Ever taken a really good look at a Radio station website? Aside from the questionable layout and content, (some call them a train-wreck) have you ever wondered how Radio can build a business, and drive Internet revenue from those efforts? These are the issues that over worked Radio managers are trying to come to grips with.
The pressure is on. Radio’s primary revenue stream of selling spots is really taking a beating. The latest RAB (Radio Adverting Bureau) revenue numbers are in. Business was down 2% last year – its worst decline since 2001. December was down 5% – that’s now 8 down months in a row. Local rev down 4% and national down a whopping 12%. Where’s the upside ? Web-driven non-spot revenues – up a very healthy 12%.
Revenue UP, Share DOWN. While that 12% web increase looks nice, bear in mind that Radio web revenue SHARE is actually down. Radio could literally double its web rev, and still being leaving a ton of money on the table. The latest Borrell report on local online revenue report shows that Radio only gets about 1% of local online ad expenditures. That’s DOWN from last year. So, is there any good news ? Yes, a little. And it comes from Clear Channel.
Somebody at Clear Channel deserves a raise. Who ever got Fox to buy this should be promoted. For the season debut of American Idol last week, Fox took over every single ad unit available on the web sites of 250 Clear Channel stations, in 40 markets That was a deal for 13 million impressions using leaderboards, skyscrapers, and pre-roll video….with NO on-air buy. This is a sign of things to come.
According to Radio Business Report: CL King & Associates analyst Jim Boyle says “it’s time to monetize the P-1s, time for dual-revenue streams. That means enticing loyal fans to interact with the station on its website, utilizing the tech savvy and cultural intimacy of its youngest employees to lead the way.”
How can Radio seriously get into the game? First, it must admit that they need more outside help. There are too few people inside of the Radio industry that have a handle on the fast changing digital landscape. Just relying on the local sales managers, or the GM’s to develop a strong web plan will only delay the pain of making a serious investment in hiring and re-training.
Finding web experts to help Radio will not be easy. It will take alot of money too. In the meantime, here are some questions that will help Radio understand what their web plan needs to consist of:
>> Radio needs to fix these types of issues…..asap…..
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Beasley’s WXTU in Philly not taking their blogs seriously. http://www.925xtu.com/blogger/
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SOJO 104.9 in South Jersey still lets marketing/programming run the website. http://www.sojo1049.com/
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CBS Radio’s WFAN in New York: Why no online media kit ? http://www.wfan.com/index.php
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WAAV in Naples, Fla. Why would listeners visit this station’s website ? http://www.wavv101.com/
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Barnstable Station on Long Island: an advertising dumping ground: http://www.wrcn.com/
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94 WYSP: Cool looking design, yet just a marketing & programming tool. www.94wysp.com
4 responses so far ↓
WC // January 25, 2008 at 11:04 am |
Certainly a forest through the trees issue.
Content has to be key. Masking content with too many ad avails may make money but listeners/visitors will get weary and leave.
We have our audio, the primary content output, which should be kept (along with a good index) at the forefront of the brand.
meltaylor // January 25, 2008 at 12:19 pm |
wc,
you are right.
there is a fine line between the mix of advertising and content on the page.
mel
A Local Radio Conversation « Pete’s View // January 30, 2008 at 8:28 am |
[...] First – and lets be frank – the stations current web site is horrible. Something the station (or at least the manager) freely admits. It’s not even at the level of the atrocious bunch that Mel Taylor links to in his post on bad radio sites. [...]
Brad LaRock // March 11, 2008 at 1:23 pm |
This will never change until radio goes “back” to servicing it’s service area. Remember when radio was local, and billed itself as local? I do. I was on the air during those days when nothing but what happened in the neighborhood was important. It was about who lived, who died now its about who can read a liner card in the shortest amount of time. Radio is trying to be my Ipod. Good luck. Radio needs to go back to being almost primitive in how they view themselves, then their web content would reflect that.
Will it happen? Not in our lifetime.