IT'S ABOUT TIME
THERE'S NO DOUBT ABOUT IT, TIME IS THE ONE COMMON DENOMINATOR
WE ALL ARE INFLUENCED BY. IT KEEPS ON TICKING REGARDLESS OF WHO
WE ARE OR WHERE WE ARE. RADIO IS NO EXCEPTION. WE WHO HAVE BEEN
IN THE BUSINESS, ARE "SLAVES" TO TIME. NO WHERE IS IT MORE IMPORTANT
THAN THE HOUR-THE "SOUND HOUR" TO BE MORE EXACT. IN MY VIEW, NOT
ENOUGH ATTENTION IS PAID TO THIS BASIC ELEMENT OF TIME. THE HOUR IS
THE ONE DIVISION OF RADIO TIME THAT ALL STATION'S IN ANY MARKET OR
AREA HAVE IN COMMON. IT IS, HOWEVER, WHAT ONE DOES WITH THAT HOUR
WHICH MAKES A GOOD RADIO STATION, A GREAT ONE. IN RADIO, NOT EVERY
HOUR IS THE SAME, BUT THE SIXTY MINUTES WITHIN THAT HOUR IS WHERE
THE "SECRET" LIES. TO BE A GOOD PROGRAMMER, ONE MUST COMPARE HIS
OR HER "SOUND HOUR'S" TO THE COMPETITOR'S. EACH HOUR IN EACH 24
HOUR DAY MUST BE EVALUATED AGAINST A STATION'S MARKET COMPETITION
SEVEN DAYS A WEEK, 52 WEEKS A YEAR. WHEN STARTING TO PROGRAM A
SOUND HOUR, YOU MUST FIRST HAVE TO KNOW WHAT INGREDIENTS ARE TO
MAKE UP THAT HOUR. THE VERY FIRST INGREDIENT YOU MUST KNOW IS:
HOW MANY COMMERCIAL MINUTES ARE GOING TO MAKE UP THAT HOUR...
IN OTHER WORDS, HOW MUCH TIME WILL BE LEFT FOR ME TO PROGRAM
MY FORMAT..WHETHER IT BE MUSIC, NEWS OR INFORMATION. MANAGEMENT
MUST TELL YOU HOW MANY COMMERCIAL "UNITS" THEY WANT OR NEED IN
EACH DAY-PART(including sponsored news, weather, traffic etc.). AFTER YOU MINUS
THE NUMBER OF COMMERCIAL MINUTES IN EACH 60 MINUTE HOUR, YOU NOW
KNOW HOW MUCH REAL PROGRAM TIME YOU HAVE LEFT TO FILL. IF YOU'RE
A MUSIC STATION, YOU NEXT HAVE TO FIGURE WHAT THE AVERAGE LENGTH
OF THE SONGS YOU'RE GOING TO PLAY. THIS, OBVIOUSLY, WILL TELL YOU HOW
MANY OR HOW MUCH MUSIC YOUR LISTENERS WILL BE ABLE TO HEAR. ALL
OF THIS, BEFORE, SELECTING THE PERCENTAGE OF "HITS" TO "OLDIES"...OR
POWER SONGS TO OTHER SONG TYPES. EACH SOUND HOUR SHOULD BE AS
POWERFUL AS YOU CAN MAKE IT FOR THE DESIRED DAY-PART. TO ME, THERE
SHOULD NEVER BE A WEAK HOUR. I BELIEVE IN BALANCE. WHAT YOU DO IN
ONE HALF OF THE "SOUND HOUR", YOU SHOULD DUPLICATE AS MUCH AS YOU
CAN IN THE SECOND HALF OF THAT HOUR. PEOPLE TUNE IN AT ALL TIMES IN
AN HOUR, BUT BY BALANCING THE HOUR, MOST WILL HEAR WHAT YOU WANT
YOUR FORMAT TO "COMMUNICATE" TO THEM. IT'S NOT EASY PROGRAMMING
A "SOUND HOUR"...OR TO "MAINTAIN" IT CONSISTENTLY. ONE NEVER CAN
"TWEAK" AN HOUR TOO MUCH IN MY MIND, THERE'S ALWAYS MORE THAT
CAN BE DONE TO KEEP EACH OF YOUR STATION'S HOURS BETTER THAN ANY
ONE ELSE'S. THAT'S WHERE DEDICATION AND ATTENTION TO DETAIL COME IN.
THAT'S WHERE GREAT RADIO STATIONS SEPARATE THEMSELVES FROM THE
CROWD. OF COURSE THERE'S MUCH MORE TO DISCUSS IN PROGRAMMING A
"SOUND HOUR"...BUT I FEEL THIS IS WHERE IT ALL STARTS...WITH TIME. TO
ME, THIS IS WHAT IT'S ABOUT. DO BETTER WITH TIME, AND TIME WILL ALWAYS
DO BETTER BY YOU. THAT'S MY RADIOPINION...WHAT'S YOURS?
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