It’s a funny thing – teaching others. You learn far more when you teach than you’re ever able to impart to your audience. Even so, one of my favorite things about being a teacher is that it gives me the impetus to stay at the top of my game – with the constant goal of passing the good stuff on when I write, speak, work with clients, in non-profit work and even over coffee with a friend.
As I’ve said many times, I don’t think there has ever been a more exciting time to be in the communication business. Everything is new. The ad budgets I manage have transformed over the past 5 years with many clients no longer running on “traditional media,” focusing instead on the myriad opportunities offered by the internet…but not every category of client:
As I write this entry, I’m about to embark on the once-yearly media buying frenzy for my non-orthodontic clients. In the next few weeks I will spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on what we now call traditional media for one of my longer-term clients. Each year I meet with representatives from various print, radio and television companies to negotiate “the buy.”
When I met with Scarlett, a representative from a large broadcasting company with numerous stations throughout the country, she shared that one of the ways they are engaging radio audiences is by leveraging the relationships listeners have with their favorite DJ’s. The DJ’s are now online blogging, facebooking and tweating and they’ve had good success in moving the more passive relationship of listener to DJ into new territory online. I’ll be watching this trend to see if it marks another chapter in the ever resilient world of radio broadcasting. Many a prognosticator said radio couldn’t survive the onset of television in the 1950’s, but radio not only survived – it continued to redefine itself and grow. It no longer controls the flow of information as it once did – but it continues to find ways to bring its voice to the conversation in compelling ways.
One of the more interesting opportunities for marketers has to do with text messaging. “But Jeff, what does that have to do with radio?” you might ask. 
“Easy.” I say. For example, on the air they are giving away tickets to a Jonas Brothers concert. Instead of “taking the 9th caller,” the audience is encouraged to text their contest entry to a specific number. The station then sends a confirmation text to all those who sent in their entry and, included in the confirmation, is an offer for 20% off the purchase of any item at Gap Kids. It’s the perfect way to match a demographic segment with a business – and it’s very easy to track results. Plus, Gap Kids never even runs a radio ad!
The jury is still out (mine, at least) on how to value SMS marketing, but I’m very interested in exploring this new approach to creating value through interaction – rather than the old model of one-way communication most of us think of when the topic of advertising comes up. There may be less people listening to the radio – and more ways to skip out of the ads when they do run, but integrating new technologies like SMS and moving relationships onto the web is clearly a good direction for the broadcast industry. As for me – I’ll be listening and as I move some clients into these new opportunities I’ll let you know how it goes. Maybe I’ll even send you a text about it.