Money. Satisfaction from achieving a goal. My desire to live long enough and be financially stable enough to afford to go into space.
The craziest thing I have ever done professionally:
Would be living on a billboard in the dead of winter for two weeks...especially when it went sub zero for many nights. The reason I did this was I found out my competition was going to broadcast from this very billboard during the start of the Spring book and they were going to do a rotating shift a day from the board for 13 weeks with a beer sponsor tie in. This was a major traffic site and I wanted to upstage it for them. So, convincing the GM to open the war chest...we bought the board for three months prior to them and I launched the billboard campaign a month after we had the board and tied it into charity. This way we upstaged them and looked warm and fuzzy...and the community got to help with a good cause. This flanking attack worked, for the competitor had to abandon their 13 week campaign.
Also, I broadcast for twenty-four hours no-stop two times during 2004 when hurricanes struck Central Florida. I manned the station solo during these two events, providing updated information on the air.
Philosophy on monitoring the competition:
I believe the PD/OM must monitor the competitors...but be cautious of any knee jerk reaction. It helps to get out and drive around....listen to our stations and then compare. Go to stores, malls, businesses and see if we are on and who has who/what on. Tapes of the competitors should be played occasionally for the staff...especially if someone is doing well against them...this can motivate.
How to maintain a competitive advantage:
Focus on our product. Make it the best possible. Make certain our station has plenty of ear candy...make it sizzle with production, and drill in EVERY break counts. Do not knee jerk react to the competition...but if they hit you hard once...you have to hit them twice as hard back the next time...make them think of themselves being in pain when they think about taking you on....make them want to vacate the battlefield. The Art of War plays in here...we must have force to win. He who has the most force will win in a direct attack...period. If we believe we will win and have the necessary tools, right music, technically sounding the best, properly marketed, we will win when it comes down to one simple thing, and that is our people. Let�s face it....radio stations can have all the same things, same digital systems, same transmitters, same audio control boards, same mics, same power, same exact music...but one thing separates them all and that is PEOPLE. If our people believe in themselves, believe in the team, believe we are the best...we will win...for that is FORCE.
Some of the first things I do when starting at a new station as OM/PD:
Listen and observe. Meet with everyone you can and listen. Everyone needs to see you....for you are the new Captain....they will have tons of questions and they will also be filled with tons of information. This is the time to build support.
