Tag: Michael Jordan

Industry Views

Monday Memo: Be Like Mike

By TALKERS | by TALKERS

By Holland Cooke
Consultant

imRemember the old Gatorade commercial? The “Be like Mike” jingle accompanied a montage of gravity-defying Michael Jordan dunks.

If you’ve heard Mike Hulvey speak, you know his birthday and blood type, because he told you, in his enthused trademark close: “March 4th and B positive!”

Before he recently hit-the-ground-running as Radio Advertising Bureau CEO and president, Mike was my longtime client when he ran Neuhoff Media. I consulted his news/talk/sports WSOY, Decatur and trained news people at other stations in the group. And the company’s “Media Made Locally” mantra was more than a slogan: “Nothing makes us happier than knowing that while our big corporate competitors are abandoning all the things we think make local media special – we’re doubling down.”

With broadcasters now so challenged by non-AM/FM audio competitors – and coping with cost cuts – the “Core Values” that clicked in these small Midwest markets seem like a prescription for stations everywhere:

1. Grit: “Stick with it.”
2. Community: “Give back.”
3. Innovation: “Think different.”
4. Excellence: “Be exceptional.”

im

In too many places now, a legacy call letter station is referred to as “the AM” within multi-station clusters and is bundled with music stations’ inventory… not the best sales model in Mike’s estimation: “The news/talk format offers endless opportunities to local clients.” Offered properly, these stations have “unique attributes and programming that lend itself to customize sponsorship and marketing extensions in any size market;” with otherwise “hidden gems that create opportunities for naming rights inside local sports and benchmark sponsorships as the local expert,” creating what he calls “lean-in listening that benefits advertisers.”

Live-N-local 24/7 seems quaint now, so we leverage imported programming, to make it sound more like part of the station’s own on-air family, rather than sounding like we’re an affiliate plugged-into the bird. The day Mike first introduced me at WSOY, I told the morning host: “We’ve got to get your voice in Rush Limbaugh and the Cardinals games more.”

Back to the future: With Monday-Friday syndicated talk programming mostly political, I asked Mike, “Could the sort of non-political shows that were such weekday winners for the late-great KGO and Buckley-owned WOR make a comeback?” His take: “I say yes. I believe that great locally targeted content is still a winning formula of success. While we as consumers have more choices than ever, we still crave information about where we live, work, and raise our families. While national political content has a very loud voice in the market, listeners appreciate those locally ‘world famous’ voices from where they live.”

Evidence, from the vault: 2-minute video, Mike explaining how winning radio is a relationship: https://youtu.be/wcsqrN7R7Ic

Holland Cooke (HollandCooke.com) is a consultant working the intersection of broadcasting and the Internet. He is the author of “The Local Radio Advantage: Your 4-Week Tune-In Tune-Up” and “Close Like Crazy: Local Direct Leads, Pitches & Specs That Earned the Benjamins” and “Confidential: Negotiation Checklist for Weekend Talk Radio.” Follow HC on Twitter @HollandCooke and connect on LinkedIn.

Industry Views

Pending Business: One Special Person

By TALKERS | by TALKERS

By Steve Lapa
Lapcom Communications Corp
President

imOne person can make a difference.

I thought my first boss invented that quote. Seems he borrowed the first half of JFK’s “One person can make a difference, and everyone should try.” It seems in 1964 former first lady Jacqueline Kennedy was describing JFK’s philosophy to a historian as opposed to offering a direct quote. Ultimately, the press attributed the quote to JFK. It’s the thought that counts.

Fast forward to my first management job in Buffalo, New York and the quote became a goal. Consider the GOATS we see in professional sports. Michael Jordan or Tom Brady could put a team on their back and 13 World Championships followed.

Now we see the phenomenon in the explosive intersection of pop culture and sports. Stand back fans, this is a lot bigger than Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe. This is about the two biggest brands on the planet today joining forces to move the needle in every measurable media metric and drive the commercial value of a partnership through the stratosphere while staying within the confines of good taste.

This is about Taylor Swift and NFL future hall of famer Travis Kelce. This storyline has driven the average ticket to Super Bowl 58 to over $6,000, gameday VIP treatment will run over $35,000.

What does all this heady superstar stuff have to do with us everyday radio/audio sellers and managers watching at home? The “one person can make a difference” theory can work for you.

Here is how:

1. Practice makes perfect. Ever think about how many hours Taylor Swift rehearses? Rumor has it she sings while jogging on a treadmill. Pass the oxygen. When Payton Manning worked out at full speed on an inclined treadmill, we asked him about that grueling drill. His answer was classic, “Ever been chased by a 300-pound lineman who can run 40 yards in 4.6 seconds?” How about you? What is your sales practice routine?

2. The need to be different. Every great athlete, performer, scientist, and innovative businessperson told themselves and anyone who would listen they had the need to achieve. What would your manager say if you said, “I am ready to deliver more sales than anyone else who ever worked here!”

3. The long haul. On the way to achieving their goals, the great ones have no clock, just focus. Even the great James Madison, the youngest framer of our Constitution would “sit for ideas” waiting until he could clearly process and communicate the concepts he was developing.

Too many sellers and managers take short cuts, give up before the 9th contact or move on to other jobs thinking the grass is greener. Be the one person who makes a difference and enjoy the game!

Steve Lapa is the president of Lapcom Communications Corp. based in Palm Beach Gardens, FL. Lapcom is a media sales, marketing, and development consultancy. Contact Steve Lapa via email at: Steve@Lapcomventures.com.