CCM Coaching Tip #23: The VERY Vocal Minority

by Tommy Kramer, KramerMedia.net

Recently, a female air talent told me that she was afraid to talk about a certain TV show because they had gotten some negative reaction in the past - from literally only a handful of people.

We've seen this before. A couple of listeners complain that you're "endorsing" a movie, a video game, or a TV show that has some degree of magic or fictional creatures, or point out that something like the Daytona 500 race or the World Series is sponsored by a beer company, so we shouldn't' talk about them on the air.

Then the air talents stop talking about something that everyone is watching or playing, and your station becomes irrelevant.

If you don't let them talk about a hot topic like Pokemon Go, for instance, they'll be "safe", but they'll be boring.

When I describe the typical listener of a CCM station, I often talk about my sister Tracy. She's an elementary schoolteacher in Texas, the best friend or neighbor you could ever have, raising her kids with an eye on what they do online, in social media, and in their daily lives. She IS a Christian, but she didn't go into some sort of fit when one of her daughters was absolutely devoted to the "Twilight" books and movies. And believe it or not, her daughter HASN'T sucked the blood out of someone's neck yet. : )

Yes, you want to know where the line is, and don't push things too far, but if you're going to just completely avoid fantasy (like the Pokemon Go game, Harry Potter, etc.) and never talk about anything sponsored by a beer company (which rules out virtually all major sporting events), you're running from something that's not chasing you.

You have a choice every day to either be relevant, or not. Choose wisely.