Seth Godin is Poking You. Now Do Something.

Book Review: Seth Godin “Poke The Box”  – it’s $7.88 at Amazon at the time of this post.

I’m an unabashed fan of Seth Godin’s books. Some have been very formative in how I go about my life and business and some just made me tilt my head a little as the light flickered on in my head with a new awareness and understanding. His latest book, “Poke the Box,” is an example of how great things come in small packages. It’s a quick read with no chapters per se, just example after example of why you should stop making excuses, whining, contemplating failure and just start doing. He makes a strong case that businesses should have a person dedicated to “starting things” and reward those who fail. The theory is if you’re failing, you’re doing something.

In one example, Godin points at Starbucks. It started at Pike’s Place Market in Seattle as a coffee bean and tea leaf shop. You couldn’t buy a cup of coffee. That wasn’t in the business plan. When Howard Schultz took a trip to Italy and watched the barista make his espresso like an artist on a stage, he knew he was on to something. He brought the idea of baristas and cappuccino to Starbuck’s and they weren’t interested. Schultz’ idea ultimately prevailed, but without starting something and “failing” (selling beans and leafs), Starbucks may have never had happened.

Fail. The more you fail the closer you are to succeeding. Try something. Ship it to market. Get feedback. Tweak it or trash it, make something new and ship again. Repeat. And this is even more important for companies and individuals who have already found some success.

Poke the box. See what works.  Be an instigator. Be unconventional. Challenge the status quo. Stir the pot. Stop collecting good ideas and start implementing them.

What Sports & Talk Radio Can Learn From Oprah

I know what you’re thinking – Larry’s lost it. I know Oprah has become the manly man’s kryptonite, but love her or hate her; it’s undeniable that Oprah understands broadcasting and how to connect with an audience. In her Master Class series on OWN, Oprah passed along insights that apply to all of us in the industry.

- Whether she’s speaking to one hundred, ten thousand or a million people, Oprah seizes each as an opportunity to educate, inspire or uplift. She wants people to walk away saying, “I never thought of it that way.” 

- Oprah is a collector of experiences.  She uses these experiences to understand what she doesn’t know, so she can be a bridge for her fans. In turn, she shares and creates these experiences for as many people as she can. As a side note: one my fraternity brothers – a former wrestler and football player – was on Oprah’s Australian trip this year for “ultimate fans” and is now spreading the word of the power and mystique of the Oprah experience.

- Oprah goes out of her way to be a story teller. She puts a human face on stories and, though often extreme, finds the commonality between the person she’s interviewing and the people who are watching and explores it so everyone can learn and grow.

WHATS THIS HAVE TO DO WITH ME?

I believe these ideas hold true for sports and talk radio too.

- Every time you crack the microphone you have an opportunity and obligation to inform, educate, inspire, or entertain. You can help people think differently and motivate an army of fans with the sound of your voice. There is a big responsibility that goes with that.

- Experience life, share it with your fans, and look for opportunities to create experiences for others.

- Tell stories about people. Whatever it is you decide to talk about, put a face on it. Tell their story. And then search for the humanness in that story, the universal truths to which fans generally respond like courage, selfishness, camaraderie, sacrifice, pride, hubris, fear, success and failure.

As a news-talk or sports host, you have an opportunity to impact and influence people. Be cautious and conscious with this privilege.

“Payoffs” – Defining Moments of Your Show

“Payoff” is quickly usurping “Play the Hits” as king of buzz words among news-talk and sports programmers and consultants. Both are important concepts for driving ratings, but the terms are used so frequently the meaning is becoming muddled.

I asked a handful of people – programmers, producers, and consultants — to help me define “payoff.”

Don Martin at Fox Sports Radio was quick to point out the first bit of confusion with the term.

“First blush when I hear the term ‘payoff’ in the radio vernacular, two definitions jump to the forefront and one is an FCC infraction.”

So let’s be clear. We are not talking payola. No money exchanges hands in the type of payoff we are talking about unless a listener wins a contest or your payoffs are so good your ratings go up and revenue flies through the door.

Martin continues,“My definition of a payoff from a programming stand point, is the call to action tease that your talent uses to keep your audience through commercial breaks.”

When I coach talent about payoffs, I describe it as something that prompts a response from a listener.  The goal is to take the listener somewhere they’ve never been so when they get to the destination they react unconsciously – audibly or internally. That very well could be the lack of action too or not changing the radio station for a commercial break, because you want to hear the story that was just teased. That’s the infamous “driveway moment.”

Pete Gianesini, a programmer at the ESPN Radio Network, defines payoff this way.

“A strong, genuine reaction from the listener… could be a belly laugh, could be anger, could be bewilderment, could be a piece of information that I now can’t wait to share with someone else (a real-life re-tweet).”

I love the idea of a real-life re-tweet. I also call it social currency. It’s what the listener earns in return for investing time into your show or station.

Rick Scott at Rick Scott & Associates adds, “A payoff is simply content that has value for the listener. It can be entertaining, informative, or insightful.”

The trick to this is that the value Rick talks about is perceived by the listener not the host or station. So it’s important to reinforce the value of your content to your listener through branding and positioning. Don’t be afraid to tell listeners that what they are hearing is special.

At 104.3FM The Fan in Denver, Programmer Nate Lundy adds another layer.

“Payoffs happen when the team has managed to achieve one of two goals.  Either building up the image and the brand of the station, or bringing a positive effect on the ratings.  The biggest and best payoffs accomplish both, but you don’t need to have both for it to be considered a success.”

Nate is right. The goal of payoffs is to increase listening to the station. Listening increases when people feel there is a value to spending more time with the station. So, as ratings increase it’s fair to assume revenue will increase and the brand of the station grows accordingly.

At 710 ESPN in Seattle, Brian Long expands the payoff to beyond the scope of the host.

“I would define a payoff when a promotion, tease, or on-air bit has the right amount of build-up creating interest and then is effectively paid off.”

This is an important point. Listeners don’t always discern the difference between payoffs. They don’t even know they are waiting for a payoff. We use that word; they don’t. So, a promotion can definitely provide a payoff. A station event or remote can also provide a payoff, as well as traffic reports, weather reports, and news or sports updates, but again only if the listener perceives it as a value.

So put all of that into a blender and here is the definition of a payoff as it relates to radio. 

One example of a payoff that stands out to Gianesini is how Colin Cowherd handled Aaron Rodgers following the Super Bowl.

“After not buying into Aaron Rodgers as an NFL superstar, Colin had him on the day after he won the Super Bowl. Aaron was very much aware of Colin’s position and put Colin on the spot during their piece. It was just the right mix of lighthearted, yet uncomfortable, to be very compelling. And completely unscripted. That’s the hard part. While I believe you have to plan your show and promote specific elements more than ever and further in advance than ever, you can’t be SO committed to the minute-by-minute that you don’t let spontaneity happen. That’s where the magic is.”

Newsletter Poll

Some have suggested the “Let’s Talk About It” newsletter, shouldn’t be called a newsletter (Lets Talk About It – Issue IX – March 2011). Here is one e-mail, ““You asked in part of your newsletter if we had any suggestions. I always hated the word NEWSLETTER. Sounds like something they’d hand you as you pick up your kid a Day Care.”

sign up for “Let’s Talk About It” for free at www.larrygifford.com

Have You Flavor-Sealed Your Radio Station?

In 2007, a “Jerry Maguire-esque” memo from Starbuck’s chairman Howard Schultz to his senior management team was leaked. At that time, I was inspired by the words he wrote and penned a memo to my team and peers using Starbuck’s story as a cautionary tale. This week, Newsweek is following up with Schultz and updating the Starbucks story, “How Starbucks Got Its Mojo Back,” so I felt it only appropriate to update my messaging as well.

Starbucks is a brand just like your radio station. Your brand is your most valuable resource. The experience fans should have with your brand is unique, powerful, personal and ever evolving. Do not forget your roots, the inspiration for the station, how it has impacted the community, and what it stands for. After reading the memo (below) take precautions to keep your radio station from becoming stale or worse – flavor-sealed. Let your fans take a deep breath and inhale the experience of your radio station.

10 Steps to prevent your radio station from falling down the Starbuck’s slide…

1. Talk WITH fans instead of AT or ABOVE them.

2. Be better story tellers.

3. Walk the fine line between pride and chest-pounding. You can only be remarkable if others are remarking about you.  

4. Challenge your own incumbency and conventional wisdom.  

5. Find ways to better serve your fans and meet their needs. Connect with them on their terms.

6. Stop being so self-righteous. Have fun. Be self-deprecating.

7. Surprise your fans.

8. Find ways to connect with the fan by engaging them outside the radio station in activities and causes they are already passionate about.  

9. Know what your brand stands for, because every time you compromise your brand fundamentals there is a cost. (listeners, ratings, revenue, clients, employee satisfaction and more.)

10. Listen. Notice what’s not right. Propose solutions. Take action.

Please share your thoughts by posting comments. 

**THE MEMO** 

February 23, 2007

Starbucks chairman warns of “the commoditization of the Starbucks experience”

Starbucks chairman Howard Schultz wrote this to CEO Jim Donald earlier this month. The memo’s authenticity has been confirmed by Starbucks.

From: Howard Schultz
Sent: Wednesday, February 14, 2007 10:39 AM Pacific Standard Time
To: Jim Donald
Cc: Anne Saunders; Dave Pace; Dorothy Kim; Gerry Lopez; Jim Alling; Ken Lombard; Martin Coles; Michael Casey; Michelle Gass; Paula Boggs; Sandra Taylor

Subject: The Commoditization of the Starbucks Experience

As you prepare for the FY 08 strategic planning process, I want to share some of my thoughts with you.

Over the past ten years, in order to achieve the growth, development, and scale necessary to go from less than 1,000 stores to 13,000 stores and beyond, we have had to make a series of decisions that, in retrospect, have lead to the watering down of the Starbucks experience, and, what some might call the commoditization of our brand.

Many of these decisions were probably right at the time, and on their own merit would not have created the dilution of the experience; but in this case, the sum is much greater and, unfortunately, much more damaging than the individual pieces. For example, when we went to automatic espresso machines, we solved a major problem in terms of speed of service and efficiency. At the same time, we overlooked the fact that we would remove much of the romance and theatre that was in play with the use of the La Marzocca machines. This specific decision became even more damaging when the height of the machines, which are now in thousands of stores, blocked the visual sight line the customer previously had to watch the drink being made, and for the intimate experience with the barista. This, coupled with the need for fresh roasted coffee in every North America city and every international market, moved us toward the decision and the need for flavor locked packaging. Again, the right decision at the right time, and once again I believe we overlooked the cause and the affect of flavor lock in our stores. We achieved fresh roasted bagged coffee, but at what cost? The loss of aroma — perhaps the most powerful non-verbal signal we had in our stores; the loss of our people scooping fresh coffee from the bins and grinding it fresh in front of the customer, and once again stripping the store of tradition and our heritage? Then we moved to store design. Clearly we have had to streamline store design to gain efficiencies of scale and to make sure we had the ROI on sales to investment ratios that would satisfy the financial side of our business. However, one of the results has been stores that no longer have the soul of the past and reflect a chain of stores vs. the warm feeling of a neighborhood store. Some people even call our stores sterile, cookie cutter, no longer reflecting the passion our partners feel about our coffee. In fact, I am not sure people today even know we are roasting coffee. You certainly can’t get the message from being in our stores. The merchandise, more art than science, is far removed from being the merchant that I believe we can be and certainly at a minimum should support the foundation of our coffee heritage. Some stores don’t have coffee grinders, French presses from Bodum, or even coffee filters.

Now that I have provided you with a list of some of the underlying issues that I believe we need to solve, let me say at the outset that we have all been part of these decisions. I take full responsibility myself, but we desperately need to look into the mirror and realize it’s time to get back to the core and make the changes necessary to evoke the heritage, the tradition, and the passion that we all have for the true Starbucks experience. While the current state of affairs for the most part is self induced, that has lead to competitors of all kinds, small and large coffee companies, fast food operators, and mom and pops, to position themselves in a way that creates awareness, trial and loyalty of people who previously have been Starbucks customers. This must be eradicated.

I have said for 20 years that our success is not an entitlement and now it’s proving to be a reality. Let’s be smarter about how we are spending our time, money and resources. Let’s get back to the core. Push for innovation and do the things necessary to once again differentiate Starbucks from all others. We source and buy the highest quality coffee. We have built the most trusted brand in coffee in the world, and we have an enormous responsibility to both the people who have come before us and the 150,000 partners and their families who are relying on our stewardship.

Finally, I would like to acknowledge all that you do for Starbucks. Without your passion and commitment, we would not be where we are today.

Onward…

Radio is an Art

I recently watched a video from the TED conference featuring spoken word poet Sarah Kay and it was a good reminder that spoken word radio is also an art form.

Sarah describes the beginning of a great story as the intersection where what you are passionate about meets what others are invested in. She tries each time she opens her mouth to make impossible connections with people.

The key to great spoken-word poetry and spoken-word radio are the same.

Entertain. Inform. Inspire. It’s about gathering up all the knowledge and experience you’ve collected up until now to help you dive into things you don’t know. Sarah suggests approaching each day / show / poem with your backpack filled with everywhere else you have been.

Sound advice for all radio hosts.

Take 18 minutes and watch this video.

Things I’ve Heard Recently That I’m Still Thinking About…

“Give people permission to fail.” – Seth Godin. If people fear failure they won’t take risks, try anything new, and they won’t raise their hand and volunteer, because there is no upside. As a manager, encourage creativity, challenge conventional wisdom and celebrate failures as part of the process of trying.

Mass media feeds social media. And social media feeds mass media. It’s a continuous loop. – TED conference

Don’t ignore your twitter followers and facebook friends. A reply from a radio show or host may make their day. – Nate Riggs

Over 60% of men 25-54 never flip from the FM to AM dial in a given ratings period. – Arbitron

The Local Radio Remote – A Hot (Sauce) Mess

See hot sauce spillage on the ground near the table.

I was at Jiffy Lube with my son over the weekend getting an oil change. It just happened to be the day 104.3 MY FM was doing a station appearance. The “appearance” was a 10×10 tent, a back drop, a bannered table and two chairs from the lobby. There was no other signage in or around the Jiffy Lube. The tent was set up away from the flow of customer traffic, so to see what was going on you had to wander outside and around the side of the building.

I took this picture after the station representative (assuming promotions assistant) came racing into the lobby, captured the eye of a Jiffy  Lube worker and said, “one of your customers just spilled hot sauce all over the place including me.” And then he disappeared into the bathroom for ten minutes.

The whole time I was there the guy from MY FM never appeared again, he never offered a bumper sticker, invited anyone outside for any reason (do you have games, giveaways or something?), and never explained to the customers what MY FM is by offering a handout, coupon or anything. Nothing. Nada. Zilch.

Here are some things to think about before your station’s next outing….

Look at your station remote / appearance set up. Is that how you want fans and potential listeners to see you? What would you / could you change to better reflect your brand?

What’s the payoff?  There should be four: one each for the station, the listener, the potential listener and the client? 

Be a star. Radio is show business. No matter what happens on a remote or appearance, remain calm and smile. No matter your role in the radio station, if you are the guy behind the card board table, you are the star of the show and the show must go on.

Client customers = potential listeners. Treat them as if your ratings depend on them. This is an opportunity to make your case to listen to your station to live bodies. What’s your elevator pitch?

Keep the remote / appearance area clean. Hide the equipment and supplies as best you can. Your area is a stage and no one wants to see the prop box.

 Have fun, be engaged, and be engaging. When I pulled up the MY FM guy was lounging in his chair reading the paper, while customers were sitting inside the lounge directly behind the wall his back was against.

Six Keys to Success for Talk Hosts

Every day I talk to hosts who strive to model themselves after someone who is already successful. They say, “I want to be the next Rush Limbaugh, Dan Patrick or Jim Rome.” Newsflash: Those shows already exist. Success isn’t found in the shadows of giants, it’s found under the feet of the most creative, entrepreneurial, daring, vulnerable, honest, talented and motivated amongst us.

So, here are the Larry Gifford Media six keys to success for a talk host.

1. Be yourself, which is to be different than everyone else. Individual perspective and experience is the catalyst for creativity.  

2. Be a trailblazer. Build your show around your talent and then hustle to sell yourself and your show every day to the listeners, clients, staff, and management. Figure out how you can be a personality on the radio station instead of the host of a show.

3. Be bold. Take risks. Don’t fear failure, learn from it. Surprise your fans.

4. Be open. Give yourself permission to be emotional, impassioned, and wrong. Be self-deprecating. Allow the listeners to know who you really are.

5. Speak your truth. Enterprise your own content. Notice what you notice in the world. Have opinions, perspective, and insight. Challenge conventional wisdom. Be informative and entertaining.  (and self-deprecating).

6. Surround yourself with people you trust, people who will challenge you and people who make you better.  And listen to them.

Play by Play: What’s the Score?

One of the most common questions I receive from aspiring play-by-play announcers is, “How often should I give the score?”

The short answer is, “as often as you can.”

In an interview with Larry Gifford Media, Ohio State football and basketball play-by-play guy Paul Keels makes it clear.

“When it comes to radio you can never tell the score, and the time and location too much. There’s old stories about Red Barber and egg timer and things like that, but really what we try to do is make sure we set down and distance once if not twice, give the formation of receivers whether they are right and left, what kind of formation the running backs are in, but also be mindful the time and score is most important thing.”

Lakers radio voice Spero Dedes agrees.

“For sure after every made basket obviously you want to give the score. I think after every possession change you certainly want to give the score. Also when a team has a possession and they gain an offensive rebound and kind of reset for a new possession I try to give the score as well. I don’t think you can give enough, I really don’t.”

Why so much? Keels explains.

“Because when people are listening on radio, a lot of times they are listening while driving, they listening while doing one thing or another and so the focus is not always focused in on everything that comes out. You just try to point out those elements as much as possible. Sometimes we hear complaints that you give the score and time too much. Well, the reply is you know what the score and time are so you’d much rather over do it that way than under do it the other way.”

Paul Keels Interview Podcast 20 minutes

Spero Dedes Podcast Interview 24 minutes