Date Posted:
04 | 04 | 05

Scared

If you want to really scare people... and I believe this to be true for broadcasting as well as business in general ...don't bother talking about risks. Don't waste your time discussing potential for failure. Don't yammer on about doom and gloom.

If you really want to see them shake - come up with a better plan.

Mediocrity is easy. It feels safe. It's like a warm blanket. You didn't put much effort in, so the reward isn't great - but hey, you didn't risk much either, right? In most people's eyes, that's a winning proposition.

Most would prefer to coast along.

And why not? They worked hard. Certainly, after some hard earned success, they should be able to rest on their laurels.

...right?

And that's how one begins to embrace mediocrity.

"Mediocrity is easy. It feels safe. It's like a warm blanket. You didn't put much effort in, so the reward isn't great - but hey, you didn't risk much either, right? In most people's eyes, that's a winning proposition."

Maybe just a little at first. ...It was a Friday... he could leave early just this once. Go home, make time for a shower and a shave before his big night out. Surely he's earned that.

Friday's early night out becomes a Wednesday's long lunch and next Thursday's promo copy that's, y'know, good enough... eventually leading to Monday's show-prep that's really not that important - or next month's contest that will be the spitting image of last month's contest... and the contest before that.

So be it.

It's good enough to get by - and if you're doing well, then.... why not?

Then one day, a guy comes along and says "hey, what if we don't give away qualifying prizes this weekend? What if we - instead - put every single caller in a drawing to win the grand prize?"

...but that's not how we do it here...

"Yeah! We'll flood the airwaves with people getting in the drawing. It'll sound like constant excitement all weekend long every time somebody turns on the radio!"

...but that's not how we do it here...

"I mean, really, what good does it do to push 18 winners into Monday morning's 7:20am grand prize drawing when we could have hundreds?! Now THAT'S recycling dayparts."

...but that's not how we do it here...

And the next thing you know, you're scared.

Colophon:

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Think About It:

  • A Sense Of Perspective:   We know that Seattle is not Miami is not Albany is not Ames Iawa. We mock those who treat them as if they're the same with the same ideas and the same programming. And then, at the end of the day, we leave our radio stations & forget that what we have learned applies to real life.

  • Indecency, And The Dance:   The real issue here is a weakened FCC. We have no standards to go by, and no reasonable expectation of repercussions for when we go over the line.

  • Radio As A Music Delivery System:   Music is a form of entertainment... but if music is the only way you know to put entertainment on the radio, do us all a favor and be gone.

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