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10 Questions with ... Bob Bellini
June 16, 2020
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BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:
College/Broadcast School, Cleveland, Ohio. Internship/Production WWWM/M-105 Cleveland. KFMQ-FM Lincoln, NE, On Air, MD, PD. 1979-1988, WIBA-FM Madison, WI, On Air, PD 1988-1989, 1989-2020, WKLH-FM Milwaukee, PD, Milwaukee Radio Group, Operations Manager, VP/GM (2020).
1. Not many programmers make it to the VP/GM chair. Was that always a goal?
My FIRST goal was to be on air. When I started out, my goals were oriented to on-air at larger markets and iconic stations. When I was given the opportunity to manage and program, I began to sense a different calling, although my vision was still focused on the programming lane. A few years ago, our GM, Annmarie Topel, promoted me to Operations Manager. It was her guidance and willingness to expand my awareness of every phase of broadcast management that prepared me for this position. It’s not a simple transition. It requires developing muscle memory for the financial metrics that drive our vision and our goals, but it’s thrilling to be pushed out of a comfort zone to develop new skills.
2. What kind of things are you doing on Energy 106.9 during the pandemic to further cement the relationship between the station and its listeners?
It all begins with on-point messaging, both in production and imaging, and in personality presentation. We worked both to advise and keep our listeners informed, but calm, and to entertain, creating a space for escape and whatever sense of normal we could provide. The labels stepped up and provided the resources to develop topical promotions, offering our listeners free dinner deliveries, at-home workspace tech gear, or even facial makeover products.
3. What was it like in regard to staffing and the number of people in the building and working remotely?
As every other business in America, or around the world would attest, strange. We developed an ‘essential personnel only’ protocol. Virtually all of our airstaff were able to be safely separated in studios, for those who were not, we provided the technical means to broadcast off-site. Our Account Executives were off-site with the resources to do their jobs from home. Even our traffic department was able to work off-site. We became big users of the Teams platform for meetings and communication, and as a lot of the off-site working population would admit, we’ve quickly adapted as a culture to new ways of conducting business and communication. We now have our sales team back in the building on a weekly rotation to allow for appropriate distancing.
4. Are the songs that are currently on the chart delivering the way that you need big hits to work for the station?
You know, a year ago, all anyone could talk about was “Old Town Road.” Now look at us. It’s a tough question to answer and tougher still to ascertain what is big enough to rise above the cultural noise of the pandemic and civil unrest. Listening patterns were haywire. Of course, music is an art form of cultural expression and at its best, tends to mirror our behavior. As such, songs that reflected the darker side of social isolation, as well as songs of hope and optimism, still resonate.
5. What kind of social media “go-to’s” are you using to keep the jocks engaged with the listeners?
A lot of artists hosted Instagram interviews which was a great for providing a personal touch that our listeners could tap into. Virtually every platform provides video capability and we worked to engage on as many of them as possible.
6. You’ve been in the building for 31 years now. To what do you attribute that kind of longevity?
Obviously, it begins with a great company. Look where Saga Communications is today. Sure, it’s as difficult for us as it is any company in almost any sector of business or industry during these times, but thanks to the vision and strategy of our CEO Ed Christian and our corporate team, draconian downsizing and furloughs have not been necessary. Here at MRG, we have had a nucleus of exceptional talent, camaraderie, and a brilliant team of personnel in all departments.
7. WKLH is a treasured heritage radio station. What makes it go?
It isn’t the heritage, not in a ‘what have you done for me lately?’ culture. It’s what every great brand does to EARN customer loyalty which leads to longevity, or ‘heritage’. Classic Rock, and especially Classic Hits, was in its infancy when we signed on in 1986. Our team defined our brand with memorable re-positioning tactics, great talent, and a local, community focus. When we re-tooled our brand to ‘Hometown Rock’ we preserved this great body of music, took a baby-step into the 90’s genres of Pearl Jam, Nirvana, and the like, but more importantly, worked to reflect the pride and renaissance vibe of Milwaukee. We could not be hometown-anything with lip-service and slogans. We needed to prove it with our content, our talent, our marketing, and everything we do.
8. What led you to a career in radio?
I’ll bet there are a gazillion radio nerds who would answer this by saying, ‘I don’t know – it’s just what I always wanted to do’. I grew up in Cleveland, a city of great, iconic radio brands, memorable talent, and a peculiar locale to be so musically influential. Radio, on whatever platform, should never lose that magic, that ability to enthrall, excite, and amaze our listeners.
9. What was your favorite station when you were a kid? Jock?
Again, back to Cleveland, I loved Top 40 ‘Boss Jock’ stations like WIXY-1260 and WHK before that. CKLW Detroit-Windsor also boomed into Cleveland. Then came 1970, WNCR-FM, a free-form format, and thereafter the great WMMS. So many personalities too, I could go on for pages.
10. Who were your mentors? Who would you say has influenced your career the most?
I learned quite a bit about presentation from Bill Stallings on M105 back in the day, Bruce Wheeler who programmed KFMQ, and Rich Meyer who was there when I was. Al Peterson was a terrific consultant too. But there are so many people, within and without the ‘industry’ who were huge mentors that taught about life and maturity, not just radio. My father, from Italy, would sometimes hint about becoming a CPA or ‘businessman,’ yet both my parents let me drive away to Lincoln, Nebraska with their blessing, to do this weird thing called radio. Within our own company, Ed Christian has built this long-standing broadcast operation that is thriving, our VP/Programming Bob Lawrence is a branding master, and the General Manager whom I follow, Annmarie Topel, took so much time to teach, mentor and lead by example. I’m blessed and fortunate to have had the opportunity to live among some truly great and influential people, colleagues, and friends.
Bonus Questions
Have any candidates for the Song Of Summer at this point?
Pure conjecture but doesn’t Saint JHN “Roses” just have that summer vibe? Doja Kat “Say So” has been huge, but there are still up-and-comers in the pipeline so stay tuned!
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