Local news builds the reputation and identity of those stations offering it. This fact makes it critical that four key station executives operate together on all strategic and tactical matters concerning the marketing of news. You can take a big step toward this goal by instituting what I call the Four Horsemen meeting.
Who are the Four Horsemen? They are the General Manager, News Director, General Sales Manager, and the Marketing/Creative Services/Promotion head. The title of the latter person changes at different stations, but his or her responsbility for our purpose is clear – they market the station to the public.
These four people should meet regularly to insure they are on the same page regarding your news marketing. These meetings are where key decisions are made on how to “sell” your news to viewers and advertisers.
Department head meetings don’t count because specific strategic and tactical news decisions don’t get made in that setting.
Another meeting??? Boo, hiss!!!
Please make it a good one. Every two weeks with emergency meetings called when necessary. You can’t leave the marketing and sharing of news goals to impromptu meetings between department heads.
That’s how too many stations do it – scattered and with little attention paid to the big picture. For example, Sales needs a special promotion. The GSM meets with the News Director to hatch one. Creative Services is then presented with the fait accompli and asked to make on-air “sing.”
Or, the News Director and Promotion head develop a new on-air campaign. It goes on air without Sales being told the reasons for it. An opportunity is lost to sell advertisers on the value of this new approach.
The hectic nature of television often encourages insular decisions. Sharing
information and/or seeking input is perceived as a roadblock to getting things done.
Yet, the benefits of the Four Horsemen meeting far outweigh these misplaced concerns.
Each department understands its role and expectations regarding it. Input from each creates richer ideas and averts potential conflicts and roadblocks. Greater coordination across the group promises more effective execution.
You’re rewarded with a more cohesive and targeted marketing effort.
And, you’ve built more trust and respect among the departments that are the drivers in your news success.
When’s the next meeting?
News promotion should always highlight your station’s strengths – never use it to prop up perceived weaknesses. Your strengths define you. They’re the reason people watch. It’s a good practice to consistently reinforce and showcase them to viewers.
The Coca-Cola Company still heavily advertises Coke, despite it being the most recognized product in the world. Procter & Gamble still promotes Tide. Take a cue from these guys – go with your strengths.
Don’t fall victim to the practice of using promotion to punch up news elements that lack widespread viewer appeal. Stations take this route when operating under the mistaken belief that more exposure will remedy this problem.
Truth is, the opposite happens. People are reminded of what they don’t like and your key viewing magnets get underexposed.
You can never promote your strengths enough.
Imagine the Lakers taking the ball out of Kobe Bryant’s hands and making Lamar Odom the centerpiece of the offense. The rationale? Lamar’s a good player and people need to see how good he really is. Let’s ease the throttle on Kobe because everybody already knows how great he is.
Ain’t going to happen.
Consider this situation. If you have the most popular anchor team in town, your promotion should center around them. Showcase them in a variety of approaches – tell their life stories, get their perspective on the station’s news coverage, have them endorse other newsteam members, show them interacting with viewers, highlight their memorable news moments, have them “sell” your news effort, and so forth.
Avoid the temptation to showcase another news element in the hopes of building it up. Wait until viewers give you clear evidence that it’s a key to your success before doing so.
Otherwise, you diminish the importance of your anchors as a promotional tool. You assume that the popularity of the news anchors needs no reinforcement.
The real issue isn’t about reinforcing anchor popularity.
The real issue is effectively promoting your station by showcasing its strengths – that’s why viewers watch you.
It’s news promotion done right.
by Terry Segal on June 15, 2009
in Insight
Positioning is both one of the most discussed and poorly executed concepts in news marketing. Ever since Jack Trout and Al Ries introduced the concept, nearly every major news strategy meeting includes a discussion about positioning.
It makes for good conversation, but things go haywire in the execution stage.
That’s because stations misunderstand some key aspects of positioning:
1) Recognize that the word “position” is a verb not a noun. A station gets positioned – a station doesn’t assume a position. Consider the act of positioning as a “journey”; it’s not the final destination. That difference is critical because it underscores positioning as an ongoing act(s) of creation. Every decision and action that you take either builds upon or helps destroy your position.
2) You don’t create your position, the viewer creates it for you. Your position is formed in your viewer’s mind. Any changes, whether you view them as positive or negative, take place there. Ignore that fact and you’ll spend fruitless time and money getting nowhere. Many stations fall victim to the disparity between what they and what their audience think their position is.
3) Consistency is a key in establishing a position. Your efforts need a sharp focus and laser type execution in order to burn a position in the audience’s mind. That only happens when a station has focus.
Let’s talk about the last issue – consistency and the importance of focus.
How Stations Undermine Their Position
Viewers position a station based on the marriage of the station’s personality, coverage, and presentation dynamics. The merits of a station’s on-air execution, coupled with the clarity and impact of its marketing effort, create the position (sometimes it’s what the station wants; other times it’s not). The more disjointed and chaotic these efforts, the more ill-defined the position becomes.
Stations often hurt themselves by frequently changing their marketing messages and / or newscast approaches. Marketing messages are especially prone to this behavior because station personnel mistakenly believe that what seems dated to them is also dated to viewers. They forget that the audience’s exposure and recognition to any station effort lags considerably behind that of station personnel.
This constant change and tinkering is best described as a lock of focus. Viewers can only effectively position a station after consistent exposure to strategies and tactics that lock in an impression. Focus. Focus. Focus.
A Baseball Analogy Illustrates The Power of Focus
It’s June. The baseball season is in full bloom. Let’s use a baseball analogy to highlight the importance of focus as it relates to positioning.
Contrast the life of a utility player with a regular everyday position player. The utility player can play many positions, but he’s usually called upon to fill in when somebody is injured or in a slump. He has no regular place to play.
The everyday player has a defined position. The team has entrusted their success to this player at a specific position. He represents the team and helps build its identity. This role is further magnified when the player is considered a star, even more so with a superstar.
The utility player is versatile, but not valuable enough to be rewarded with an everyday position. The position player is FOCUSED on one position and the team needs his expertise daily. People come to the ballpark to see position players – the stars – not utility players.
Which team would win more games? A team comprised of utility players or a team comprised of every day skilled position players? Which team would have a stronger identity?
What holds true in baseball also holds true for your station. In business, building your identity and reputation around a ever changing collection of services and / or products is like fielding a team of utility players. Little identity – no star power. No audience draw.
You want to build your business – your news identity - around a star, hopefully a superstar.
FIND YOUR STAR. FIND YOUR FOCUS.
STAY WITH IT.
by Terry Segal on June 15, 2009
in Insight
Shift your thinking on how to beat the competition. It’s not about being better than the other guys. It’s about being different.
News people are a competitive bunch. Ask anyone in a newsroom to compare their efforts to the competition and you inevitably get comments about being better than the other guys or claims about being the best in a specific news category.
Big problem. You’re banking “fool’s gold.”
Framing your success in terms of being the best or better than your competition is an illusion. It rarely translates into how viewers perceive your efforts versus the competition.
Such judgments are purely SUBJECTIVE. They reflect your view of reality and nothing more. Are you certain that your view of of the world is the same as others?
Just talk to any group of viewers regarding your station. You’re apt to get a variety of different perspectives. What does that tell you about your claim of superiority? Your view of the world?
Want proof?
Coke or Diet Coke?
Pretend that you’re standing in front of a group of people holding a can of Coke in one hand and a can of Diet Coke in the other. Ask them, “Which is better?”
Different types of groups are sure to give you different answers. A group of teenagers will likely say Coke is better because they’re after the sugar rush. A group of diet conscious people will likely choose Diet Coke for obvious reasons.
So, which is better? Coke or Diet Coke?
Now, let’s ask another question, “Are they DIFFERENT?
Yes, they are different. One’s a red can, the other one is silver. One’s 140 calories, the other one calorie. One’s got a sugary taste, the other a slight after taste.
These differences drive people to select one product over another. There’s more clarity regarding each and a more OBJECTIVE basis for defining each product’s identity. The appeal of each product is magnified by these differences.
So, people choose either Coke or Diet Coke because it satisfies their specific needs – not because one is better than the other.
The same holds true in news. Being different spurs you to satisfy specific needs of viewers. It allows you to capture an audience.
The Folly of Being Better
Your news success depends upon giving viewers clear and compelling reasons to watch you rather than your competitors. Focusing on being different drives you in that direction. Trying to be better simply encourages mimicry and sameness. You develop a belief that you’re actually doing it better (you’re really not) because you lack the objectivity to see otherwise.
And sadly, your viewers are not that focused on which station is doing it better. They’re motivated more by which station is fulfilling their needs. How else do you explain why the other guys are winning despite your insistence that you’re doing it better?
Stations chasing the market leader really get punished by this focus on doing it better. They spend valuable promotion and marketing dollars trying to convince viewers that they’re outperforming the big guy. Sadly, viewers are likely to give market leaders even more credit because of the pronounced attention.
Unless you’re promoting meaningful differences, you’re actually helping reinforce the market leader’s dominance. Ouch.
How to Make Your Newscast Different
Where can you establish a difference? Lots of places:
1. Better integration of the web and other off channel outlets in your news efforts
2. Consistent feature segments on topics that matter to viewers
3. Emphasis on storytelling rather than canned meeting footage
4. Cultivating a stable of experts to explain issues and augment reporter efforts
5. Developing a unique visual presentation
6. Effective community outreach and visibility
7. Well crafted and executed marketing campaigns that marry consumer and advertiser goals
8. Producing newscasts that emphasize what’s relevant to viewers rather than what’s easiest to cover
Offer viewers a clear choice. Create a viable alternative.
Focus on being different, not better.
