Reply to post: Re: Great timing...

Ofcom waves DAB radio licences under local broadcasters' noses as FM switchoff debate smoulders again

Alan Brown Silver badge

Re: Great timing...

I got OUT of radio work _30 years ago_ because local stations were dropping like flies and it was clear what was happening.

Advertisers aren't stupid.

They realised full well that newspaper ads barely work (only if you put the RIGHt ad in the RIGHT paper - a $20 ad in classifieds of one can get you hundreds of times more business than spending $2000 in spreads on another - even if the "another" is the daily local paper.

They also realised back in the 80s that the only way radio advertising works is saturation low level coverage (installing memes, basically) and they WILL NOT pay top dollar for this. The standard situation was they'd agree a $50k campaign, realise it wasn't working and pay $5k, then offer $1k for maintenance at the same advertising level. What can a station do? Having a dearth of adverts is worse for business than having too many - potential advertisers hearing that decide the station has no listeners and stay away in droves (even if surveys show the station in question has more than 50% of the local listenership market of 8 stations - been there, seen that)

There really is no money in local broadcasting, just as there is no money in being a musician. There are the very occasional lucky folk who win the lottery but for 99.999% of participants the only prize is a booby (ie, you get the girl).

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