Frost Advisory #207 – Let’s Give Them Something to Cheer About

It’s said that our format has a higher percentage of fans than other contemporary music formats. If we have so many fans, why is there so little cheering?

Recently I read…

“The act of cheering for a sports team, player or event is inherently illogical at its very core; yelling in support of your team doesn’t actually do anything to affect the result. But we do it anyway. We do it because it makes us feel connected to what’s going on, because we want something happy to happen, because hoping for something to happen from the very beginning makes it that much more thrilling when it actually does happen. We invest ourselves in an activity that has nothing to do with us. It’s the basic foundation of being a fan.” Will Leitch

Despite a higher percentage of fans, too often our stations remain invisible around town. It’s rare to see any Christian station bumper sticker on the highways, but no less rare on the bumpers in the church parking lots, home of our season-ticket holders!

I know of one radio station that has two different kinds of bumper stickers. One for listeners; another for those that support it financially.

By equipping their listeners and supporters with tools to visibly demonstrate their fan-ness they actually making it easier for others to become fans in the first place. Remember how white ear buds became the publicly visible fan gear for Apple’s iPod!

Just to be clear, this Frost Advisory is not about advocating for bumper stickers. It is, however, about creating opportunities and tools for your fans to show they are fans.

“We buy what we buy to remind ourselves – and tell the world around us – who we are. …..We’re attracted to reflections of ourselves. A salesperson points out this reflection, ‘That’s you, isn’t it?’ and then gives the intellect the facts it needs to justify the purchase. Win the heart and the mind will follow.” Roy Williams


John Frost

John has been a successful major market DJ and Program Director for such companies as CBS, Gannett, Cap Cities, Westinghouse, Multimedia, and Sandusky and publishes the Frost Advisory.

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