It’s the essence of programming. Every element needs to add value.

For a music station it begins with the music. That means that every song you play has to ADD value. The songs that add the greatest value are the songs that have the most value; the ones that are most loved.

For everything else it is about the value of that which interrupts the music. On one hand we can argue that if people come to us for music we should never interrupt it.

But here is the 800-pound programming paradox:

If we don’t add value beyond the music we offer our listeners no reason to prefer our station above Pandora, Spotify, satellite radio, or any other music service.

Successful radio is, and always has been, about creating a meaningful shared listening experience.

“Success is a by-product of creating value. Happiness is a by-product of creating value. Significance is a by-product of creating value. Fulfillment is a by-product of creating value.”

Dr. Randy Ross and David Salyers, “Remarkable”

The 800-pound programming paradox is that every station must have things of value that, in fact, interrupt other things of value. How do we wrestle with that?

But remember a radio station’s programming isn’t defined by just one element, followed by another element, followed by another element. No, a radio station is a mosaic of colors and emotions from laughter to tears, designed to touch the heart and the soul.

That’s how we create a bigger idea of value that ultimately defines The Brand.