I left Morning Show Boot Camp in Cleveland feeling good about radio. Two people in particular were responsible for that: The first was consultant and author Valerie Geller. Her message was so simple that it seems ridiculous that it needs to be said: focus on the listener, be interesting, be fun and don’t waste people’s time. Yet there are still so many personalities and shows that cannot keep a break short, hold an audience or communicate in a way that sounds like they’re talking to one person.
What stood out most about Valerie was her delivery. Boot Camp can be loud, and overstimulating. Valerie was different. Although passionate, she was calm, real and incredibly easy to listen to. Nothing felt like a lecture, and you didn’t need to see her résumé to understand why she was leading that room. She just made sense.
Geller’s Powerful radio books touch on lot of the same principles, and what stood out is that her advice isn’t limited to radio, it applies to talking to people in general. First is to always listen, then get to the point; make what you’re saying worth somebody’s time and make the person you’re speaking to feel important. A lot of what Valerie said checked off the boxes of what we try to do nightly on Liveline: showcasing the caller and making them the star, not trying to dominate the conversations or talk to thousands of people at once, speaking to one person. That’s how we want the listener to feel. Their call, request, story or opinion matters. It builds the relationship radio can create to build listener loyalty.
The other highlight was Friday morning with Connoisseur Media CEO Jeff Warshaw. Listening to him speak about how he got into radio in Indiana, the current state of the industry and what he’s doing now with more than 200 stations was one of the most inspiring conversations about radio in a long time. To paraphrase one of his most powerful comments, “When you cut the program budget in half, cut the promotion budget in half, and cut the sales staff in half, what do you think you end up with?”
Many executives now struggling under incurable debt load still spew feel-good talk about how great their company or product is. Yet due to the sins of their predecessors, major sales and programming RIFs are the result. Unfortunately, it makes stations less interesting and more irrelevant. Jeff’s philosophy is the opposite: invest in good people, create great live programming, have an impact in the community, and give people a reason to actually want to listen. Do that well and the audience grows, and advertising increases follow.
What also was impressive was hearing him talk about listening to the people who work for him. Radio doesn’t always need to be torn apart and rebuilt. Sometimes listening to your staff helps you figure out what’s getting in their way and give them runway. Connoisseur was well established before buying Alpha Media and the Bonneville San Francisco stations, but it was a massive task that solidified their place in the major market radio landscape.
I happened to be sitting among quite a few people from some of the biggest competitors in radio while Jeff was speaking, and they were all nodding along. I spoke to a few afterward who basically said the same thing: he was right. Jeff even invited anybody who thinks they have something to contribute to reach out and apply to work for the company. There was a feeling that quite a few people will. Jeff is one of the innovators with the energy and leadership skills to help turn radio around. What he described is that charismatic, entertaining programming that’s focused on the listener will attract and hold a listener in a way that another station, a streaming service or a podcast without it can’t replace. Radio is only as bad as the people who run it, and Jeff seems committed to what can make it great.
Beyond those highlights, I’m thankful for everybody who we got to see and spend time with in Cleveland, everyone who came up to say hello, and all the people who took the time to participate in panels and share what they’ve learned. We should be extremely grateful for Don Anthony and everyone who supports Morning Show Boot Camp. The connections made are as valuable as the sessions. You meet somebody new, finally put a face to a name, have a conversation in a hallway or at dinner, and you never know where that relationship might lead. Radio is such a small business, and getting everybody together in the same place each year still matters.
There’s an old saying that “showing up is half the work,” and the people who attend MSBC do it because they love it. You just can’t train or teach passion. You either have it or you don’t. Developing talent from nothing creates nothing. Broadcasters have to love radio, or they’ll treat it like a job instead of their life. And for most people reading this, radio is their life!
P.S. – The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame tour was awesome! Bucket list item checked off!
