This is the second part of an interview with Ray Edwards, who “saw the writing on the wall” and decided to leave radio before it was too late.
In this interview, Ray identifies the three steps he feels anyone needs to take in order to embark on any major career or life change.
Watch this radio career video on YouTube.
This is the fourth installment in my advice for radio personalities series.
Radio is a hot medium too often peopled by cold performers — jocks who are completely predictable, who don’t care about their audiences, and whose shows rarely are fueled by emotional or creative inspiration.
These people are all attitude and no substance; they strut and shout but don’t really care about anything.
As a result, they don’t achieve a strong connection with their listeners.
And if you don’t make a human connection with the person on the other side of end of the transmitter, what’s the point?
This is the fifth in a series of articles helping radio salespeople to educate their advertising clients enough for the clients’ commercial campaigns to succeed.
Boasting: “The largest and oldest termite control company in Smallville.”
Helping: “If you’ve got termites, we’ll get rid of them for you. Guaranteed.”
This is the third in a series of Simple Yet Invaluable tips for radio personalities.
In a world of mediocre jocks, it’s not hard for a talented entertainer to stand out.
But it’s deceptively easy to continue doing the same show for years: the same features, characters, and approaches to topical material.
Soon you’re no longer fresh; you’re predictable and lifeless.
Too many jocks experience creative death…but don’t know it until they read their own obituaries in the form of a ratings book…
…or until their employers decide to embrace voice tracking and the jocks suddenly discover they didn’t have careers, they had jobs…
…that deserted them.
Far too many radio jocks (and program directors) kill their own careers by following the deadly credo, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”
A creative person is much safer adhering to the adage, “If it ain’t broke, break it.”
First, the commercial, as it aired on a large Los Angeles radio station.
A radio advertisement‘s opening line is the commercial for the commercial. It sets the stage for the story.
So what’s the story of this commercial?
After opening with a name that only the guy’s friends, family and acquaintances can decipher, the guy says:
“Last year our company sold more cars than we’ve ever sold before!”
Never mind that the truth of that claim might be due to the company’s having acquired additional dealerships. Who in the audience really wants to hear a 60-second story about how successful a car dealer claims to be?
Is this actually the story of how the listener can get an incredible price deal on a car?
Or does the story center on 2 years of free oil & filter changes?
Is the real story the availability of 0% financing on every used car?
I love the declaration that they’ve “literally lowered the price” on their used vehicles. The only way I can think of where that would be true is if they placed the price stickers lower on the cars themselves.
And just when we think it can’t get any worse: Cue the 1950s-style radio announcer to remind listeners that the dealership is “conveniently located” miles away from most of the Los Angeles radio audience.
They give two Calls To Action, one of which is to call them. (Because so many people want to call a car dealer after hearing a radio commercial.)
The second Call To Action apparently has the audio equivalent of an asterisk:
“Visit Galpin.com…on approved credit.”
So….After listening to that commercial, what would you say is the story it’s trying to tell?
