Influence Your Audience by Tracy Johnson
Guys, I am proud and honored to present you the guy without whom there would be no Benztown : Mr Tracy Johnson. In 2007 he introduced Oli and myself to Dave “Chachi”Denes and the rest of the story is legendary. (Thanks Tracy for believing in our skills from day one). To all of you want more background on Tracy and his work, click here. If you want to follow his amazing blog click here.
Tracy is a world famous radio icon, a legendary programmer, a consultant specialized in developing air personality and a book author. Enjoy this really tremendous post written by one of America’s leading programmers and learn to influence your audience with your Imaging.
Influencing Your Audience
Whether you are an imaging expert, a program director, an air personality, a producer, a promotion manager or an advertiser, you share a common objective: How to attract and persuade your audience.
In a distracted, over-communicated world, this has become an overwhelming challenge. Consider:
There is a very small space in your audience’s mind that is receptive to your message. This is represented in the diagram by the small yellow dot. Communicating with them means finding a way to get to that yellow “brain space”.
Your audience is not really paying attention. They live busy lives, and their heads are full of responsibilities, tasks, worries, fears and “life stuff” that takes priority over your idea or product. They are worried about their jobs, getting their kids to practice, paying their monthly bills and stopping at the store to pick up milk. This “brain clutter” acts like a shield that defends the brain space from your message.
You’re not the only one competing for space. Hundreds of marketers are targeting that same small space. Radio, television, print, display ads, pop up ads, social media marketers, outdoor advertising, email, direct mail, catalogs, product placement, coupon marketers, telemarketers and more are all maneuvering for attention. Each day, the average consumer is exposed to more than 5,000 advertising messages. In a 16 hour day, that’s an average of 312 messages per HOUR, 10 messages per minute, or one ad message every six SECONDS.
To connect with the consumer, your message has to be relevant, customer focused, clear and compelling. That’s a tall task. Let’s explore each:
Relevant: The audience decides what is important, not you. You can’t cause anyone to become interested in something they aren’t. Your objectives mean nothing to the audience. They only care about what is important to THEM. So find out what matters to them and target all of your copy and messages to what they already consider valuable.
Customer Focused: They don’t listen so YOU CAN GIVE. They listen so THEY CAN GET. Too many broadcasters and producers present their message from their own perspective instead of with a humble approach of how to enrich the listener’s life. What are the benefits to them?
Clear: When you realize how much competition there is for attention, it’s easy to understand that your message has to be clear and concise or it will never have a chance of reaching the consumer. A clear message does not mean a boring message.
Compelling: Develop your content creatively by telling a story (we LOVE stories) that leads to the message. Stories don’t have to be long to be effective, but the words chosen and how you treat the production is critical to your potential for a successful campaign. Use production to emphasize a message, showcase it, support it and energize it with meaning. Listeners won’t respond to bells and whistles, but those effects can help tell the story.
Successful production starts with knowing your target audience, and how your unique selling point fits into their lifestyle. The creative process should be developed around an offer that the listener finds compelling. Only then can you craft a piece that will resonate with the listener.
Tracy Johnson is an internationally known programmer and consultant specializing in the art of developing air personalities and creative programming and marketing concepts. His new book Morning Radio Revisited is available now
