"Money's Too Tight To Mention"

“The Credit Crunch” has quickly been absorbed into the vernacular and barely a day goes by without me hearing it in a news report or reading the phrase in an article somewhere. High fuel and food prices, inflation rising, no sign of an interest rate cut and tumbling house prices all add up to an economy that experts call “Shrinking, High Inflation Turbulence”… or to give it’s proper acronym… S.H.I.T.

It was interesting therefore to hear the 'Credit Crunch' phrase used in a promo on Magic 105.4 for their current station-led share driver called “Magic’s Money Box”. The line went something like…

“The credit crunch is here and Magic 105.4 have been saving so that you can win some much needed money…”

Although sometimes I want a music radio station to ‘take me away from reality’ and not remind me that it now costs me £80 to fill up my gas-guzzling SUV, I thought that it was a rather good use of a very topical, very talkable issue within a promo to highlight the contest. Rather then just say “We’ve got loads of money to giveaway” they related it to the current economic situation in the UK, and to real people’s lives.

People in the UK are having to pay more for almost everything at the moment, so here’s your friendly radio station who feels your pain, understands your concerns, and in the ‘years of plenty, put some aside’ to give it to you when the going got tough.

Getting a level of topicality into production, whether it be for a promo for a contest, some general station production, or some music imaging is a great way of connecting your station to your audience. It shows that you don’t live in a virtual radio world where it’s all about ‘45 minute music sweeps’ and ‘more variety’, but you actually understand your listeners and their lives. It could be news based liked Magic did. It could be connected to the latest TV show, or movie release… or even the weather. Whatever the topic, if it’s current and it’s scripted well … get it on the air, even if it’s just for a few days. It’s amazing the difference that doing something so simple makes.