800.275.2840 MORE NEWS» insideradio.com THE MOST TRUSTED NEWS IN RADIO TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2015 RAB Arms Sellers With ‘Radio Matters’ Info. To arm radio sellers with actionable information to take out into the marketplace, the Radio Advertising Bureau has launched a new umbrella project called Radio Matters. The effort is intended as a clearinghouse for the growing body of research, facts and insights that showcase the medium’s strengths. The initiative, which soft launched in July and is expected to be officially announced soon, will be integrated into all of the trade group’s communications, including Radio Sales Today, RAB.com, social media and other channels that stations can directly share with advertisers. The first in a series of downloadable one-sheets is available on the RAB website. Customizable for individual stations and companies, it summarizes recent audience reach and Time Spent Listening findings from Nielsen’s first quarter Total Audience Report. A video sizzle reel is in production and more research and insights are being collected from individual radio stations. One of its goals is to collect research and insights from a wide variety of sources, to bring as many different voices to the effort as possible. “Everyone is working very hard to consistently convey a similar message,” RAB CEO Erica Farber tells Inside Radio. “We’re using all of these messages we keep receiving from various sources to make sure that all sales people—no matter what size market, no matter what region in the country—have great ammunition they can walk into advertisers [with].” RAB Gets To Heart of Why Industry Matters. The genesis of the new Radio Matters initiative soon to be unveiled by the Radio Advertising Bureau wasn’t born in a focus group or on a conference room white board. Rather, RAB CEO Erica Farber says it came about organically after she kept hearing the phrase uttered in speeches and in anecdotal stories. “You’ll hear someone just say it, ‘radio matters,’” she explains. “I hear it all the time and it finally just resonated with me that that is the perfect way to embrace all of this great messaging that is coming out.” Too often, however, discussion of radio’s relevancy has tended to focus solely on its role in emergencies. While its public service role has been well documented, there is a range of other ways in which radio remains relevant. “It matters to a record company when they have a new artist they’re trying to expose, it matters to that car dealer when they decide to have a weekend sale, it matters to that listener when they’re looking for companionship,” Farber says. “We thought it was a really positive way to reinforce the message that radio matters because it touches more consumers than TV and tech—even among millennials.” The RAB has also launched a quarterly newsletter for advertisers and agencies, including both current radio accounts and a significant percentage of non-radio users. Called Matter of Fact and developed by head of business development Tammy Greenberg, it’s intended to deliver strong messages directly to the inboxes of senior executives of leading advertisers and their agency partners. L.A. Hip-Hop Battle Can’t Get Any Closer. After finishing second to a direct competitor for the past five months, Emmis Communications rhythmic CHR “Power 106.1” pulled ahead of iHeartMedia urban “Real 92.3” KRRL, Los Angeles in Nielsen’s August survey for the first time since the upstart signed on in February. It may only be a razor-thin 0.1 6+ share separating the two but it likely comes as a symbolic victory for KPWR in what is radio’s most intently watched hip-hop battle. How close is the contest for 18-34-year-olds in L.A? Only one-tenth of a share separates the two stations in the demo: KRRL trended 5.6-5.5 while KPWR went 5.1-5.4. iHeart CHR sister KIIS-FM (102.7) beat then both with a 7.9. But hip-hop’s biggest battle [email protected] | 800.275.2840 PG 1 NEWS insideradio.com TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2015 since 2Pac vs. Biggie is as much about marketing firepower as it is programming strategy. iHeartMedia vowed to spend $1 million to market “Real” while Emmis increased KPWR’s marketing and promo spending from $300,000 to $950,000 and locked program director Jimmy Steal into a new four-year contract. “We absorbed the ratings hit that we knew we would get and now we’re bouncing back,” Emmis CEO Jeff Smulyan said during the company’s financial results call in July. In reality, the real winners are arguably the listeners. Before “Real 92.3” came along, “Power 106” had an average 4.2 share. Now the combined 6+ share for the two stations is more than a 6 share, expanding the hip-hop ratings pie in the market. The format clash between the two companies is just as tight in New York, where iHeart’s “Power 105.1” WWPR still had the upper hand (4.1-4.1) while Emmis’ “Hot 97” WQHT was on its tail (3.8-4.0). iHeart Sees No Gamble In Vegas Urban Move. After carving out a market position by bringing a pure urban station to Los Angeles, iHeartMedia is hoping to repeat the feat in Las Vegas. Eyeing what it sees as an underserved position on the Sin City dial, the company will launch urban “Real 103.9” on 250-watt FM translator K280DD, fed by the HD2 channel of CHR “93.1 The Party” KPLV. The market dynamics mirror those that brought the “Real” brand to L.A. back in February. Both cities had no commercial urban station. A pair of rhythmic CHRs have straddled the position in Vegas—Kemp Broadcasting’s “Hot 97-5” KVEG and CBS Radio’s KLUC-FM (98.5). (The market is also home to non-commercial urban “Power 88” KCEP.) Likewise, Emmis rhythmic CHR “Power 106.1” KPWR was L.A.’s default urban until “Real 92.3” KRRL came along. The new Vegas station will launch Friday at 10:39am, just in time for Labor Day Weekend. Like its L.A. counterpart, it will start with 10,000 non-stop songs from acts such as Drake, Fetty Wap, Chris Brown, Kendrick Lamar, The Weeknd, YG, J Cole and Kid Ink. The similarities include on-air positioning—both stations claim to be their city’s home for “real hip-hop and R&B.” In L.A., KRRL followed up its introductory music phase with the arrival of market vet Big Boy in mornings. Vegas would seem to be a natural simulcast partner for Big Boy, given the two cities’ proximity and the number of Los Angelinos who make the trek through the desert to party in Sin City. According to Las Vegas travel statistics, about 26% of all visitors are from Southern California, or roughly 9.8 million annually. Nash Contest Adds Prize Judge In Braun. Cumulus Media’s Nash Next Challenge singing contest is heating up, with heavy social media participation and a marquee guest judge signing on for the show’s third round of competition—top artist manager and record label owner Scooter Braun. The challenge uses digital and social media to showcase contestants and drive voting. So far, more than 40,000 users have registered for the Nash Next website and app, Cumulus says, and the website is averaging 1.2 million visitors per month. And when Nash Next users visit the site, they stick around, spending an average of 5 minutes on the site per visit and accessing 5.8 pages. On social media, Cumulus says Nash Next reaches 12.6 million Twitter and Instagram users, and social media is generating 63% of Nash Next’s website traffic. And 68% of Nash Next usage is happening on mobile devices. It is fitting, then, that Braun, a music industry heavyweight, will guest judge an upcoming social media-driven challenge. Braun is appearing as a guest judge during the show’s upcoming “Periscope Live Broadcast Challenge,” where musicians will perform original songs live on video-streaming app Periscope. Fans will vote for their favorites via the Nash Next website. Braun’s firm manages Ariana Grande, Justin Bieber, Dan + Shay, Carly Rae Jepsen and other acts. “Since the beginning of my career, I have been dedicated to discovering new talent across all genres of music,” Braun said in a statement. He joins the show’s three full-time judges, music producer James Stroud, country music star Kix Brooks and Cumulus executive VP of content and programming John Dickey. The Nash Next Challenge winner will get a record deal with Nash’s in-house label, and, in 2016, the top 10 finalists will hit the road on a national concert tour. Holiday Retail Wars Shift To Light Speed. Some Americans may still be on summer vacation, but Walmart is kicking off the holiday shopping season two weeks early with its first-ever “Toy Week.” The retailer’s early holiday promotion—with eyes toward the coming Star Wars release—highlights toys tested by a panel of hundreds of kids and offers early layaway options. The biggest event will be Walmart’s Sept. 4 release of “Force Friday,” when 500 new and exclusive items tied to the latest [email protected] | 800.275.2840 PG 2 NEWS insideradio.com TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2015 installment in the Star Wars franchise, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” go on sale in stores and online.