Interchangeable People

That’s the goal

I realize you may not have time to watch all of this now, but save it in one of your playlists for later, because it’s worth it.

If you’re just termperamentally incapable of sitting through an hour of Seth, you can get to the meat of his talk more quickly by starting at about 13:40…

The Medicine Ball Session

Consolidated radio needs interchangeable employees, at almost every position, but certainly at the air talent positions.

Interchangeable talent costs less. It requires less daily management. And replacements are, by their definition, so much easier to find when you need a new one.

The rules of production have changedwhich means the value of those who do what they’re told goes close to zero, because there’s a race to the bottom…and the problem with the race to the bottom…is you might win, and winning the race to the bottom (I’m just a little bit cheaper than that guy) is no fun whatsoever.

The race to the top is a totally different race. It says, I can do something no one else can do.

We still have radio owners in America who understand this, but it is a harder race to win right now because those owners who are content to go the cheapest route (Bain, Cumulus, Entercom, CBS, et.al.) offer easy alternatives for those who don’t understand our business (most of our advertising clients).

The problem is, as Seth said, these guys may actually win the race they’re running, providing a product worth nothing at all eventually.

It’s happening in most major markets across America. Just refinance the debt, extend it further into the future, keep paying yourself tens of millions, run more and cheaper spots, and leave before the whole thing collapses — whenever that is.

The only way for radio to win — really win — going forward is to race to the top.

I know companies that are funding this. I know stations where you can hear this. I know managers and programmers who are committed to this.

Thank God!