We hear a lot about customer service today, and what we hear is rarely good. The frustration of chatboxes that can only answer predefined FAQs. Fighting automated phone trees in an attempt to reach a live agent. Billing errors. What bemuses me is that you’ll find radio’s competitors are often the worst offenders.
Just about everyone you speak to has experienced frustrating incidents of poor, or more likely no, customer service from cable and internet providers. Trying to get help from Google? I wish you luck. Facebook or X? I wish you a miracle.
Similarly, top B2B complaints include a lack of transparency in ad performance and billing, difficulty escalating unresolved issues, under-resourced support teams, and a demand for more personalized and proactive service rather than generic auto-responses.
All of which should provide an “aha” moment for broadcasters.
Like our unlicensed and unregulated competitors, radio enjoys direct relationships with listeners and advertisers, both of whose needs and interests need to be at the core of our business practices. So, could there be a competitive advantage for radio with both listeners and advertisers?
Yes. It’s called “human interaction.”
Toward listeners, that means handling requests quickly, embracing community spirit, and making programming responsive to local concerns — not just during emergencies and weather disruptions, but every day. And that can make a difference with advertising clients as well.
They hear the environment in which their spots are airing. They, too, connect with how a station listens to its audience, adjusts its programming, and keeps listeners engaged with upbeat hosts and fast support.
But that takes people: people who can pick up a phone, visit a restaurant grand opening, make sure spots are run and billed as ordered (please, keep competitors separated), and celebrate the things that make a community vibrant and strong.
As we continue to witness an increase in out-of-market control and a handover to automated systems, one has to wonder what will happen to the four keys to our competitive edge:
- Providing excellent listener engagement and personalized communication that deepens audience loyalty.
- Offering advertisers a trusted, interactive platform that emotionally connects brands to listeners.
- Using listener interaction data to optimize advertising and prove campaign effectiveness.
- Building lasting partnerships with clients through transparency, insight, and collaborative planning.
I leave you with the words of Arrigo Cipriani, who built a global hospitality empire on this tenet: “To serve is first to love.”
