Having a clear message works... in whatever arena you operate!
Owning a word in people's minds is a pretty good idea too...
Showing posts with label positioning. Show all posts
Showing posts with label positioning. Show all posts
Tuesday, 20 January 2009
Tuesday, 29 January 2008
Worst Positioning Statement in UK Radio...
With the Oscars ceremony just around the corner (possibly!) and Hollywood in full flight with the ‘awards season’ it seems fitting to present an award myself… the "Worst Positioning Statement in UK Radio" award.
And the winner is… (drum roll sfx)… new community station Preston FM! And what is the brilliant and inspiring positioning statement that they’ve come up with?
And the winner is… (drum roll sfx)… new community station Preston FM! And what is the brilliant and inspiring positioning statement that they’ve come up with?
“Preston FM – Stay Pressed On”.
I’m sorry guys… but come on!!! ‘Stay Pressed On’? For crying out loud!!
Not only is it a bad pun… (Preston / Pressed On), it doesn’t really work either. I’ve never been in a meeting at any radio station where we’ve said… “yeah… we’ve got to keep our listeners pressed on a bit more”. Tuned In… turned on… all of the clichés have been done, but ‘pressed on’? It sounds like some sort of strapline for a feminine hygiene product!!
As an open appeal to, what are I’m sure the very nice people behind the community radio station Preston FM... please reconsider. Please! I’ll quite happily give you 5 suitably generic positioning statements for your community station… but don’t go to air with that one!
(OK – I think I’ve made my point)
Your award is in the post.
I’m sorry guys… but come on!!! ‘Stay Pressed On’? For crying out loud!!
Not only is it a bad pun… (Preston / Pressed On), it doesn’t really work either. I’ve never been in a meeting at any radio station where we’ve said… “yeah… we’ve got to keep our listeners pressed on a bit more”. Tuned In… turned on… all of the clichés have been done, but ‘pressed on’? It sounds like some sort of strapline for a feminine hygiene product!!
As an open appeal to, what are I’m sure the very nice people behind the community radio station Preston FM... please reconsider. Please! I’ll quite happily give you 5 suitably generic positioning statements for your community station… but don’t go to air with that one!
(OK – I think I’ve made my point)
Your award is in the post.
Sunday, 17 June 2007
"Hold Your Plums"
Climbing inside a hire car in any foreign country is a entertaining experience for many reasons. Having just been away on holiday, the memories are fresh.
Where's the gearstick again?
How do I move the seat? (Oh - it doesn't move...)
What's that horrible smell coming from the glovebox?
I'm sure I was promised air conditioning....
How does that radio work?
And once you've got the radio up and running, hitting that scan button is a little bit like playing a 'fruit' machine (or slot machine for our US readers!). You may come up lucky with "3 cherries" and score a virtual audio jackpot... or get a few lemons and plums along the way.
I played the radio slot machine game quite a few times last week and every time I did, I gave a selection of stations a listen. I was in Spain and I don't speak Spanish very well, but an interesting thing happened. You can tell a lot by a radio station just by having it on in the background for a few minutes, and make a pretty good judgement to stick with it... or hit the scan button... even if you don't really know what they're saying!
The stations I stayed with longer all had the same things in common and for me, these are some of the key drivers that define success:
Music Flow - All the stations I stayed with longer had solid music programming theory running through their output. It felt like someone had taken the time to look at the flow, tempo, era spread, genre mix and the overall feel that the music gave the listener.
Branding and Positioning - Having a competent branding strategy with strong production values and a easily communicated positioning statement were all common to the better Spanish stations that cut through. It was really obvious which ones had invested in decent production and knew what they were communicating to their audience about their music position... and which ones didn't really have a position. Knowing what you're listening to and what it's going to bring you is so important, particularly for new listeners.
Interruptions - Keep them to a minimum!! One of the most infuriating things during my "Spanish Hire Car Radio Listening Experience" was hearing the station stop down all the time. The DJ's went on too much and popped up left right and centre. It just made me reach for the button. If you have a music intensive radio station that needs to play the songs across the day, make sure you keep the interruptions down!
Commercial Load - Again, the stations that got it right were the ones that found the right balance between content and commercials. Fewer breaks seem to work, and if you can get away with two 4 minute breaks an hour, then that might not be a bad place to be. Certainly some of the stations got it right... where others were playing commercials about 6 times an hour. It just didn't work.
There seems to be some universal truths about music driven commercial radio, wherever you go in the world and Spain was no exception. 'Maximum Payout' to the 2 or 3 stations that got it right. 'No Credit' to the stations that didn't.
So next time you're in foreign country and climb into your hire car, have a go on the 'radio station fruit machine'. It may just take your mind off the fact you're driving a Mitsubishi Colt!
Where's the gearstick again?How do I move the seat? (Oh - it doesn't move...)
What's that horrible smell coming from the glovebox?
I'm sure I was promised air conditioning....
How does that radio work?
And once you've got the radio up and running, hitting that scan button is a little bit like playing a 'fruit' machine (or slot machine for our US readers!). You may come up lucky with "3 cherries" and score a virtual audio jackpot... or get a few lemons and plums along the way.
I played the radio slot machine game quite a few times last week and every time I did, I gave a selection of stations a listen. I was in Spain and I don't speak Spanish very well, but an interesting thing happened. You can tell a lot by a radio station just by having it on in the background for a few minutes, and make a pretty good judgement to stick with it... or hit the scan button... even if you don't really know what they're saying!
The stations I stayed with longer all had the same things in common and for me, these are some of the key drivers that define success:
Music Flow - All the stations I stayed with longer had solid music programming theory running through their output. It felt like someone had taken the time to look at the flow, tempo, era spread, genre mix and the overall feel that the music gave the listener.
Branding and Positioning - Having a competent branding strategy with strong production values and a easily communicated positioning statement were all common to the better Spanish stations that cut through. It was really obvious which ones had invested in decent production and knew what they were communicating to their audience about their music position... and which ones didn't really have a position. Knowing what you're listening to and what it's going to bring you is so important, particularly for new listeners.
Interruptions - Keep them to a minimum!! One of the most infuriating things during my "Spanish Hire Car Radio Listening Experience" was hearing the station stop down all the time. The DJ's went on too much and popped up left right and centre. It just made me reach for the button. If you have a music intensive radio station that needs to play the songs across the day, make sure you keep the interruptions down!
Commercial Load - Again, the stations that got it right were the ones that found the right balance between content and commercials. Fewer breaks seem to work, and if you can get away with two 4 minute breaks an hour, then that might not be a bad place to be. Certainly some of the stations got it right... where others were playing commercials about 6 times an hour. It just didn't work.
There seems to be some universal truths about music driven commercial radio, wherever you go in the world and Spain was no exception. 'Maximum Payout' to the 2 or 3 stations that got it right. 'No Credit' to the stations that didn't.
So next time you're in foreign country and climb into your hire car, have a go on the 'radio station fruit machine'. It may just take your mind off the fact you're driving a Mitsubishi Colt!
Monday, 12 March 2007
Capital Radio-ish
One of the biggest changes a radio station can make is change its name. But when’s a name change actually a name change… and when is it just a bit of tinkering?
Well – Capital Radio have just gone through another one. Just over a year ago, the station re-branded to “Capital Radio” and today they announced that they’re changing again to “Capital 95.8”.
Interesting.
To coincide with the re-brand, there’s also a shiny new logo. And a new TV ad as well! Now, we all know stations that have great logos and sound rubbish… and stations that have rubbish logos that sound brilliant, so I don’t think the change of logo will decide the fate of the station for the next few years. However, those cheeky monkeys at The Guardian had something to say about it!
And I quote:
“Is it just Monkey, or does the logo for Capital Radio's expensive new re-brand look disconcertingly like a length of old rope? Now we hesitate to suggest that's what GCap has paid for - money for old rope - but we should be thankful that the geography of the River Thames isn't more noose shaped. Now that really would have been inappropriate.”
Now now!
The TV ad has some great songs on it and aims to regain some musical credibility for the station. The ad does feel very “sub-30 male focused”, (with music from The Fratelli’s, Paulo Nutini etc… and a pair of bouncing breasts!)… It’s a difficult position to be in in the London market. Time will tell if it’s the right move.
As for the change to “Capital 95.8”, the inclusion of 95.8 seems a little redundant in the digital age, where more and more people are listening online and via DAB. Would just plain ole “Capital” suffice?
I took a listen today. The new production sounded great, and the music was excellent, and firmly focused at 15-30 year olds.
So, let’s see if this latest incarnation of a ‘youthful’ Capital will do the trick… and with the addition of Bam Bam too… but more on that later!
Well – Capital Radio have just gone through another one. Just over a year ago, the station re-branded to “Capital Radio” and today they announced that they’re changing again to “Capital 95.8”.
Interesting.
To coincide with the re-brand, there’s also a shiny new logo. And a new TV ad as well! Now, we all know stations that have great logos and sound rubbish… and stations that have rubbish logos that sound brilliant, so I don’t think the change of logo will decide the fate of the station for the next few years. However, those cheeky monkeys at The Guardian had something to say about it!
And I quote:
“Is it just Monkey, or does the logo for Capital Radio's expensive new re-brand look disconcertingly like a length of old rope? Now we hesitate to suggest that's what GCap has paid for - money for old rope - but we should be thankful that the geography of the River Thames isn't more noose shaped. Now that really would have been inappropriate.”
Now now!
The TV ad has some great songs on it and aims to regain some musical credibility for the station. The ad does feel very “sub-30 male focused”, (with music from The Fratelli’s, Paulo Nutini etc… and a pair of bouncing breasts!)… It’s a difficult position to be in in the London market. Time will tell if it’s the right move.
As for the change to “Capital 95.8”, the inclusion of 95.8 seems a little redundant in the digital age, where more and more people are listening online and via DAB. Would just plain ole “Capital” suffice?
I took a listen today. The new production sounded great, and the music was excellent, and firmly focused at 15-30 year olds.
So, let’s see if this latest incarnation of a ‘youthful’ Capital will do the trick… and with the addition of Bam Bam too… but more on that later!
Tuesday, 6 February 2007
How 'Green' is your Station?
Radio stations are always looking for new angles... new ways to connect with listeners and the psyche of the town, city or nation they broadcast to.
One story which caught my eye this week is the classic rock station WARW in Washington. It's been renamed 94.7 The Globe, and has refocused its efforts to become a 'green' radio station. Let's just clarify some of it's green credentials first...
It's now using renewable energy to power its transmitter; Low voltage lighting throughout the studios; Employees committed to being more 'green' at work etc...
And on air / events... It's giving information to listeners about more environmental issues; It's having an annual Earth Day concert; It's encouraging recycling and tree planting etc..
OK - so this alone won't save the earth from a nasty end. But the concept is a really interesting one. Environmental issues used be fringe and shunned by the mainstream. But now they are more pressing than ever before and gain more mainstream coverage than ever before. Big
companies are adopting more and more green policies.
Only the other week, Marks and Spencer announced that it would spend over £200 Million to become carbon neutral by 2012 and issued a 100 point plan to go green. They call it Plan A (because with the environment, "There is no plan B")
The point is, that if M&S, that bastion of conservative British-ness and the embodiment of middle England is taking this seriously, is it something that radio stations in the UK should investigate?
I'm not suggesting that we go as far as 94.7 The Globe, but connecting with listeners regarding green issues serves 2 purposes. First, it shows that your radio station is in touch with what many of them are thinking or feeling regarding the environment. And second, it actually does the 'green cause' a world of good by having another mainstream outlet (your radio station) adopt the messages.
So what could stations do? 'Green' postitioners about the station being environmentally friendly or carbon neutral (if it is of course) may work? When getting new station vehicles, get some hybrid cars instead of the cliched 4X4's and then promote on air the fact that you made that choice. Short (and entertaining) promos encouraging recycling may help. Or you could even send your ground patrols / street crews to recycling plants on a Saturday morning and give stickers / merchandise to everyone who comes down to recycle.
I'm sure there are lots of other ideas, but as green issues become even more mainstream, the concept of connecting with your listeners who care about the environment is a very strong one. Why not be the first station in your market to take the initiative?
Oh, and you might just help in saving the planet too!
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