Broadcast Salespersons Should Buy Their Own Ads Too

I allocate many dollars of broadcast money on behalf of ad-agencies, advertisers and marketing departments for professional service businesses. Therefore, a lot of broadcast reps contact me.

I tell my ad clients that they're always gambling their money, though with better odds than Vegas; yet my sales reps often tell me that advertising on their stations will definitely work. Well, if broadcast advertising works so well, how come there is always open ad inventory? The truth is that there are advertisers who can make broadcasting profitable if their margins can justify the thousands of dollars necessary to lay the foundation in their brand name and if they're willing to commit to the costly trial and error to find a campaign that will work-for a while. If this stuff worked even 20 percent of the time, there would not be a revolving door of radio and TV reps beating on doors to "close the deal."

Nobody has a greater love for broadcast than I do, though you may not suspect that after reading my opening paragraphs. Heck, I can even tell you who the announcer was for Leave to Beaver and who the KMOX FM morning man was for six months in 1982 in St. Louis, but at the same time, as an ad man, I must tell clients and prospects that most of the time it takes a lot of trial and error time and money for those advertiser to find a campaign that will reap consistent profits.

Funny story. The very sales reps who call me consistently to try to persuade me to spend my clients' money on their stations often have their own cottage businesses, yet they never buy air time on their own stations for their own businesses. I am still trying to get a former 15 year broadcast salesman to take some free radio time that I secured for him to advertise his new business, but he said that it's not worth his while to even review the ad copy-even though all the air time is free. How's that for confidence in broadcast advertising?

Oh I do know one business owner who consistently eats his own cooking and advertises his own broadcast ad agency business via talk radio, me. Yes, I know firsthand what that professional service business owner is up against when he shells out thousands of dollars of his own money! Perhaps spending my own money on broadcast ads has made me a more effective broadcast ad strategist, and even SpokesVoice, on behalf of my clientele who also utilize broadcast advertising. Yet, even after 20 years, I don't have one client where results come effortlessly. Persuasive ad copy and strategizing take time and effort over a long period. It wasn't easy 20 years ago to generate consistent profits, and it's often more difficult today, especially with so much fragmentation.
www.brucehorlick.com and www.radiostorybooks.com

What is the Future of Broadcast?

I negotiate with broadcast media reps everyday, while bouncing in and out of
voice-over sessions. I have a love for broadcast but I have noticed that it's more difficult for advertisers to generate concrete results. Why? Fragmentation. Take radio. Ten years ago audio books were not a billion dollars plus industry; IPods were not in vogue; satellite radio was not around and there were not as many formats. Some 10 to 29 markets are even supporting two or three sports radio stations (or are they supporting them?)

The good news for advertisers is that most stations have had to lower their ad rates, and thus some advertisers can still justify radio spending... An initial media buy is justified based on data. Then, the advertiser asks if that media buy should continue based on the more important cost per customer, per patient, per case, per client... Often advertisers are diverting broadcast money to interactive media because they're finding their "cost per" is less expensive than in broadcast and print. How can so many stations afford to stay in business (even the ones with low operating costs), especially when their advertising clients must generate real results to continue spending ad dollars?

I wonder when some stations will be forced to go dark. If not now, will stations start going dark when automobiles are equiped with web radio, sites which will be commercial free and cost very little to operate... In other words, will transmitters and towers really be needed? Will business models like www.hulu.com (a true hybrid between TV and interactive) make the most economic sense for advertisers?

I hope that someone will say to me, "Bruce, you're missing one or two important factors and here's why local radio and T.V. stations will prosper." I posed these very concerns to a former radio owner who said that he loved being in the radio business in the 60s, 70s, 80s but he recently told me that he was glad he got out of the business in the mid-90s, and that he agrees with my prediction (unfortunately).

Bottom line? I have a feeling social networks will make narrowcasting
super-narrowcasting and that a number of media hobbyists will make just a little bit of money in their own little highly fragmented worlds. The media money from advertisers overall will stay the same probably but their payments will be delivered to many more vendors in smaller amounts.
www.brucehorlick.com and www.radiostorybooks.com

Boars Head, EverRoast, Joseph Sirola

Remember the announcer on the Wendy's ads when Dave Thomas was the on-camera talent? Joseph Sirola is sounding as rich and warm as ever for BoarsHead. Why has it been so long since Joseph Sirola has been on a major national campaign? Sure wish I would hear him show up on The History Channel or PBS, at least on promos...
www.brucehorlick.com and www.radiostorybooks.com

Negative Comments are Positive, Profitable & More Productive.

Here is one for all the voices like me who actually prefer the sound of, "We can't stand your voice, your 'takes', and we will not hire you." As opposed to "Well, we feel your voice and 'takes' are just fine and we are going to keep you 'on-file'." I've learned the latter comment is just too uncertain to spend resources on. Yeah, every once in while a producer who said "fine" turns into a client, but overall my net profits would have been higher had I never directed resources toward a producer who was less than thrilled... Frankly, I would rather find out what type of voice would really float that producer's boat, so I can direct her/him to a voice who will be ideal. But I suppose too many voices get hurt when producers give negative feedback, and the producers just can't discern when it's truly okay to be honest. Damn my ego riden cohorts or damn those spineless producers??? I just don't know, though I suspect it's a combination... Yet I know everyone wins when producers give me honest feedback. I use negative feedback as an opportunity to direct that refreshing and bold producer to the perfect voice. How do I win? Sometimes, the grateful voice, who ultimately gets the gig, will try to reciprocate. Plus, the producer who was kind enough (yes, kind enough) to risk being candid gets exactly what she/he wants, and I get far more satisfaction from that professional courtesy than by taking a check for a "fine" V.O. Ahhhh, so much more productive for everyone.

Actually one of the most productive encounters of my career came from a radio program director. I am not one of the voices who is a career radio guy. My background and my main bread and butter today is in the ad agency business. Yet as a hobby many years ago, I worked fill-in and part time hosting requests and dedications in a soft rock radio format. In what's known as an "air check session," the program director, Bob Burch, tore up my on-air performance. Every time he stopped the tape he had something negative to say about my work. The two minute air check tape took him 20 minutes to pick apart... At the end of the session, I asked Bob if he wanted my resignation. He said, "What? I probably just fixed your on-air affectations. Do you think I would have wasted my time critiquing your work if I didn't think you were worthy?" Because Bob had the guts to be bold and to not sugar coat his comments, sensing I wanted to be better, he sent me through the best growing gush of my career. Those 20 minutes whipped my on-air performance into shape. Six months later, Bob was letting me substitute on PM drive. I applied his advice to my commercial and industrial voice-over demos as well, and I started getting V.O. gigs. That was almost 20 years ago, and I crave another growing gush like the gush for which Bob Burch was responsible. If there were more Bob Burches, we would all make more money or at least know where to redirect our energy.
www.brucehorlick.com and www.radiostorybooks.com

I Don't Understand Network Promo VoiceCasting

Do many of today's promo voices all sound the same?

If I turn my head and fail to hear the network letters, I can't tell which network is which. Yeah, the voices often sound fine (some are terrible), but I just can't tell many of the voices or their networks apart. Why do networks targeting 35 plus viewers use promo voices that sound 20? Why do networks targeting 18-34 use promo voices that sound like seniors? What don't I understand? I understood when Casey Kasum/Danny Dark were the network exclusive voices of NBC, Ernie Anderson/Bill Rice for ABC, and when Joe Cipriano was exclusive on FOX. Each network had a true sound...

Okay, perhaps an argument can be made for program specific voices, as opposed to network specific voices, but why must sooooooo many promo voices be directed to the same guttural dramatic whisper? I look forward to a break-out promo voice. My favorite network promo voice was probably Danny Dark due to his range, as he could hit the mark on so many types of shows effortlessly. Robert R. Lynn from St. Louis who was the voice of Channel 11 was fantastic too in the 80s and early 90s; it's ashame a national audience never got to catch his work (ISDN wasn't quite in vogue). BTW, I love the wacky guy NBC uses from time to time, the guy who had a big campaign for White Castle about ten years ago... Don't know why he is not consistently on some fitting network. If he is, I haven't heard him. Anybody know his name?

On a personal note, I would love to use the mood I used on my Audio Book Demo Section under Humorist on network promos. I think that flavor would be a break from conventional promo wisdom...

I know, I know. "Bruce, we have focus groups who dictate the sound we use." Don't forget focus groups panned Seinfeld. Don't forget Don Hewitt programmed 60 minutes from his gut. Frankly, half the time when I place media buys based on empirical data, the advertiser fails to get results, and often THEN that advertiser will defer to "my gut" on how to allocate broadcast ad dollars... "My gut" generally trumps the data.
www.brucehorlick.com and www.radiostorybooks.com

Bruce and Rickles, together TWICE

What makes life worth living? In my life, it's a story well told (within a few takes)... But I think my main joy in life has been striking up conversations with strangers in coffee shops. It's been my hobby for the past ten years, and has been fantastic entertainment. You wouldn't believe the fantastic stories I hear from intellectuals, doctors, bohemians, bums and business people-total strangers YET they say so much. They're a great source of entertainment and just because I am willing to strike up a conversation. They're almost as much entertainment as Larry David and Don Rickles... Speaking of Rickles, whadda great voice? Yeah, yeah, he's hilarious (I am a huge fan) but have you ever heard him tell a story when he's serious? Hear him talk in interviews on NPR. His voice has a warm texture, resonance and spirit. I even took notice of his speaking voice before the summer 2003-when Rickles actually called me on stage at The Sands in Las Vegas and proceeded to insult me. Then, in Sept. 2008, he randomly called me on stage AGAIN in my home town of St. Louis. As I was walking off stage, following his line of fire for the second time in my life in front of my home town, I whispered to him that he randomly had called me on stage five years prior... Then, when I returned to my seat, he announced to the audience that he has never called the same person on stage twice in two different cities in 55 years of live performances. Should I start playing the lottery? Many years ago, I said that one of ten experiences that I would like to have before being put in my casket is to be the butt of Don Rickles jokes. Can you believe that wish happened to me twice, with no kind of prompting? Frankly though, I think Rickles has such a keen sense of audiences and he probably is able to "key in" on the guy who seems to be enjoying him the most, and that's guy he calls up on stage to batter If a biography is ever written about Rickles I hope to tell the story in an audio book. Now, I just need to spend the day rolling around with Larry David. I think I would trump Larry in creating trouble some how, some way. You see, Larry David is me. Not in looks, but in temperament and personality. My girlfriend had been kicking me to try to create a reality show but I told her that the show was taken. She never believed me UNTIL she actually watched Curb Your Enthusiasm. She is still convinced Larry had been spying on me. Oh, Larry and I mean well but somehow, some way our intentions are always misunderstood. While it'd be fun to tell the Larry David story in a documentary or audio book, I would rather just hang out with him.

Right now, I gotta jump in studio to tell the stories of ten "St. Louisians, A Slice of Their Lives." I like these one minute anecdotes about native St. Louisians I narrate. You can hear one piece I narrated a couple of months ago on the woman who holds the World's Highest IQ, Marilyn Vos Sevant; I used the piece as one of my demos on www.brucehorlick.com in the broadcast section. I have had at least six people say to me, unsolicited, "Hey, I didn't know the Ask Marilyn lady was from here..."
www.brucehorlick.com and www.radiostorybooks.com