The Bare Necessities

There are some things on which a business can't skimp. You might have noticed that when you read about one large broadcaster's woes with ransomware that made it very difficult for it to conduct business this week. It's 2019, and no company of any size should be conducting business without procedures and protocols that cover things like this. A radio company with critical computer systems connected to the Internet and open to compromise? That shouldn't happen. VPNs, disabled USB ports, strict email controls with company-defined fliters... there are obvious ways to minimize issues, even if there's always someone who clicks on the wrong link or tries to install the wrong program. So cybersecurity is a must.

There are other musts for radio companies.

News. News is a must. Every cluster needs a newsroom to cover local news, because that's what radio can do well and there's a gaping hole in the market for local news now that newspapers have dropped that ball.

Security is a must. Physical security. There are crazy and/or bad people out there. Your stations are vulnerable. Your receptionist shouldn't have to be your security guard, too. A locked door with buzzer, a security guard patrolling the lot, common-sense protection... all a must.

A plan. You need a plan. A detailed plan for emergencies, a plan for breaking news, a plan for what happens if you get format competition, a plan if your morning host quits or gets fired or gets sick. Preparation isn't optional, it's a must.

You're doing talk radio? Or a personality-based morning show? Why, then, you need producers. No, not just someone plucked from the intern list (you still have interns, right?) to screen calls, but someone who's sharp enough to know what makes good entertainment, someone who can pick up the phone or hit social media to book newsmakers, someone to help the talent be the best they can be. Absolutely a must.

Speaking of social media, you need someone who's good at it, and you need that person's job to be nothing BUT social media. Not an intern, not someone who has three or four other jobs at the station, but someone who understands what works on every platform and can turn those posts around in seconds, not minutes. Someone who can get and increase engagement. Someone who would never post anything that would compromise the station's reputation, or (let's rip this out of this week's headlines) manage to slur anyone, let alone a fellow station employee. It can't be stressed enough. Social media is a huge part of your marketing business. Having a pro do it is a must.

About marketing... you know what else is a must? Your marketing person -- you have a marketing person, right? Not just a promotions coordinator whose job is to wrangle the street teamers, but a real marketing director? -- should be able to create sales promotions that do not involve sending those street teamers to a car dealer's parking lot with a canopy and folding table. You need someone who can show clients that the station can draw a crowd with something more than "meet the jock," that the station can draw attention and generate extra value so that the client will come back for creative, attention-getting promotions over and over. That's a must.

And a production department, not just one overworked creative services director. And live bodies in the building 24/7 so that when things go south, as they often do, in the middle of the night or on a weekend, there's someone capable of handling the issue, from reporting emergency news or just keeping the stations on the air when the automation glitches out. And... and....

And I know some of this -- maybe ALL of this -- is fantasy. I know that broadcast companies do not want to pay for anything, and in that light see many if not all of this as unnecessary expenses. Emergencies? Cyberattacks? We'll worry about that when and if anything happens and hope that nothing will. Security? It's up to the staff to keep the door locked, News? Bwa HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA ha ha ha. You must be new here. Social media? How hard is it to post contest alerts? And besides, corporate handles that. Besides, all of this sounds wonderful, but our investors would beg to differ, and we answer to investors, not the listeners. Get real.

I know. But if someone reading about any one of these things triggers even a nod towards things like emergency preparation or adequate staffing or creativity, it's worth bringing it up. In the meantime, don't click on email links unless you're sure of the sender and the legitimacy of the link itself. Consider that Must No. 1.

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Oh, right, you know what else is a must? Good content. You can get there with the topics you'll find at Talk Topics, the show prep column at All Access News-Talk-Sports, all free when you click here and/or follow the Talk Topics Twitter feed at @talktopics with every story individually linked to the appropriate item.

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And one final must: I must go now, because it's been a long week and in two weeks it's back to the convention grind. Have a good weekend.

Perry Michael Simon
Vice President/Editor, News-Talk-Sports and Podcast
AllAccess.com
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