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RADIO CASHES IN ON LOVE

June 23, 2011 – 2:01 pm No Comment

MatchLink is a singles dating network that served the radio industry for many years. The Evanston, Illinois company Spark Network Services provided an IVR-based dating service to radio stations. Radio listeners called a phone number and paid to interact with other singles through a sophisticated voice mail system. Payment was made through credit card or a 900 number. Some stations were earning a half million dollars per year with the service.

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The Radio CEO that Listens Will

Submitted by ericcorwin on February 12, 2010 – 2:18 pmNo Comment

by Eric Corwin

I was reading an article recently by John Ryan of the Center for Creative Leadership about A. G. Lafley chief executive officer of Procter & Gamble. Upon his stepping down from the company he received praise from his contemporaries and people within the media. This article got me thinking about the opportunity those CEOs and other leaders within radio have if they take Lafley’s example. During his eight-year run, Procter & Gamble’s top-down culture, which also exists in most broadcast groups, became far more collaborative and innovative. This evolution let to a doubling of the revenues at P&G. There is no question that dynamic and innovative leaders are hard to find, but the opportunity is there for a radio broadcast CEO, or leader at any level within the organization, to step forward. Which broadcast CEO is going to be the A.G. Lafley of the radio industry?
Lafley was an adept strategist and was not adverse to risk. He believed in the transformative power of marketing and design. But what many consider his most important strength, that helped develop a successful cooperate culture for open dialogue, was his ability to communicate and LISTEN effectively.
Every industry and organization has its own challenges. Radio 2010 is certainly in a difficult spot, but a bold initiate by a broadcast group leader can lead to a metamorphose within their group and eventually the industry. Broadcasting will never be the same; technology and innovation has seen to that. Broadcasting can take its place along side the new digital technologies of today and be in a better position, but only if our leadership in radio 2010 steps up. It’s time to LISTEN to your managers and front-line employees.
The following six steps from Michael Hoppe, a retired faculty member at the Center for Creative Leadership, are reminders, and in some cases bitter tasting medicine for those in our industry, at every level, that may have forgotten how to communicate and listen.
1. Pay attention. Turn off your BlackBerry. Maintain eye contact. Nod to show you understand. Otherwise the conversation is dead before it starts.
2. Suspend judgment. Hold your criticisms, and let others explain how they view a situation. You don’t need to agree; just show some empathy.
3. Reflect. Periodically recap others’ points to confirm your understanding. Often it turns out you missed something.
4. Clarify. Ask open-ended questions that encourage people to expand their ideas. For example: “What are your thoughts about how we might increase sales in this economy?”
5. Summarize. Briefly restate core themes raised by the person you’re talking with. You’re not agreeing or disagreeing; you’re simply closing the loop.
6. Share. Once you know where that person stands, introduce your own ideas and suggestions. That’s how good conversations get even better.
Dare to be better by following the above six steps. Become a better communicator. You may not become A.G. Lafley, but it is certain that you will become a better leader and in turn you’ll be able to get more from your organization. Take the time to practice these techniques and you will start to see amazing things happen. You will begin to enhance the performance of your organization and the resulting payoff will be great.