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STAND OUT OR CHECK OUTt w e n t y t r a i t s o f t o p p r e s e n t e r s

+ Syndication –Find out how it can work for you

9top-notch showsto make your lifeeasier and increasehol iday revenue

K N O C K O U TYOUR HOLIDAYPROGRAMMING

Best wishes,

Paul

Paul Hollins

paul@bluerevolution.com

Blue Revolution is a leading supplier of programming content, music services and

production tools to radio stations

worldwide. Our range of weekly

shows include the award-winning

Totally 80s, Totally 90s, All the Hits,

The Donny Osmond Show,

Wolfman Jack and many more.

Our network of client stations

trust us to deliver programmes

proven to build audiences and raise revenue.

Find out more by visiting us online

at

Issue 46

WWW.BLUEREVOLUTION.COM

We’re back again with another packed issue of the Blue Revolution Radio e-Zine.

This time, you’ll find out about amazing range of holiday programming for 2013, that’s designed to make your job easier as well as a wide array of tips to elevate your professional performance to the next level.

Also in this issue:

Page 4: Nick Pitts, who recently became Station Manager at Jazz FM, shares 4 of his most-effective PD Tips.

Page 5: Paul Hollins talks about the benefits of Syndication

Page 6: John Simons explains why you’ve got to Stand Out Or Check Out

As ever in this industry, you’ve got to keep your skills sharp and your content fresh. At Blue Revolution, we’re happy to do our part to keep you at the top.

bluerevolutionIn this issue: Quick PD tips l Making Syndication an effective tool for your station l How to stand out in this business.

Hello there,

Holiday ProgrammingThis holiday season Blue Revolution is on hand with world-class programming. Give

your presenters time off to spend with their loved ones and give your sales team premium opportunities to generate additional revenue at the busiest time of year.

New Year sNew Year s’’New Year s’VIBEVIBEVIBEVIBE

with Pat Sharpwith Pat Sharpwith Pat Sharp

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100The All Time

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Join 80s legend Kim Wilde for her festive get-together. Kim Wilde’s

Christmas Collection is the show that plays the most memorable Christmas hits of all-time, together with tracks from Kim's brand new album Wilde

Winter Songbook.

Join Gary King for Totally 80s Christmas - a special festive edition of the award-

winning weekly show that brings the 80s up-to-date. As well as the great Christmas songs from the decade, a

number of celebrity guests will be on-hand to choose their favourite festive

songs by request.

Our charity-fundraiser is back for 2013! Full of sparkling Christmas hits and family fun with the big man himself, Christmas Day with Santa is the perfect feel-good family show with the magical something that only Santa can deliver.

Reflecting the hottest artists of the last 12 months, The Stars of 2013 is a fast-moving hit-music show that celebrates the biggest hits of the year. From Daft

Punk to Robin Thicke and Naughty Boy to Icona Pop, we’ll be playing the hits

and speaking to the artists themselves.

The latest in our series of All Time 100 themed shows focusses on songs that have hit the top spot in the UK or US. This 8-hour special will play the songs your listeners know & love and feature sound-bites with the biggest names in music.

Pat Sharp is back to host an all-new 8 hour New Year’s extravaganza. The New Year’s

Vibe is expertly mixed with the biggest & best feelgood hits and available in 2 options:

OPTION 1: “Commercial Free” Edition (in segments to allow for local sponsorship)

OPTION 2: Standard Edition (3 segments/hour allowing 12 mins of local

avails)

The perfect antidote to the ‘day-after-the-night-before’, Nigel Williams eases your listeners into a brand new year with a selection of relaxed chilled-out tunes on The New Year’s Chill. This highly-sponsorable show features tracks from artists such Sade, Michael Bublé and Dido.

Emma B is your host for an enjoyable journey through the biggest hits from

artists you’ll know and love. Emma shares the background ‘scoop’ on top

songs from A-Ha, Oasis, Kylie and many more.

And more!Perfectly produced to create a happy holiday for you AND

your listeners!

www.bluerevolution.com/festiveSecure Broadcast Rights TODAY at

2013 has seen the 90s revival truly get underway, so this holiday season Gary King is here to remember the decade that brought you the Spice Girls, Sonic, & The Simpsons. Totally 90s Christmas is a 2 hour celebration of the music, the movies and the memories.

DPtips

!!In this PD Tips article, former Blue Revolution Content Director Nick Pitts, shares 4 of the simplest and most-effective things Programme Directors can do to ensure their station performs.

Nick recently took over as Station Manager at Jazz FM, the UK’s national Jazz radio station, which is currently enjoying its best-ever ratings.

Nick and his programming team have implemented these exact tactics to help his station, so you can be sure that the tips he shares aren’t simply theory, but instead they are real-world examples of things you can do today to help your station.

Tip #1. When planning your programme schedule, be aware of how your listeners use the radio in their lives. For example, should a breakfast show finish at 9 or 10? The commercial radio model says 10, but most people's daytime (be they workers or home-makers) starts at 9. Likewise, a programme that straddles lunch into mid afternoon isn't always wise as people feel and work differently in the afternoon as they do in the morning. Programme to the mood of your listener and you'll win.

Tip #2. When creating your first ever programme schedule, try your absolute hardest to make it the best you'll ever get because it is highly likely that any change you make to it afterwards will be driven by cost, not necessarily quality.

Tip #3. Weekends account for nearly 15% of your weekly output so don't leave it out in the open and exposed. Put 15% of your time into it and reap the rewards.

Tip #4.When choosing a station voice, do you really want one that is deep, posh and resonates in the low range? Or do you want someone who is normal, human and sounds like a real person? Think brand values before you appoint. 4

4 Superquick Suggestions for Programmers

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Nick Pitts has far too many years of radio production and programming experience to feel comfortable to mention. He’s handled many roles in that time but his specialist area is in content/show production – more specifically market-leading breakfast shows. He’s managed some of the UKs biggest breakfast talent and has won Sony Awards. His CV includes some of the biggest UK radio groups including Xfm, Galaxy and Jazz FM, as well as the BBC. He was recently appointed Station Manager at Jazz FM.

5

From the Blue Revolution Blog:Why Should My Station Carry A Syndicated Radio Show?

It's one of the questions I get asked most.

And it's a very fair question.

So why should your station carry a syndicated radio show?

There are many reasons why, and in this blog post I thought we’d take a look the Top 3.

Reason 1. Cost-Effective Network-Quality Programming

Here at Blue Revolution we invest in creating premium-quality syndicated radio shows that wouldn't be cost-effective for our network of affiliate stations to produce themselves.

Put simply, the overall cost of the show production is shared across our network, which in-turn means each individual station doesn’t have to foot the bill entirely themselves.

Furthermore, because we provide our content to stations on a market-exclusive basis, it means your listeners believe the show is created by your station especially for them.

Reason 2. Major Market Talent & World-Class Support

We work exclusively with trusted, talented and recognisable major-market presenters, all of whom come with a proven track record of delivering outstanding audiences on both a local & national level.

Add to that our dedicated team of world-class writers, researchers, music specialists and producers who work tirelessly to ensure your radio station's output is always in safe hands.

Reason 3. Quality, Consistency & Reliability

While I’m sure you could easily fill your schedule with 'free' syndicated radio shows, you also need to consider quality, consistency and reliability. There are hundreds of free syndicated radio shows out there, but would you really trust your output (or your listening figures) to unproven shows and unproven presenters, just because they are free.

Blue Revolution Syndicated Radio Shows

We've been around for almost 14 years consistently delivering fresh programming each and every week without fail. How many ‘free’ shows have come and gone in that time? And when it comes to quality, there's a reason we've won so many top industry awards. It’s because we deliver programming that appeals.

But to do all this requires investment. The people we work with are industry professionals who want to make radio sound as good as it possibly can. That’s why we ask our stations to make a small contribution to funding the shows we produce, either on a cash-basis or by trading (also known as ‘bartering’) some commercial airtime. Each station just contributes a small percentage of the overall cost of production, but you (and your listeners) will always get 100% of the benefit. Want to know more? Contact us today and let's see how we can help your station.

WWW.BLUEREVOLUTION.COM

Paul Hollins is the CEO of Blue Revolution. He is an award-winning presenter and producer. His on-air broadcasting career includes many of UK’s most well-known stations including Key 103, BRMB, Capital FM and London’s Heart 106.2. In 1999 he became the first British presenter to fly to Los Angeles to host the internationally syndicated ‘World Chart Show’ for Radio Express Inc. Since setting up Blue Revolution in 1999, Paul has helped grow the company into one of Europe’s largest providers of audio content for radio. Paul is also now putting his talents to work for Smooth Radio.

Stand Out or Check Out

What keeps most Programme Directors awake at night?

How to get to Number 1, in their market, or how to stay at Number 1 is the obvious answer.

If you're lucky enough to be Number 1, then you're always looking over your shoulder at who's nipping at your heels.

If you're not Number 1 you're constantly focussed on how to unseat the top dog in your market.

It's an obsession, but a healthy one, and one that has to be addressed.

The answer to this all too common dilemma is simple………….. Find out what your target listener wants and then give it to them!!

That's Music, Imaging, Content and Presenters, which we can research and use experience to evaluate but what really makes the difference?

I've never been a slave to research but in these competitive times that we live in, you need every edge you can gain to help you get ahead of the game. Research is essential to determine the right music for the target audience and can give great insight into what other elements the audience expect to hear, but you must use experience and judgement to make the mix work in your market.

All of these things make up the ingredients but what makes your ingredients better than your competitors or visa versa?

It's that magical ingredient called PERSONALITY……

John Simons Consulting is headed by John Simons. John began his career in radio as a presenter over 30 years ago and is now one of the leading experts in regional programming. His huge contribution to the industry was recognised in 2004 when he won the Gold Sony Programmer of the Year award. Learn more at JohnSimonsConsulting.com.

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