jacobs media
the nation's leading rock radio consulting firm
W.T.D.A. In action

WTDA In Action

Social Networking Sites

Social Networking Sites

This could be the easiest thing you do to to enhance your digital presence.  If your station - and EVERY jock doesn't have a MySpace, Facebook, or Twitter page yet... Get one!

As Leo Laporte (or TWIT.TV fame) said at Summit 13 this year - personalities without a MySpace, Facebook or Twitter page won't have a job in a year.  It takes minutes to set them up, and can attract hundreds (thousands?) of "friends" and followers in short order.  These sites provide multiple outlets for posting blogs, station events, pictures, videos, and other things that help pull the curtain back further and make your station more relatable - and interesting - to your audience.

While these efforts do vary in their overall importance depending on your demo target and format, we are seeing more and more "older folks" use these site (40-55 year olds are moving to Facebook in droves).

Elf, Mullet, or Bobble-Yourself

____ Yourself!

Simple, fun and can generate huge traffic.  Jack in LA had fun doing this feature using mullets,, and the MLB, with XM, put together a bobble-head feature.  Granted, the "Elf/Scrooge Yourself" feature is a bit more encompassing, and can require some significant resources, but that very feature put Office Max, an otherwise staid web adjunct to a brick-and-mortar outlet, into the Top 10 Web sites in terms of traffic last December.  So, they would undoubtedly consider it to be worth the expense.  And don't forget the Simpsonize Me site, another great interactive/viral campaign along these lines.

Always require a sign-up to your database to participate - and be certain that the viral elements are in place (email/suggest to a friend-type feature).  Share the application with bloggers and message boards to get some organic growth as well.

These can be as simple as repurposing a "sign generator" and allowing uploads of photos or other material.  Dozens of open-source applications along these lines are readily available that could be repurposed quite easily.  Another option is to have listeners submit their photos and simply insert them into a template yourself (using Photoshop, Fireworks, Corel Draw, etc.)

Personality Blogs

Personality Blogs 

These are simple to create, and don't take a lot of effort to maintain - and they allow an inside look at what goes on behind the mic, as well as creating visual opportunities that wouldn't otherwise exist.

There's a million applications that will host and warehouse your blogs:  blogger.com, ttypepad.com, etc.  They make it easy to create multiple blogs and weave them together seamlessly, and give access to the appropriate people for regular updates.  You can house these externally from your site, or bring them in-house, but either way, it's a smart way to showcase your talent, build relationships and create additional online content to drive traffic for your site.

Music Stores

Music Stores

For music-based stations, there's really no stronger application from an eCommerce standpoint than a music store.  While you may not make a killing, the added value and benefits to your audience more than justify the effort.

There's a number of ways to go - most importantly is to integrate the store with your "Now Playing" feature (with archives dating back at least several days).  Stores and sales are available from iTunes, Tune Genie, Jump2Go, Yes.net, and Amazon.com.  Don't just go for the highest affiliate rate, look for what will be trusted by your audience and most likely to spotlight or specialize in music related to your format..