When I was a kid I can remember staring at the bulletin board in the hallway eager to see what the next few months would be like. Each teacher posted a list of the kids that would be in her class the upcoming year. Frankly, I wasn’t that concerned about which teacher I was assigned. No, I was more concerned with whether I’d be with my friends; Rodney, David, Buddy, and Julian. And maybe even that I’d have a chance to be around that pretty girl Marlene.

“Friendship … is born at the moment when one man says to another ‘What! You too? I thought that no one but myself …'”

C.S. Lewis

Being with my friends was the most important factor of where I wanted to be. Not whether I had a good teacher. Not when I would get home from school in time to see “Dark Shadows.” No, it the most important thing was being with my buddies.

And now a question you may have never thought to ask…

Do your listeners’ friends listen to your station? How would you even know?

At KSBJ in Houston we wanted to reinforce the strategic premise of neighbors helping neighbors. They started having listeners introducing traffic reports as if they were dealing with traffic issues right then and right there. In focus groups we heard listeners say they loved it when Mr. Bill Ingram, their traffic guy, talked directly to listeners. And KSBJ’s listeners were now positioned as helpers to their friends.

There are radio stations we’ve heard in our format that rarely demonstrate that anyone, ANYONE, is listening. As an example in sporting events it’s the crowd shot that shows the ballpark is full of adoring fans. For concerts it is seeing fans singing along with their favorite songs.

For radio stations, creating this perception doesn’t happen by accident. You must intentionally design it in.

“Social” doesn’t mean “we have voices on the air and listeners can call in to win things.” “Social” doesn’t mean “everyone can listen to us separately at the same time.” “Social” means that every consumer is having an experience they share in some way with others.”

Mark Ramsey

Here’s a tease for next week’s Frost Advisory: successful stations connect to their listeners’ world view then use that to frame the station’s purpose and vision. And that’s how friendships are made.