack, Bob, Mike, etc) comes along, under-performing stations are generally the first to jump on the opportunity and seize the day.
The Clusters Are Bigger. Companies can own far more radio stations in any one market than they can in Canada. So while a big cluster in Canada would be two FM and two AM stations, a large cluster in the US could include six FM stations! The ownership regulations, being much less strict than Canada, afford companies the chance to strategically program stations in their cluster against other companies. With that many signals there is room to use one as a “spoiler” designed only to take audience away from a competitor. There are also opportunities to nurture less traditional formats like Smooth Jazz and Triple-A in an environment where the rest of the cluster can support the new format until it matures and starts to generate revenue.
Every Frequency Gets Used. In Boston there are 37 “rated” stations in the Arbitron book. That doesn’t count the many others that don’t penetrate the market enough to generate ratings. But sitting in my driveway at home I can pick up 35 FM stations alone. Almost every available frequency is used, and as a result the chances of listeners just accidentally stumbling upon your station are that much less. When someone hits “scan” it could be a long time before they make it back to your frequency! The other challenge this crowded marketplace creates is the need to market heavily to promote your product. In a market with limited radio choices a new station or a change in format is instantly noticed by the audience. When there are dozens of choices, getting noticed becomes that much more difficult.
Syndication Is Everywhere. Major syndicated programs have never really taken off in Canada for a number of reasons. But in the US, the biggest radio stars are often out-of-market personalities like Rush Limbaugh, Mancow, Sean Hannity, Bob & Tom, and until recently Howard Stern. Each geographic area also has their own regionally syndicated programs that appeal to the sensibilities of that area. Some stations run entirely on syndicated programming such as many of the ESPN Radio stations, Air America affiliates, and Disney Radio network stations. Entire formats are distributed pre-packaged, so overnight a station can flip to the ABC-syndicated “Jack” format and have no local talent whatsoever. There is packaged 24/7 syndication available in every imaginable format.
Minority-Appeal Radio Stations Generate Ratings and Revenue! Although there are many different ethnic groups in every US city, the sheer number of Black and Hispanic listeners has created tremendous opportunities for broadcasters. In many cities the top rated station is Spanish-speaking, and many markets have several Hispanic stations playing a variety of formats from News/Talk, Reggaeton, Traditional Mexican, Spanish Ballads, and Mexican Oldies. And most of these are anything but niche formats! Many are very successful radio stations generating tremendous revenue. Although there are some great multi-cultural radio stations in Canada, they have yet to find the degree of success achieved in the U.S. major markets.
Most of these differences are simply the result of the larger population, Wall Street influence, and relaxed ownership regulations, and not the result of any great cultural difference (although the argument could be made that government regulations are a great cultural difference).
Overall, for a wide variety of reasons, radio in Canada is more consistent in terms of quality as you listen from market to market. While the major markets in both countries generally attract the best talent, the medium and smaller markets in Canada offer a more consistently local and topical presence than stations in similarly sized markets in the US. So much of the medium and smaller market radio in the US is syndicated, voice-tracked, and pre-packaged that in many areas there is a distinct lack of local flavor. This type of nationally syndicated programming has yet to find the same foothold in Canada, and the result is smaller market radio that generally does a better job of reflecting the local community. On the other hand, the major US markets offer such huge financial rewards that they attract a level of talent that is hard to come by in many Canadian markets.
Yet there are more similarities than differences between the two industries. Both are comprised of many genuinely talented and creative people who thrive on entertaining audiences and having fun. Both are fighting the same battle against satellite and new technology, and winning. Both are entering a period of immense change with in-car wi-fi, HD radio, the arrival of the people meter and both industries are poised to tackle the future challenges. Personally, experiencing radio on both sides of the border has been an enriching experience, and has only increased my level of respect for broadcasters on both sides of the 49th parallel. |