Opinion: What Radio Can Learn From The Movies

Charlie Sislen

The Academy Awards will be made this coming Sunday and Charlie Sislen, a partner at The Research Director, offers radio food for thought.

Sislen writes in the 1980s when VCRs burst onto the scene people could watch movies at home when they wanted. Many proclaimed this advancement the death of the movie theater. People’s televisions have gone from a 19” tube to a 60” high-definition flat screen with theater-like surround sound. There are numerous commercial-free movie channels, and on-demand video is now available to most Americans.

Anyone observing this phenomenon would conclude that the movie theater business is dead. Why leave your home, pay for a ticket, and eat overpriced snacks, when you can watch that same movie at home in just a few short weeks in the comfort of your own home?

However, the reality is different. Box office receipts have been on a steady rise, and saw their highest level ever in 2012.  The 2012 growth was also significant since it was achieved without an increase in average ticket price.  (Source: Wall Street Journal)

So what did the movie industry do?

Simply put, according to Sislen, they invested in their product to create an environment that people were willing to pay for.

So how does this relate to our industry?

Radio needs to upgrade the environment that our audience experiences.

This is not only what comes out of the speakers; your audience must have a positive experience in all aspects of the radio station. This includes the station web experience and every time the station is out on the street.

Radio needs to build and reinforce that local companionship and be part of the community, which the others cannot offer. When they open up the mic, personalities need to remind themselves that people come to them for companionship, entertainment, and information.

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