In a recent series of posts, we’ve talked about the concerning radio problem centering on lost youth – specifically, the notion that the medium has lost a generation of listeners over the past decade or so.

Some might argue that we’re actually talking about two generations that are simply not as engaged with radio as their parents.  Gen Y – or Millennials – is a case in point.  Here’s their Media Usage Pyramid from Techsurvey9.   A look at the black bar below indicates that 86% of these twenty and thirtysomethings listen to radio an hour a day or more.  That’s below the study average of 89%.

And this pattern intensifies when we examine Gen Z – those 20 and younger.  Only 78% of them listen to broadcast radio for that one hour minimum a day.

This may not be an issue for radio today – or even a year or two from now – but the assumption that they’ll be back someday is not a logical one.  Habits, patterns, desires, and tastes are formed when we’re young.  The less that new generations of consumers experience radio, the less they’ll be connected to the medium as they mature.

The auto companies know this only too well and radio would be smart to watch their moves carefully.  A recent eMarketer report outlines the problem – 18-34 year-olds are simply not buying new vehicles like they used to.  In just the last decade, the industry has experienced precipitous drops in new car registrations:

If this looks similar to ratings trends you’ve seen, the challenges facing both the automobile and radio industries when it comes to Millennials ought to be obvious.

And it’s not just the automotive sector.  A recently released generation study commissioned for MTV has renewed their energy for digging back in and reconnecting with 12-34 year-olds.  Unlike other entertainment brands, MTV cannot rely on aging with its audience.  In fact, the president of MTV, Stephen Friedman, notes in a recent New York Times article, “Candidly, we were hanging onto Gen Xers a little too long.”

At Netflix, a new initiative is geared directly at kids (and, of course, their parents).  They recently announced a partnership with DreamWorks to create 300 hours of original programming that Netflix can stream to kids all over the planet.   As we saw in Techsurvey9, Generation Z is a savvy, smart forward-leaning audience that can pay residuals well down the road – if they get into the habit while they’re young.

So for the automakers – and radio – what’s the answer?

The OEMs are researching the problem and attacking it both strategically and tactically.  eMarketer talks about a Ford partnership with Zipcar on select college campuses, along with social media initiatives designed to engage students.  Digital campaigns via mobile and social are considered the gateways to connecting with Generation Y.  And for the OEMs, the good news is that these young consumers are visiting their websites, according to Nielsen data:

And we see this in our Techsurvey, too.  While Generations Y and Z may not be consuming as much radio, they are connecting with stations in a myriad of different ways.  The notion that broadcasters are getting more “digital traffic” from them than their older brothers and parents is encouraging.

But it boils down to what happens when they arrive at these digital portals – the experience, the content, the value.  And that’s where broadcasters need to make a concerted effort to commit and appeal to younger listeners:

Generation Y (gold) is more likely to connect with stations via their websites, Facebook, and mobile.  And a look at the next generation – Gen Z (light blue) – an even stronger propensity to connect digitally on all these portals that barely existed five or ten years ago.

So even if radio hasn’t built it yet, they’re coming.  What happens when they get there may tell an important story about radio’s future.

Generation Next or Generation Lost?

Why Gen Y?

Ask any major brand manager and they’ll be more than happy to tell you.

What makes this disaster “news” is that it keeps happening.  Again and again.

In case you missed it, this morning team decided it would be funny to mock former NFL player Steve Gleason, who is battling ALS – or Lou Gehrig’s disease (pictured).  And somehow, no one associated with the show apparently waved a red flag in advance of it going on the air.

Now we’ve all been there – a morning show, DJ, or talk host goes off, does something embarrassing – and management is left to clean up the mess, apologize, or give out the old wink and a slap on the wrist.  And because so many stations push talent to be more outrageous, crossing the line is always a possibility that many PDs and managers accept and face.

But in the case of this latest incident, you have to wonder why radio programmers cannot get out in front of these problems before they go nuclear.  In this case, you have a former NFL player (and his family) that have been terribly offended, the New Orleans community (where he played) up in arms, a station in turmoil, and a morning show suddenly out of work.

And beyond that, another black mark on an industry that has become too famous for tasteless, moronic, offensive humor.  That’s the part that you don’t see – the pervasive agency and advertiser perceptions that quietly become stronger and corrosive to an industry that is already struggling to make its case.

If you think I’m exaggerating, consider the front page of ESPN’s website yesterday:

Clearly, busy programmers in charge of multiple brands are going to be challenged to stay plugged into the everyday antics of their personality shows.  But by now, there have been enough of these disasters that everyone’s radar ought to be working harder and smarter.

Every controversial team in America should be forced to listen to, review and discuss this newest incident.  While the lines are often gray or even blurry, there are certain situations that are fundamentally clear.  Humor may always come at someone else’s expense, but there’s nothing funny about this stuff.  Shows and personalities should be sensitized to where the boundaries are so they can – at worst – ask permission.

This has to stop – for the good of the victims and for the continued health of the radio business.

It impacts all of us, because while managers and programmers outside of Atlanta may have shaken their heads when they read the Mayhem story, many of them also reluctantly acknowledged that on another morning in another year, the same fate might befall them, too.  Especially if they aren’t proactively getting out in front of these train wrecks before they happen.

These accidents are preventable.   And every successive one erodes radio’s reputation and does great harm to many people.

A primary focus of being a program director is to manage talent.

So start managing them.

Now if we were a bunch of Kentucky Fried Chicken franchises, we’d be in trouble.  But because we’re radio stations – brands that consumers still are passionate about – we have alternatives, and pretty good ones.

That is, if we decide to use them.

Just like professional sports teams and rock bands, radio fans are always looking for more.  Other entertainment sectors have mined the behind-the-scenes opportunity, but radio has been slow to respond accordingly.  After going to baseball games for years or attending rock concerts, the experience gets to be mundane after awhile.  The same is true for radio.

That’s unless the brand uses its resources strategically and innovatively to provide added value to fans.  Entertainment consultant Michael Brandvold – who has spoken at several Jacobs Media Summer Schools at the Conclave – knows this formula well through his work with KISS.  Their wildly successful VIP ticket program speaks volumes about how to give fans a backstage, special experience (and benefit from it):

Most good radio stations have the potential to put together their own versions of “backstage” packages.  Note that most of the assets offered by KISS in this bundle are related to activities the band is doing anyway.  Aside from the Meet & Greet, most of these items are basic merchandizing and branding tools that cost KISS very little, but provide an invaluable experience for their fans.

Radio stations have their own unique ability to take fans behind the velvet ropes to provide unique experiences that are memorable and that will be shared socially.  Consider making it possible for listeners to:

• Become a member of the programming team for a music meeting
• Sit in on a key personality’s show (or in the case of a big morning show), set up several seats similar to the old Alex Bennett Show back on Live 105
• Attend a key concert, sporting event with a station personality
• A studio/station tour (again, more merchandizing)
• Work as a Guest DJ on a Sunday night and select one hour of music
• Be chosen as an uber fan to ask a favorite music star questions in a featured interview

It comes down to providing unique fan experiences – something that consumers cannot get from their iPods or iTunes Radio (yet).

Most radio stations have local yank, personalities, and other resources that many simply take for granted or overlook completely.  I see this every time I conduct Listener Advisory Board groups in the station conference room.  At the conclusion, attendees get jazzed for the station tour, love seeing the air studio, and stare at the gold and platinum records on the wall.

In the same way we discussed how stations would do well to rethink their strategies about attracting  young recruits to the radio workforce, companies and local brands would be similarly wise to evaluate the fan experience.

Every major brand – especially new media outlets – pours resources into the UX, working hard to build memorable and smooth interfaces with consumers.  Many radio stations have banked considerable brand equity points, but the need now is to rethink the givens and find ways to reignite the fan experience.

The pure-plays would kill for what radio has.

Use it before you lose it.

Specifically, the issue of control.

Who controls the music you hear?  Who selects it?  Who filters it?  And how can the music experience get better at a time when it’s great to be a consumer?

All arrows point to the customer being in the driver’s seat – literally – if you attend automotive/telematics conferences – and by all reports, she’s enjoying the ride.

From Pandora to Spotify to iTunes Radio, it’s about creating playlists or songs that are selected by theme (artist, song characteristic, mood) to create a unique music experience.  (Remember when “playlist” was a negative word we would never use to refer to our music libraries?)

But at the core of it all is consumer control.

As we have discussed in this blog in recent weeks, radio may own the transmitters and towers, but anyone can now create their own radio station  – on their phone, their tablet, or laptop.  And they can do so from an infinite reservoir of songs, genres, albums, and performances.

So what does radio bring to the table?  And who is really in control?

That’s why the new announcement about controlling music adds by Cumulus sets up an interesting contrast to the direction in which the rest of the music consumption train is moving.  Last week, a number of industry trades reported that “adds” for Top 40, Rhythmic, and Hot AC stations owned by Cumulus would now have to be approved by Atlanta, another indication of corporate consolidated control.

To the consumer it may not matter who says thumbs up or thumbs down on music decisions.  But another impact of these moves is that it contributes to making radio sound and feel less local, more formulaic, and less reflective of the communities and towns it serves.  When radio starts sounding top down, it cedes one of its key attributes.  It may be easier to control hundreds or even thousands of stations from a central headquarters, but what is lost in the process?

Whether it’s rampant syndication of personalities, entire formats voicetracked nationally, or music adds coming down from corporate headquarters, the radio industry is making a statement about control.  It is suggesting that some companies place a higher priority on consistency and efficiency than on service and reflecting the local ethos.

And at times, it’s reminds me of the opening of Outer Limits, the ultimate statement about who’s got the power and who is on the receiving end:

>EMAIL RECIPIENTS: CLICK HERE TO WATCH OUTER LIMITS INTRO VIDEO<

It somehow seems counter intuitive to the growing trend that as consumers gain more control over the music they listen to and love, radio continues to move in the opposite direction, attempting to control the entire music experience.  By removing the things about local radio that make it different and connected to local communities, a unique attribute of radio is lost, brand loyalty erodes, and consumers will simply stop caring.

I don’t know about you, but in the past decade, I’ve seen fewer station bumperstickers and logoware wherever I go.  People are less willing to display their favorite stations on their cars or their bodies.  I realize this is anecdotal and non-quantitative, but it matters.  Radio stations used to be reflections of who we are and what we liked.  Homogenizing them only serves to neutralize and corrode brand equity and fan interest.

We have discussed the issue that the proliferation of all these streaming music services may only end up confusing consumers by creating a decision stress situation.  iTunes Radio shouldn’t scare us.  Losing our sense of purpose as radio stations should.

How does the consumer know which pure play service is right when there are so many?  And doesn’t a true alternative to all these pure plays – broadcast radio – stand a strong chance of thriving in this environment?

Earlier in the year, I interviewed Walter Naeslund, the head of Swedish ad agency Honesty.  We talked about radio’s place in the new digital ecosphere, and he put it this way:

“The era where limited frequency space provided barriers of entry is coming to an end. Make the most of the time you have left to build really strong brands and addictive content and you’ll have a better chance of bringing your listeners with you into the open infrastructure era where content and brand will be your only assets.”

Control – who has it and who’s losing it?

Consider that this past week there were more “breaking news” stories coming out of the radio industry trades than on CNN.  (And it appears that the radio coverage was more accurate, too.)

Here are just a few of the stories that everyone was talking about this week:

• Apple announced iTunes Radio
• MySpace has relaunched (again) and one of their offerings is MyRadio – yes, customized stations that you create and share with your friends.
• Pandora bought a terrestrial radio station in South Dakota.
• Fleetwood Mac cut a deal with Clear Channel marking the first time that a band has entered into an economic revenue sharing arrangement with a broadcasting company.
• Hubbard Broadcasting’s Chicago team spoke out about how their stream simulcast “same line Arbitron reporting” has led to higher ratings across the board.
• Greater Media’s Peter Smyth advised the industry to “stop the screaming and keep on streaming” in his newest think piece.
• In honor of Smyth’s directive, WRIF’s Screamin’ Scott changed his name to “Streamin’ Scott,” which has already earned him an uptick in the ratings.

OK, I made the last one up.  But that’s a lot of big radio news for just one week.

So what do we make of all this change?

The media industry’s rulebook is looking more tattered than ever, and there’s a growing air of proactivity.  More and more, brands are taking their futures into their own hands, forming partnerships, cutting deals, and redefining their roles in the new media space.

All this became clear to me after reading a Wall Street Journal article about Kid Rock.  His goal is to change the business model of concerts.  He’s lowered the price of tickets to this summer’s tour down to $20 by striking a deal with Live Nation.  To pull this off, he’s taking on more of the risk himself.  T-shirt and beer prices have been lowered as well.  It’s the “$20 Best Night Ever Tour” and you have to believe that’s a positive branding step.

And here’s where it gets even more interesting – Kid Rock continues to act in the best interests of his P1s by reserving the first two rows of every concert for random fan upgrades.

As an act touring without a hit record, he realizes that conditions have changed, and he needs to think differently.  Now more than ever, it’s about the fan:

“The best thing I can do is get people in the building and make some fans for the long haul.”

So as the media industry battles for share and attention, here’s a rock star on a mission to rebuild his brand and his base.  Kid Rock’s new endeavor provides some great examples for radio brands.  For example:

1. Make it about the fan.  And you’ll laugh all the way to the bank.
2. Be different and stand out.  While everyone else is charging too much and playing to half-full sheds, Kid Rock is making news and playing to packed houses.
3. Create partnerships – even with the enemy.  Kid Rock may detest Ticketmaster and it may have taken two years of discussions with Live Nation to put the deal together, but the results are powerful and speak for themselves.
4. Respect your brand’s place on the curve.  He readily admits his career trajectory is considerably different than it was back in the ‘90s and he’s adjusting for that.  Like a pitcher who’s lost something off his fast ball, Kid Rock is getting savvier as he gets older.
5. Feed your fans’ passions.  As he notes, “My fans drink tons of beer.”  By keeping prices low on lager, the tour serves its fans well, and they’ll sell a lot of beer.
6. Collaborate with others.  Kid Rock is offering to share his new business model with anyone other concerts because the goal is to change the business.  Everyone benefits from a stronger concert environment.
7. Adapt to the “new normal.”  Noting that salaries and ticket prices were getting out of hand, Kid’s meets reality head on.  Rather than fighting it and pining for the good old days, he’s embracing new models.
8. Innovate.  You don’t change the game and make news by doing the same events in the same way year after year.  Like radio stations that continue to present promotions the exact same way, fan fatigue sets in.

So when you look back at last week, there’s a lot of learning from these many news stories, from Pandora to Peter Smyth to Kid Rock.

And we can all look forward to another rockin’ week in media starting on Monday.

Have a restful weekend.

In radio, the talk for the past few weeks (few years?) has been about layoffs in highly visible radio companies.

And while cutbacks are still only rumored, smaller employee counts have become the norm in radio.  And it continues to be a part of radio management and corporate conversations.  So while broadcasters pare their payrolls and health care obligations by cutting staff, the competition is moving in a very different direction.

And as radio continues to struggle to understand why youth matters when it comes to creating stations that are relevant to teens, the bigger challenge has to do with attracting America’s youth for broadcasting jobs.

Here’s Pandora’s point of view, and it sends a message to young people about their culture, their workplace, and their vision of the future.  These are issues that radio is facing right now today – not down the road, not tomorrow, not in 2018.

>EMAIL RECIPIENTS: CLICK HERE TO WATCH PANDORA VIDEO<

It’s three minutes of vision, passion, the customer experience, and their statement on where “radio” is going.   And it speaks the language of Gen Y – Millennials – what they want from their careers and at-work environment.  Pandora has done their homework – the video is loaded with buzzwords and messaging that are cleverly crafted to attract enthusiastic, motivated, and creative young people.

The experience is much different when you visit most broadcast company websites when searching for jobs and careers.

You’re 24, smart, fresh out of school.  Where do you want to work?

Radio can do better, and will need to do so in order to remain a competitive workforce environment in the coming years.   We’ve been through a similar process at jacAPPS as our mostly Gen Y employees require a different at-work experience.  We have modified our thinking and approach in order to better address a changing world.  Later this year, we’re moving to a different office space that will reflect the changing nature of younger workers and their needs.

Many broadcast clusters offer fun, interesting workplaces – the chance to connect with communities and the people who live right there in everyone’s hometown.  Broadcasters all have vision statements about service, content, and sales, but it’s sure hard to find much of that on search engines and company websites – the places where young people go to research job opportunities.

We’ve talked a lot about why radio brands haven’t gotten the memo about video.  And the same can be asked of radio’s biggest and best companies.  Prospective employees react to visuals.  They want prospective employers to paint a picture – to show what success looks like in their chosen field.  A well-crafted video that shows real employees enjoying their broadcasting jobs, serving communities, and connecting with consumers isn’t as difficult or expensive as writing, directing, and shooting the next Superman movie.

When I got into radio decades ago, this was one tough business to break into – especially in the Top 30 markets.  Back then, broadcasters could be rest assured that there was a constant line around the building consisting of people dying to work for their stations.  Today, too many are still operating with these same suppositions about personnel supply and demand.   That ship has sailed.

Turning this around will take more than just messaging and perception.  But both go a long way toward attracting great talent to the business.  Every major company in radio is more than capable of doing the necessary research, building a great strategy, and a compelling story, and then producing the media to effectively convey and market it.

It’s a different world.  There’s not an endless supply of great people who want to work here.

Radio needs to step up its game.

Everyone’s trying to recast, redefine, and reinvent radio – except most radio broadcasters.

Pandora’s response to Apple’s new baby sounded a lot like Mad’s goofy poster boy, Alfred E. Newman and his famous quote: “What, me worry?”

As Pandora noted, “…we have spent the last 13 years singularly focused on redefining radio and benefit from unrivaled intellectual property, deep experience in delivering personalized playlists, and ubiquitous product availability across every platform.”

So who’s the target of iTunes Radio – Pandora, radio broadcasters, or someone else?

Michael Robertson – the guy behind MP3.com, MP3Tunes, and Dar.fm – is quoted in RAIN with his view that iTunes Radio represents a “frontal attack on FM radio and will accelerate the deterioration in their business… FM cannot compete with the benefits of Internet delivered music.”

Others in this digital music space may be quick to agree with him.  But as pure-play competition proliferates – Pandora, Spotify, Songza, the new Google offering, and now Cupertino’s new digital radio service that even includes Siri integration – where does this really leave broadcast radio?

In the same place it’s been over the last few years – grappling with its core music mission.

A new offering from Apple isn’t going to alter radio’s situation one iota.  And that challenge is to rededicate itself to doing what it does best in an environment that is ever-changing, highly personal, uber customizable. and rapidly becoming omnipresent in consumers’ lives.

Radio needs to look beyond staring at market by market ratings and Miller Kaplan reports, and begin to see the world in the same way that Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, and Tim Westergren see it.  In essence,  how can radio continue to compete for the minds and hearts of consumers as music becomes ubiquitous and commoditized?  What is it that broadcast radio can do that these other media cannot?

Bob Pittman reminded the media world in The Wall Street Journal that products like Pandora and iTunes Radio aren’t really threats to broadcast radio because custom channels aren’t viable businesses.  He went on to say that FM radio’s mission is to help consumers “join the world.”

He’s right, of course.  Broadcast radio connects people with communities and offers “a very private experience” – when it’s on its game.

So now that the Apple plan has been announced, Pandora is geared up for a street fight, Spotify will aggressively keep chasing music lovers, and Google will try to get its music service off the ground.

So where’s broadcast radio?

Hopefully, serving listeners, advertisers, and communities.

The pure-plays talk about custom channels as if they’re personal.  While they may reflect your unique musical footprint, there’s nothing really personal about most of them.  Radio, on the other hand, can be an intensely personal experience, especially in the car where personalities and DJs can have one-to-one contact with drivers in ways that elude CDs, jukeboxes, and digital playlist services.

Radio will have to decide about the role of the personality in the changing local marketplace.  It is radio’s key advantage, providing the opportunity to personally meet and greet consumers and touch their lives.  In most markets around the country, radio still very much resonates with people.

Here in Detroit, it’s been interesting to watch what’s been happening with the Greater Media cluster, for example.

There have been some big roster moves in the past 30 days that have shocked the market.  The exit of Drew & Mike from WRIF, the entrance of Dave & Chuck the Freak (pictured, with Lisa Way) to replace them, and the pairing of Trudi Daniels (from the Drew & Mike Show) with Ken Calvert on WCSX all say the same thing about local radio: personalities matter and people care about them.

The coverage of all these moves by other local media outlets has been unprecedented, signaling that consumers are more interested in local DJs than they are the number of song skips offered by Pandora.  The Dave & Chuck the Freak story has been one of the big trenders in Crain’s Detroit from the moment it was announced they were leaving their former station.  The team is heavily connected socially with its active, excited audience.

Local radio matters.  Touching people’s lives and acknowledging them is at the heart of it.

So maybe Amazon will be next with its pure-play service.  Or perhaps Microsoft.  Or maybe Sony.

But all of these new channels might just end up long-tailing themselves into irrelevance.  The true currency of real radio is live and local.

Wouldn’t that be the message to deliver and reinforce to Wall Street and radio’s audiences that truly spells out the defining difference?

Radio should no longer assume that everyone knows what it does well.

Time to start walking the walk.  And yes, talking the talk.

Despite being brothers, there are times when it’s pretty clear that Fred and I come from different ends of the gene pool.

He’s programming.  I’m sales.

He’s right brain.  I’m left.

And when we worked together at WRIF when he was PD and I thought I should be (like most sellers), he taught me a valuable lesson when I would frequently tell him what music the station should be playing, based on my own personal taste:  “Shut up and sell.”

But there’s one area that we agree on, and that’s when the demos advertisers dictate adversely impact programming.

In the ‘90s, we had to constantly fight for the financial viability of the Alternative format since it wasn’t 25-54 friendly.

Today, we hear similar cries from our Classic Rock clients concerned that their audience is aging out of the money demo, and isn’t as appealing to advertisers.

Recently, The Detroit Free Press ran a piece that resonated with me because it speaks to this demographic conundrum.   “Middle Age Car Buyers More Important Than Ever To The Industry” builds the case that advertisers that have invested in and profited from their relationship with Baby Boomers for over 30 years shouldn’t stop now.  And for car companies, dealers, and other suppliers, it’s even more important than ever.

The University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute just released a study of car buying habits that should make radio stations reconsider whether or not they should stop playing The Doors or The Temptations.  Their data shows that “Adults in the 55-to-64-year old age group were 15 times more likely to buy new vehicles than 18-24-year-olds.” (emphasis is mine).

The study’s author, Michael Sivak, went on to say that “The probability of buying a vehicle per driver is highest for people between 55 and 64 years of age. That is probably surprising to many people because they think of much younger people being the target audience.”  And he also pointed out that younger adults are obtaining driver’s licenses at a much lower rate than older Americans.  So what does that tell us about opportunities for a radio industry that is struggling to maintain growth in 2013?

So, while advertisers control the purse strings, they shouldn’t control programming or target demos.  It’s the responsibility of media content creators and marketers to build value for their audiences, whether or not they perfectly fit the specific target of the advertiser.

This is why we continue to hear 25-54 targeted clients on formats like News/Talk, where well over half of their audience has gone over the “cliff.”

It’s also why MTV is one of the most profitable cable networks and why advertising in the Super Bowl isn’t based on traditional cost-per-point calculations.  It’s not about cost-efficiency – it’s about building value for the audience despite what buying metrics dictate.

In other words, it’s about taking control, and right now, too much control is in the hands of the advertisers.

How can a radio station regain control over the value of their brand?  Consider some of these steps:

1. Tell a story.  The Baby Boomer saga is literally the history of American marketing over the past several decades.  No generation has had a greater impact on products, media, culture, and marketing than Boomers, and there’s no reason to assume that just because they’re now turning 60 that it’s going to end any time soon.  Boomers are the largest, wealthiest generation in history.  They aren’t shrinking, they aren’t going away, and as this study indicates, they’re still buying a lot of stuff.

But you can’t tell their story with just metrics.  You can create a compelling narrative with a great presentation that includes the literally hundreds of ads that use Boomer music like Classic Rock, depicting Boomers as young-thinking, vibrant, and relevant.  And yes, research from third parties like this article tells a more powerful story than rankers from the latest monthly or quarterly ratings report.

Stories change perceptions.  Ratings don’t.

2. Don’t sell when the buy is up.  That’s the worst time to build value, because you’re in the middle of a negotiation.  The parameters have been set, and you’re stuck in a cost-per-point conversation.  Building value is a long-term proposition, and requires a longer-term strategy to change minds and perceptions.

3. Go around the buyer, even if it ticks them off.  Buyers are like accountants, simply trying to make the columns add up and if yours are outside of their target, you’re toast.  This isn’t about numbers, so stop talking to numbers people.  For decades, I’ve heard that stations worry about going around the buyer because it will upset them.  What about being upset when you don’t get bought?

Try to collaborate and include the buyer, but in the final analysis, the only way you’re going to truly have an impact is to change value perceptions about your audience with the people who make those calls  – the client, CMOs, and other higher-ups at the agency level.  They’re the ones who are focused on actually selling product instead of making an efficient buy.

I respect the fact that for the past several years, advertisers have held all of the cards, especially as budgets have shrunk.  But we have a choice – alter our product which has a strong potential to damage it OR go on the offensive, tell our story, and build value and demand for our audience.

Otherwise, we’re all going to go over the cliff together.

Nearly 2,000 professionals made the trip to Metro Detroit.  For Paul and me, it was a quick 13 mile drive to what is a different world than the one we’re used to living in.

Joining us from the radio industry were….not many people.  Of course, Dr. Ed Cohen from Arbitron was there (a fixture at these telematics conferences), as were NPR and iBiquity.  We spent some quality time with Carl Rohling of TuneIn, a guy who believes in this space.  Beyond that, not a radio person in sight.

Broadcast radio, that is.

Other “radio” brands were very well represented, however, including Pandora, Slacker, Rdio, Aha, and SiriusXM (a platinum sponsor).  They all had considerable presence at Telematics Detroit.  And notably, audio in many different forms was a hot topic.

We heard Nick Pudar (Director, Global Connected Services) from General Motors admit that while he was a little slow to get up to speed with iPads, “the connected car” is something that he – and the OEMs and Tier 1s – aren’t missing.

In fact, an ongoing theme at this year’s conference is just how telematics is solidifying in the minds, labs, pocketbooks, and hearts of automotive companies around the world.  They are all moving ahead on all cylinders, and while each OEM has a different idea of what works and what doesn’t, they share the same vision about the value of this space.  They realize that while they cannot move as quickly as the electronics industry, they are more agile than ever before.  And the car makers (and the Tier 1s) are all too aware they have to keep pace with consumers who are ever-enamored with their smartphones and the concept of taking their content with them wherever they go.

Everywhere you went at this conference offered more proof that telematics is being driven by content, services, and distribution channels – especially the smartphone.  And that continues to motivate us at Jacobs Media and jacAPPS to stay ahead of the pack.

Telematics is especially hot in the U.S.  Kevin Link (how’s that for a great name for a “connected car” event?), SVP from Verizon, noted that Americans “get” what’s going on in the space.  His data indicates that 84% of consumers in this country have some awareness of “the connected car.”  In the rest of the world, it’s “single digits.”   But innovators and forward-thinking automakers and media strategists can lead the way because  “Customers don’t typically wake up in the morning and say, ‘Boy I wish I had telematics in my car.’”

One of the best panels was moderated by Strategy Analytics’ Roger Lanctot, one of the brightest minds at this event.  He hosted three area auto dealers, along with the head of the Michigan Automotive Dealers Association.  This marked the first year that car dealers were invited to participate in these conferences, and it turned out to be a riveting panel.

Had there been a few radio people in the room – including some GSMs and LSMs – I don’t think there’s any question that they would have enjoyed connecting these digital dots.

Everywhere you looked at Telematics Detroit 2013, it was about “the connected car” and its capabilities.  As the photo montage above indicates, this is how it felt as conference attendees moved from exhibit to exhibit.  Everyone has a plan, a concept, a platform, and a strategy for connecting consumers to their vehicles.

In Kevin Link’s presentation, he clearly made the case for the distinction between following trends and just being trendy.  In the automotive space, it’s a lot like radio.  Sometimes it’s difficult to tell the difference.  So he broke down “connected car” components into five silos: safety/security, diagnostics, convenience (key fobs, remote features), navigation, and infotainment.  And everywhere he looked at it, his bottom line conclusion is that it all comes back to…

…Infotainment.  Content.  Programming.

That’s because people don’t walk into car dealerships asking about security features or better “check engine light” diagnostics.  But they are talking about their mobile entertainment and the features their next car will offer – embedded modems and smartphone connectivity are at the epicenter of this conversation.

As radio guys “sitting in” on these panels and conversations, it was a lot of education compressed into two fast-moving days.  The more sessions we attend, the better we understand the mindset of the automotive companies and their suppliers.  And the better we grasp how our apps – and apps like iHeartRadio and TuneIn – function and stand out in this space.  A major reason why iBiquity continues to have presence at these conferences speaks to their ongoing commitment to make broadcast radio part of that conversation.  Whether you love or hate their technology, whine about all those free spots you ran, or continue to believe that consumers are clueless about HD Radio, the fact is that it is playing a key role in how these platforms are developing.

Broadcasters owe it to themselves – and their stockholders, stakeholders, and family members – to immerse themselves in the telematics space.  It won’t be long before quarterly investor calls will include questions that go beyond the future of AM radio, Rush Limbaugh’s antics, and political ad spending.   Analysts are going to start asking about mobile strategies, connected cars, and how broadcasters will handle these challenges moving forward.  And how will radio’s CEOs respond?

One bright spot for jacAPPS occurred while we were introducing ourselves to a Tier 1 supplier with a fascinating connected car technology. As she was looking at our business card, she exclaimed, “Oh, I know you guys – you do apps and you have the deal with Ford.”

Now at radio conventions, we expect some attendees to know who we are and what we do.  At a telematics conference, this was a first.  But as we walked the exhibit floor, observed panels, and networked at lunch, the faces looked more and more familiar to us because we’ve been attending these events, as well as CES, for several years time now.

And so it is with broadcasters who won’t be able to simply swoop into this space in a year or two and make an impact.  There’s no crash course in building relationships, understanding automakers and their suppliers, and learning how telematics can lead to opportunities and partnerships.  It takes time, it requires commitment, as well as recognition, realization, and the ability to see around corners.

Telematics is shaping up to play a major role in broadcast radio’s future.  That’s why we attend these conferences.  Spurred on by our Techsurveys, we continue to see evidence that screams that it’s paramount for broadcast radio to show up, learn, and let the telematics and automotive industries know we care, we’re engaged, we’re invested, and we wish to be part of this future.

I have never bought into the “radio was the first social media” nonsense.  But there’s no disputing the fact that radio was the original dashboard entertainment medium.  That’s something that everyone attending Telematics Detroit 2013 would agree on.

The question is whether broadcasters will be prescient enough to grasp a changing automotive ecosystem, and learn how to adapt to evolving technology and increasing consumer demand.  I just bumped into 2,000 bright, enthusiastic professionals who got the memo.

Next year, put Telematics Detroit 2014 on your conference agenda.  And as we have been reminding everyone in radio, buy, lease, rent, or test drive a “connected car.”

Apple is in a war with Samsung, and it’s a bloody one.  Sure, it’s about volume (in radio parlance, ratings), but it’s even more about the cool factor.  And in that dimension, Apple has a challenge on its hands with the Galaxy S4 handsets.

This is a similar challenge that radio stations face every day – how to “own” a hill and how to communicate leadership.

Radio often chooses a positioning statement (“Favorites of the ‘80s, ‘90s, & Today”) along with the superlative (“We’re #1”).  But that’s not how you effectively reach the minds and hearts of consumers.

That’s why a look at how the big boys do it can oftentimes be instructive and insightful.

Here’s one of Apple’s new commercials for iPhone (a :60 commercial by the way, because you need that length to tell a great story).  In that time frame, they communicate ownership of music and the smartphone space, but they do it in a way that radio brands rarely attempt.

Go ahead and watch it, and then let’s consider the implications.

>EMAIL RECIPIENTS: CLICK HERE TO WATCH APPLE COMMERCIAL<

So what’s happening here?

1. Music passion – Without hearing what these people are listening to, we feel that music is a part of their lives.  And so by extension if the iPhone. Radio likes to say that it communicates energy and color “in between the records,” but this spot exudes passion quietly, cleanly, and authentically.
2. Real people tell the story – There are no statistics nor is there a breakdown of all the key features in the iPhone (how many songs it holds, how easy it is to use).   This isn’t about stats and metrics (how many songs in a row or commercial-free minutes).  It’s about how much makes you feel.
3. Young people – They’re at the center of this commercial because Apple realizes how vital they are to their brand.  If you lose your youth core, you’ve lost the foundation of your media audience – today and tomorrow.  We saw how important Gen Z is to media brands in Techsurvey9 – a fact that Apple understands better than perhaps any other brand.
4. Use of sound – We never hear the songs these people are listening to, but instead, the subtle background noise of where they are says a lot about taking music with you wherever you go (portability) and the role it plays in your life.

There’s also no fear of cannibalization.  It shouldn’t be lost on us that while Apple is touting its iPhone as the premier way to listen to music, their iPod product is suffering.  We saw this clearly in TS9.  Look what’s happening on this Media Usage Pyramid inset to each of their gadgets, with percentage change from last year on the right side:

Apple doesn’t care.  They recognize the battle at hand, and are rapidly moving to compete for the most important turf – smartphone ownership.

So when Apple says “More people enjoy their music on the iPhone than any other phone,” it’s believable.

Passion, storytelling, youth, ownership, audio.

Wonder how they’ll market iRadio?