#radio

Dave Farough: If I Had A Clean Sheet of Paper

Matt Cundill

Jun 30, 2017
2 min

Dave Farough: If I Had A Clean Sheet of Paper

I read a post by the very smart Seth Godin today where he asked the question "what would you do (about various issues or industries he listed) if you had a clean sheet of paper". It got me thinking about radio. How would I build a radio station today if there were no traditional "rules"? In no particular order: Talent on Demand: Get rid of traditional "dayparts" and have the best talent provide content to be played in all hours (and across all platforms)- like we play our bes

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Matt Cundill

Jun 11, 2017
3 min

Blogs

Mapping Radio's Future

Over the last few weeks, there have been significant data releases involving radio, audio, podcast and technology. You can access part or all of the these surveys using the links below. Over the last few episodes on the show we touched on a number of items where radio is in need of catching up to the realities of the business. In our latest episode, I speak to many of the issues raised and what radio can do about them. 1. Millennials make up the entire Adult 18-34 demographic

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Matt Cundill

Jan 23, 2017
3 min

The Audience Insights of Jeff Vidler

Jeff Vidler has been involved in research for a long time. After the podcast had been recorded, I remembered a time when, as program director of CJFM in Montreal, he would use his research to entice clients as much as listeners. As the years went on, I worked with Jeff on music testing, perceptuals, and format finders. All my experiences have been positive as research generally shone a light, showed direction, and moved our stations to where they needed to go. As the industry

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Fearless Fred from 102.1 The Edge - Unedited

Matt Cundill

Oct 7, 2016
1 min

Fearless Fred from 102.1 The Edge - Unedited

Fearless Fred is the morning show host at 102.1 the Edge in Toronto. During Fred's cross Canada radio career, we counted 6 cities and 2 firings on his journey to Toronto. Along the way, he worked with an A-List of Canadian radio people. He listened, learned, and took notes along the way - all while remaining blistfully unaware. As I listened to Fred recount his radio adventures across Canada, I discovered that two of the greatest things going for Fred were his ability to rema

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NFL is Back! The Sports Radio PD Gets Us Ready

Matt Cundill

Sep 6, 2016
1 min

NFL is Back! The Sports Radio PD Gets Us Ready

This podcast happened to come out on the one year anniversary of Jason Barrett's foray into the world of entrepreneurship. He will be the first to tell you he is not a radio consultant; it's so much more than that now in the digital revolution: From the website: Barrett Sports Media is a full service sports programming and marketing company designed to help sports radio and television companies, professional sports teams, and sports agencies, enjoy long-term success in the au

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Matt Cundill

Aug 31, 2016
2 min

Making the Trip Back to Fort Mac

Our very first podcast episode featured Andrew Wilcox and what it was like to leave a radio station behind. We catch up with Andrew and get a status update on life in Fort McMurray and at 100.5 Cruz FM. What really surprises me is how Andrew describes the calamity with poise. I also called up my long time friend Yukon Jack at the Bear in Edmonton to share his story of bringing a recently emigrated Nigerian family who fled the Fort Mac flames last May. Many people associate Yu

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Matt Cundill

Aug 1, 2016
1 min

Radio Innovation or the Lack Thereof

It was at 9:11am at The Conclave Radio Learning Conference when the question was asked: "Name something your station has done in the last six months that is innovative." When no one responded, I felt a little embarrassed for our business. I reminded myself that this was about learning; and I just learned that radio hasn't been innovative for years. Let's be clear that this is not about the 4 people who were on stage because you could switch the cast with anyone in radio and p

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Matt Cundill

Jun 26, 2016
2 min

Blogs

Update from Head Office

I am looking forward to the next few weeks which will be full of meeting great people, working on projects and having conversations about the future of audio and digital media. First, I will be heading east to meet with new clients and ingratiate myself with their people. I love working with new stations and sharing the ideas that will make for great ratings. I documented a lot about what goes on during these trips in a blog last year. The greatest success about these trips i

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Matt Cundill

Jun 12, 2016
1 min

The Goodbye to Radio Girl

Kate McCallum and Adam Doolittle were let go from their radio jobs in the spring of 2015. Overworked and exhausted, the couple made the unique decision to go RVing. Full time. Kate penned a blog entitled "Goodbye to Radio" in 2015, but held onto it until early this year when she decided the content fit into their new careers at Full Time Canada. As Kate put it on their site: "I didn’t write this to give a middle finger to the industry or those that let me go. I wrote it becau

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The Importance of Responding to your Listeners

Matt Cundill

May 26, 2016
3 min

Blogs

The Importance of Responding to your Listeners

My first day in radio was a Sunday morning in a 50,000 person market. I was nervous but excited to get on the air and crank out those Sunday morning non-hits on FM radio. (You need to live in Ottawa or Quebec or be over 45 to know what "non-hits" are. Seriously, that's a blog for another time) On weekends, and after hours, it was our job to answer the station's main switchboard, along with two contest lines we carried. By 9:00am, the station had shifted into Foreground progra

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Matt Cundill

Feb 27, 2016
4 min

Blogs

Why Bother with Digital?

Last month I conducted a digital session with two medium market stations. (One country and one news) Each session participant receives my contact infomation because question and answer could go for two hours. I find that many in radio going through the digital process do not have complete buy in on social media or their current digital strategy. (Hence all the questions) I encourage participants to send me questions anytime. Hello Matt, I didn’t bring up my concern in the mee

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Fab 94.3 Becomes The New 94.3 - The Drive

Matt Cundill

Feb 5, 2016
1 min

Blogs

Fab 94.3 Becomes The New 94.3 - The Drive

At 10am Central Time on February 5th, Fab 94.3 Winnipeg became the New 94.3 The Drive. For the last two weeks, the Pattison owned station had been using their billboards to promote just the brand. There are a number of reasons for the change including ratings potential, and aligning the brand with other stations in the Pattison Radio family. The launch was conducted in about 2 minutes and was brutally honest. The name Fab refers to an era more 60's and early 70's and the stat

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Broadcasting Is The 8th Most Stressful Job

Matt Cundill

Jan 16, 2016
2 min

Blogs

Broadcasting Is The 8th Most Stressful Job

Annually, the good people at Career Cast release their list of the ten most stressful jobs for 2016. The methodology of the survey is listed as follows: Travel, amount of 0-10 Growth Potential (income divided by 100) Deadlines 0-9 Working in the public eye 0-5 Competitiveness 0-15 Physical demands (stoop, climb, etc.) 0-14 Environmental conditions 0-13 Hazards encountered 0-5 Own life at risk 0-8 Life of another at risk 0-10 Meeting the public 0-8 It's no secret that the indu

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Colin Cowherd: Flailing NFL QB's Should Go to the CFL

Matt Cundill

Nov 26, 2015
1 min

Blogs

Colin Cowherd: Flailing NFL QB's Should Go to the CFL

Yesterday on IHeartRadio's The Herd, host Colin Cowherd suggested that the CFL is a great place for clipboard carrying NFL Quarterbacks like Tim Tebow and Johnny Maziel to revive their languishing careers. For whatever reason, the CFL has done a lousy job of selling the benefits of playing in the CFL. I will leave the reasons as to why, to the Rick Moffat's and Bob Irving's of the world, but it's time for both leagues to come up with the quarterback strategy that benefits bot

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Next Review of Radio: Questions For the CRTC Commissioner

Matt Cundill

Nov 17, 2015
3 min

Blogs

Next Review of Radio: Questions For the CRTC Commissioner

Every week I say, "I must remember to ask that question the next time the CRTC decides to conduct their review of radio." I will be keeping a running tab of questions on this site. It is better than scribbling it onto a restaurant napkin and trying to read it the next morning. Feel free to submit your questions to the CRTC Commissioner here. 1. Why do radio stations that play more than 99% music from an era that required 30% Cancon, need to play 35%? And who does that benefit

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Radio Lessons from the Canadian Election

Matt Cundill

Oct 21, 2015
3 min

Blogs

Radio Lessons from the Canadian Election

There's a lot of similarities between running a political campaign and programming a radio station. Let's assume your station is a political party and your lead personality is the party leader. Behaviours such as interpreting polls, choosing words carefully, and acknowledging the gap between perception and reality can lead to victory or disappointment. Here are some lessons for radio station programmers and on airs from the 42nd Canadian general election: If you want to know

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Matt Cundill

Aug 7, 2015
3 min

Blogs

You Need to Have a Podcasting Strategy

A few weeks ago I was having lunch with a long time radio personality and he asked me, "Do you think if I had a podcast it would help or hinder getting back on the air?" I had two answers for him: I said "Yes, of course!". But then we slowly talked our way to a no; unable to see an increase in immediate brand value for his personality. (The keyword being immediate) Since then, I have spent the time wondering if out-of-work radio personalities should be investing their time in

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Matt Cundill

Jun 10, 2015
3 min

Blogs

The History of the Death of Radio

Over the past few years, radio has taken its fair share of shots from other platforms. Terms like "yesterday's news", "old and outdated", and "anachronistic" generally come to conversation amongst those who brandish all the latest phone apps. The death of radio seems to have a lot in common with that of Grigory Yefrimovich Rasputin. Radio has survived for so long for many reasons, but the biggest one is because it never tries to compete with the new media that arrives. No one

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Matt Cundill

May 25, 2015
2 min

Blogs

Power 97 gets its proper send off

It took almost a half year to happen, but Power 97 got the send off it deserved. Saturday night, an amazing collection of Canadian radio talent from Power 97's past, piled into a Winnipeg bar to share old stories and in some cases, meet for the first time. Leave it to great radio people to find a way to have a radio station promotion for a station that has not existed for a year. What ensued were good times, a few drinks, a lot of laughs. Also the ability to celebrate hard wo

112 views0 comments

Matt Cundill

May 6, 2015
2 min

Blogs

Effective Uses of Periscope for Radio

Periscope had its coming out party over the weekend with thousands pulling in live streams of the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight. Watching a live stream through a cell phone camera of a TV in a stranger's home is hardly quality stuff. However, the app soared to a whole new level in the world of "must have" apps. Here are some effective methods some radio personalities are using to enhance their shows with Periscope: Terry Evans & Bill Cowen with Bryn Smyth and producer Scotty Ball

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