-
Best of Bits
July 20, 2022
Have an opinion? Add your comment below. -
While we are in the middle of the height of the summer holiday season, talent in the business are taking their vacations. I can’t tell you the number of times I have had conversations with Market Managers about whether it’s better to use “Best Of” bits in place of having someone fill in for the morning show or having the show do it with a primary member missing. Let’s face it, it is extremely rare that a show sounds good with one if its main characters missing. The only way to keep the chemistry alive is by using someone who is extremely famous as a fill in or at least as lovable and familiar as the person you are trying to replace. The truth is the best option is to use very well produced bits from previous shows that have a pay-off to cover for you while you are out on holiday.
Think about it like this, we bang the HITS in power rotation when it comes to music. Why? Because people want to hear their favorite songs repeatedly (until they don’t). Think of your “Best Of” bits as your greatest hits. But they need to be tight, produced well, have a pay-off, be strategically scheduled and fresh and surrounded by the hits. And if partners vacation at different times, you can utilize one talent to keep the bits moving forward and keep up with social media.
Why are “Best Of” bits the better option? Because even when the greats like Jimmy Fallon, Trevor Noah, James Corden, or whoever your favorite is, find guest hosts for their shows, unless it’s Miley Cyrus (or someone with her star power) the show that you watch religiously becomes unfamiliar, and at times uncomfortable. Even worse, if it’s something completely different from what you are comfortable with, you feel a certain loss. If you are a Rachel Maddow fan, you are experiencing this right now while she is only doing her show once a week (Mondays) for the time being, while she works on other projects. It has completely disrupted my weekly schedule of TV time.
It's the same thing with radio and your favorite morning show when they go on vacation. That’s the kind of bond you should have with your audience so that your “Greatest Hits” will never get old. That’s the kind of loyalty you should develop and never sway from to ensure that you don’t give any of your listeners a chance to discover anything else. Because when they don’t get what they want when you are out on vacation, they will either find something else to entertain them or they will turn to a completely different medium to find something else.
People don’t listen to radio the way we think they do, and they don’t listen like Market Managers do. It’s likely your audience will be hearing the bit for the first time. If not, and if you keep them fresh and in a good rotation, it will be just as entertaining as it was the first time.
It’s important now more than ever as listener studies and analysis have indicated that they are looking for comfort and a break from the reality of COVID-19, social injustice, war and sometimes
their kids. But your “Greatest Hits” better be just that, there is nothing worse than the replay of a bit that doesn’t go anywhere. Edit, Listen, Repeat! Make sure you really are giving your audience the best of your show in your “Best Of” bits.
-
-