New to a market? Here’s a great tip:

Take a different route to work each day. You’ll see where construction is going on, what stores are opening (or closing), etc.

It’s easy. Just turn one street sooner, or one street later from your normal route. Learn the neighborhood, then learn the city. It’s much better to see and feel the vibe than it is to just be given some claptrap about who the “average” listener is.

Dallas radio legend Ron Chapman was a great example. One day, he was plugging a station event, and instead of just giving the name of the location or street address, he added, “You know … it used to be the bank building, and before that it was the Mexican restaurant ….”

Genius. Immediately, you know that he’s the guy from HERE, and everybody else ISN’T.

You could be that guy, too. It just takes a little exploring.

You may not think of it this way, but radio IS performance art. It’s not an “exercise,” it’s not just about mechanics. Yes, you want to play the right songs, the right number of them, and a solid rotation… blah blah-blah blah-blah.

But it’s really all just about connecting with the Listener.

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