It sure would be nice if all the major radio companies got behind a national branding campaign, to not only fight back the marketing beating SiriusXM is giving the industry, but to stand up for itself in the court of public opinion. PSA’s about the power of radio at 3AM just don’t cut it.
Is the radio industry ever going to show a little national fight? Why not hit back hard against SiriusXM’s nearly daily e-mail marketing campaigns that comes across like they are begging for customers? Or, how the minute a consumer calls to cancel, an operator might offer them months of free service for fear of their subscriber numbers declining. Or how many cars “with the service” installed are never even activated.
Maybe you just forget about even mentioning Sirius and focus on a little national self-promotion of the power of radio, especially during emergencies, school shootings, local elections, etc.
NAB CEO Curtis Legeyt got into the fight yesterday, defending radio in a new blog post. It came one day after the RAB responded to SiriusXM’s national marketing campaign that said consumers were wasting their time with AM/FM radio. While it’s great to see radio’s two trade organizations defend the industry, is anyone outside our own bubble even going to hear any of it. At least the NAB and the RAB are doing something!
Below is what Legeyt wrote in his piece called “SiriusXM is Siriusly Wrong About Radio,” which was posted to the NAB website. If we see the piece, or any parts of it, picked up by any outside media we will be sure to write a follow-up story about that.
(By Curtis LeGeyt) “As the most-listened-to audio platform, broadcast radio is no stranger to our competitors’ envy of the popularity and connection we enjoy with Americans. That’s why SiriusXM’s new marketing campaign taking direct aim at local radio should come as no surprise.
“Armed with the tagline “Why waste your time with AM/FM radio?” SiriusXM attempts to woo new subscribers by disparaging the unique free service broadcast radio provides to tens of millions of Americans in communities across the country. Instead of turning a blind eye to SiriusXM’s disingenuous efforts, this is an opportunity for radio to continue spotlighting the incredible role we play in keeping listeners entertained, informed and engaged.
“Broadcast radio continues to be the leading platform for people to tune in to hear hit music, their favorite DJs, the latest songs by today’s hottest musicians and new tracks from emerging artists. Yet, what truly sets us apart is the connection we provide listeners to their neighbors and communities. No other audio platform is locally based in the cities and towns we serve. Broadcast radio is the voice of local communities, providing news, information and programming that meet local needs and interests.
“There is no better demonstration of the importance of radio’s localism than when disaster strikes. During times of emergency, Americans are not told to turn to SiriusXM for lifeline information. They are not going to get emergency alerts, hear up-to-the-minute reporting or find out where to get help on Pandora or Spotify. No other audio medium can replicate our service when lives are in danger.
“Broadcast radio also provides an engine for economic activity. When local businesses want to get the word out about their goods and services, local radio stations provide an affordable way for them to advertise and reach the consumers who live in their area.
“Broadcasters have also embraced innovation to expand our local service to Americans wherever and whenever they want. Many stations are simulcasting their broadcasts online, helping listeners to tune in through their mobile devices and smart speakers. Broadcasters are leveraging their audio expertise through podcasting, offering expanded programming, serialized storytelling and a platform for unique community voices.
“And let us not forget that broadcast radio provides all these services for FREE. Unlike our competitors, listeners do not need to fork over a monthly subscription fee, purchase a program or afford an expensive mobile data plan. Our listeners know that we are always on, always there and always free.
“When SiriusXM and our competitors try to spin this narrative that broadcasting’s best days are behind it, this is the story that we need to tell. These are the facts that policymakers, advertisers and – most importantly – our tens of millions of listeners need to hear.
“NAB is working hard in Washington to ensure lawmakers and regulators understand the importance of local radio to their constituents. They must also understand that our competitors are not subject to the same regulatory constraints, putting broadcasters on an uneven playing field and jeopardizing our ability to continue serving local communities with high-quality news and information.
“NAB is also working with automakers to strengthen the historic relationship between broadcasting and the car. NAB’s Auto Committee is dedicated to optimizing radio’s place in the digital dashboard and ensuring an innovative, enjoyable experience for passengers who want to listen to their favorite local stations. PILOT, NAB’s innovation wing, is also advancing broadcast technologies and pushing new partnerships to help radio realize its full potential in automobiles of the future.
“NAB’s long-running We Are Broadcasters campaign is focused on educating policymakers and the public about the critical role of local broadcasting. The campaign tells our story through public service announcements, examples of local stations’ impact on their communities and first-hand accounts from broadcasters about their important work.
“While NAB is effective at communicating broadcasters’ vital role in local communities, we know broadcasters themselves are the best at conveying this message. No one knows how much Americans rely on local broadcasters like the ones who are providing that service day in and day out. Our industry is fortunate to have outstanding grassroots, with broadcasters from station owners to local reporters eager to tell our story and the good work we do daily.
“Broadcast radio is there every day to serve our communities and provide an unmatched service to our listeners, all for free. That is the story that we must continue to tell and that will help us continue to stand apart from the crowd.”
Terrestrial commercial radio ain’t free. It’s (at least) 30% bartering out listeners’ attention and consciousness to advertisers begging for their money. I spent 16 years in it, the rest of 46 years in broadcasting in public radio. If radio has quality content and serious local focus to sell against SiriusXM, go for it. Make that case. Put be cautious throwing around the “free” label. At best, it’s a “trade” arrangement with their audience that the audience agrees to. We’ll give you 50 to 70% of content, if you give us your ears for these other people for the rest of your time spent listening. If you choose to ignore honesty, transparency, and authenticity in your messaging about your strengths, the audience will have reason to doubt the legitimacy of your other claims.
Radio uses a blog post to defend itself?! My goodness, the radio biz just keeps looking older and older. There’s no spirit or edge in radio anymore.
Also, the “free” strategy is broken. People pay for customized media. Stop trying to sell radio is free, but fail to mention “but you have zero input on what you hear.” Radio has never been “paid” so why is bragging about “free” a value prop? No one goes, ‘Man, my radio is still free, yessss!”. So dumb!
Also, get all the over 50 PD’s out. They’re done! They don’t understand multi-channel entertainment, which is how most of America consumer media.
Old people killed off newspapers, now radio and next up is broadcast TV. My god, have you watched a local news or weather forecast lately? So, slow and boring.
I can’t remember ANY TIME that I heard Sirius XM run a PROMO about how THEY helped a particular community in distress! How THEY helped sponsor a local children’s sports team. How THEY help me get around a HUGE traffic jam. How THEY paid off a listener’s CREDIT Card debt. How THEY have done ANYTHING to REALLY compete with FREE over-the-air radio, commercial, or public. Nice try Sirius XM but you really don’t matter any more than you might think!
David, this is funny. Look at radio’s bottom line. It’s a total embarrassment. Why? Because there’s an APP for traffic, a million credit card debt relief companies, Go Fund Me for little league and every local TV station has a livestream during an emergency (which is very rare). Also, I won’t mention that Caller 10 wins a pizza… HAHAHHAHAHAHHA.
Buddy, you have to stop reading out of the playbook from 1996. You’re trying to be “all things to all people” and it has been a losing effort. These examples are laughable and why the business is losing revenue, month after month.
Why whenever radio is attacked does the industry react in such a defensive way? It’s like a petulant child. Quote a bunch of statistics that are meaningless to most people outside the industry and here comes the defensive shield. Both the RAB and NAB reacted this way in my opinion. It’s like they’re defending radio to the radio industry. Radio has lost its swagger, it’s confidence and the if we can dream it, we can do it attitude. What made radio great was people who looked at challenges as opportunities. Full speed ahead and always moving forward. I miss those days.