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  • Take 10: 10 Show Strategies and Tactics You Can Use Right Now

    • 11/09/2010
    • Posted by: Mike O'Malley
    • Category: country radio, DJs, radio
    No Comments

    You know how when you’re reading about one thing and you’re struck with how the concepts also apply to something else? That happened to me as I was reading 10 Steps to More Scientific Social Media Marketing by Dan Zarrella  . While I was reading about Dan’s topic, I was thinking how each of his 10 points

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  • Fall Rituals: Raking and Writing

    • 10/30/2010
    • Posted by: Mike O'Malley
    • Category: country radio, imaging, radio
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    Fresh, fun, topical imaging on your station stands out like a just-raked yard in fall. And this time of the year provides plenty of opportunities for writing (and raking). What will you write for: Halloween, Election Day, the change from Daylight Savings Time, Veterans’ Day/Remembrance Day, Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Christmas, and New Year’s Eve/Day? Plus

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  • Radio 2010: Listening and Lifestyle Profiles…and Coaching Tool

    • 10/15/2010
    • Posted by: Mike O'Malley
    • Category: air talent, coaching, country radio
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    National ratings data and lifestyle information on the major formats is again available for free in the newly released Radio Today 2010 pdf from Arbitron. Download it free here. There’s lots of good news for country: • Fall 2009’s combined (PPM and Diary) country share was 13.4% (4.4%/4th in PPM markets and 14.1%/1st in diary markets). That’s

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  • Like THIS for Example

    • 10/10/2010
    • Posted by: Mike O'Malley
    • Category: coaching, country radio, radio
    No Comments

    Sometimes a good example is the best way to make your point. That was what Jon Robbins, Operations Manager/Adventure Radio Group/Savannah thought when he used a Mediabase monitor to issue a “What content do you have planned for Monday’s show?” challenge to his morning shows. Jon told me, “I saw (the WMJI/Cleveland show highlights) on Mediabase

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  • From Audience Killer to Great Radio in Two Steps

    • 10/05/2010
    • Posted by: Mike O'Malley
    • Category: air talent, coaching, country radio, radio
    1 Comment

    The well-intentioned representative from (insert name of local charity here) comes to your studio and wants to tell you in great detail how your listeners can help out or make a donation. Unfortunately, a lot of listeners didn’t hang around for the specifics because they were never motivated to participate in the first place. An

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  • ‘Clave Rave

    • 07/18/2010
    • Posted by: Mike O'Malley
    • Category: country radio, radio
    1 Comment

    I’ve blogged previously about the great learning experience that is the Country Radio Seminar (CRS). But the Conclave too gets terrific marks for its learning conference – this year dubbed “i35 – Freeway to Your Future” – which concluded yesterday. I was there as both a presenter of a morning show development panel with terrific talent coach Tommy

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  • Random Observations from a “Super” Afternoon of Football

    • 02/09/2010
    • Posted by: Mike O'Malley
    • Category: country radio, radio
    No Comments

    OK, baseball not football is my game. Still, watching the Colts and the Saints on a TV far, far, from home, these jumped out at me … Play hard all 60 minutes. • Down 10-0 as the underdogs, it would have been easy for the Saints to succumb to the “Oh well, we’re the underdog

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  • Some “In The Box” Thinking

    • 11/29/2009
    • Posted by: Mike O'Malley
    • Category: country radio, radio programming
    No Comments

    The best place for some of our Christmas decorations is back in that box in the basement that they’ve been stored in. At our house, Christmas decorations generally fall into three categories: 1) those, new or old, that evoke memories, look good on display and compliment/enhance our home’s holiday feel, 2) those that evoke memories

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  • Of Politicians and Programmers

    • 11/17/2009
    • Posted by: Mike O'Malley
    • Category: country radio, radio programming
    No Comments

    Smart programmers are like smart politicians. This month’s gubernatorial election in New Jersey (insert joke here) saw incumbent Jon Corzine unseated by Republican Chris Christie. Some post-mortem election quotes and observations from the Newark Star Ledger included: “Despite spending millions, Corzine’s inability to connect with the core was his downfall.” “…Corzine was badly crippled by a

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  • How To Wynn In Vegas

    • 10/17/2009
    • Posted by: Mike O'Malley
    • Category: country radio
    No Comments

    Garth is coming out of retirement. Cool. Beginning December 11 and running through the end of February, he’ll do 15 one-man weekend shows at the Wynn Las Vegas at $125 a pop. A few fast facts on Garth… …Garth has sold over 128 million CDs. …In 2007, he passed Elvis to become the top selling

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