August 2006 RAP
August 2006 Highlights
Feature: A Word From the Road From Indian John
by Craig Jackman
Let me tell you a little bit about my friend Indian John, and how he
recently provided me with an unexpected cup of inspiration. I don’t fully
know John’s background, and nor do I need to, but what I do know would best
be described as colorful. John’s real title is Dr. John, and he is currently
a Professor at a University. Though inspirational by themselves, neither of
those two points has much of anything to do with what John did to inspire me
this time.
Interview: Steve Stone, Zimmer Radio Group, Joplin,
Missouri
By Jerry Vigil
No, this is not Steve Stone the national voice-over artist, or Steve
Stone the baseball player. This is the "other" Steve Stone, the one you’ll
be hearing about more and more as the years go by. Unlike many of our
interviewees who got their start in radio at an early age, Steve made his
debut at around age 40. In his second year, he was winning awards for his
work. Most recently, Steve picked up the 2005 RAP Award for Best Promo AND
Best Commercial, Small Markets. This month’s RAP Interview introduces this
Creative to the world and finds out what makes his commercials and promos
appeal to his peers, his clients, AND his listeners. Be sure to check out
his sampler on this month’s RAP CD!
Test Drive: Tascam FW-1082 Interface & Controller
By Steve Cunningham
A few weeks ago I visited my buddy Patrick as he settled into his
recently-refurbished digs at the studio where he works. Patrick is a
composer who writes music mostly for television, where the timelines are
short and deadlines loom large. It was with some surprise that I noticed a
new mixer in his room among the keyboards and guitar amps. "That’s the
TASCAM FW-1082," he explained, "It’s small and cheap and convenient, and I
like it." Patrick tends to know his stuff, so that was certainly enough to
pique my interest and motivate me to get my hands on one for this month’s
RAP review.
Production 212: Just Call Me "Yo!"
By Dave Foxx
The world is shrinking… again. There was a time, not so long ago; that
our brothers and sisters in broadcasting overseas, looked to US and Canadian
Radio for inspiration and even set working in a North American market as a
professional goal. European, African and Asian broadcasters have only in the
last 10 years (some much less) begun to do ‘commercial’ radio, as opposed to
state-run, mostly bland, sometimes pure propaganda machines. The days of
"Pirate" radio stations beaming their signals from the rooftops of homes in
Amsterdam, basements in Moscow and from ships in the Baltic Sea are done.
Now, radio is evolving rapidly in countries as diverse as Poland, Lebanon,
Sri Lanka and South Africa. Many of the radio stations I’ve become familiar
with in just the last few years can stand shoulder to shoulder with most
stations here. And their secret to success is exactly what this magazine is
all about: Production.
Radio Hed: Clear and Simple Call to Action
By Jeffrey Hedquist
Clients, advertising agencies, producers, broadcasters, and writers –
have all (me included) done it. It’s a common, but detrimental mistake:
Including more than one call to action in a commercial. Multiple CTA’s can
work in print and can occasionally work on TV, but attempting it on radio
can delete your effectiveness.
Q It Up: The RAP Network Speaks! - What's most important
when training new salespeople? - Part 2
Q It Up: What’s most important when training new
salespeople? How do you "try" to win them over to your way of thinking and
doing things? Do they spend a day in the studio with you? Do you hand them a
"production manual"? Or do you just teach on the fly? Feel free to add any
further comments you may have on the subject!
Feature: Beat the Radio Blahs... Re-Energize Yourself!
by Richard Stroobant
So, you’re producing more spots and imaging more than ever before
(probably for more stations too). Maybe you’re feeling burnt out, or a
little un-inspired. Or somewhat overworked and underpaid (okay, maybe a lot
overworked and REALLY underpaid), and worst of all, you feel
underappreciated. Perhaps consolidation has taken its toll on your
enthusiasm level, ambition and drive. Well, Bunky, it’s time to pull up
those boot straps and step up. After all, when the going gets tough, the
tough get going.
Feature: Writing Resources
by Neil Holmes
The blank page (or computer screen). My daughter and I both face it
everyday. She is working on another school essay, and I have to write my
fourth car spot of the week. So when she asked where I get the ideas to
generate new approaches to the same old advertisers, I answered
"experience." Her skeptical look meant she needed more information.
"Surround yourself with the useful, the obscure, the bizarre," I said. "And
then let yourself go."
...And Make It Real Creative:
By Trent Rentsch
Of all the concert T-shirts I’ve collected over the years, my favorite is
one I picked up at a Bruce Hornsby concert a couple of years ago. It isn’t
just that the show was especially memorable — although it was on many levels
— it was the first concert I enjoyed with both my younger brother and my
youngest son. My wife was sitting beside me, we ran into a good friend
unexpectedly on the way into the show, and she joined us as well. It was the
first time I’d seen Bruce in concert, and I discovered that his music goes
much deeper than any 5 minute pop single that was played to death on the
radio. It was a perfect evening under the stars, and the sound in the
outdoor amphitheatre was just as perfect. My brother and son even made it up
on stage to dance with about a hundred other Bruce fanatics during one song.
All in all, it WAS an especially memorable concert, but the memories are not
the only thing that makes the T-shirt special.
RAP Forum: Off to See the Wizard
By Sanden McNalley
In every interview I’ve ever had for a writing job, you receive the
inevitable question…"Are you familiar with Roy Williams (The Wizard Of
Ads)?" This is like asking a jock, "Are you familiar with Howard Stern?" And
surprisingly, to my way of thinking, they both have a lot in common. Neither
of their styles will work in 99 percent of the radio stations in Canada.
Feature: "We Never Play Commercials That Come on
Cassettes."
by Bumper Morgan
It’s been drilled in my head since I was a kid in this business, "we
never play commercials that come from cassettes." You know the story, rare
moment when a salesperson comes in with a cassette, clipped to a production
order, hoping to easily push their commercial through the system. You can
voice your concerns to the GM, hopefully the message will be heard loud and
clear during their weekly sales meetings, "no muddy sounding cassettes
allowed on our airwaves; we can either re-cut the commercial at our higher
standards or ask the client to send us a better dub on compact disc or an
mp3 file. Quality control is a good thing no matter what business you’re in,
radio is no different."
The Monday Morning Memo: Power of Weakness
by Roy H. Williams
Features and benefits, features and benefits, features and benefits.
We’ve polished our pitches to such a degree that we’ve dimmed our abilities
to persuade. The customer is only half listening because the inner self is
asking, "What are they not telling me?"
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