We heard about the "The Power of Local Broadcasters" from Jim Timm, Executive Director of the Nebraska Broadcasters Association on February 14, 2020 at Lincoln South Rotary Club.
The Nebraska Broadcasters Association (NBA) was formed in 1934, with the purposes of advancing the best interests of the free, local, over-the-air, full service radio and television broadcast industry in the State of Nebraska. It was the 2nd state broadcasters association created in America. It is comprised of:
254 Member Stations
146 Commercial radio stations
50 Commercial TV stations
58 Noncommercial radio & TV stations
48 Different companies
Over 1500 employees
Jim asked us to consider all of the things that they provide:
News | Traffic | Entertainment |
| Advertising | Weather | Music |
| Markets | Events | Sports |
| Talk Shows | Ag Markets | Contests |
The key service that they provide is Community Service.
All of the items in the table are a service to the community - at large or some segment of the community.
He sited an example of how the Nebraska Broadcasters Association helped after the Spring floods. The Governor's office called Jim and asked if they could do a telethon or some sort of fundraiser to help everyone across the state. Within a week they had organized and aired a telethon that raised $441,929 in just 18 hours. #NebraskaSTRONG (http://www.nebraska.gov/nebraska-strong/) drive for flood relief effort also included the sale of merchandise and other donation options.
Though the Nebraska Broadcasters Association provides community service throughout the year it is obviously noticed most in times of great need.
There are other missions of the NBA.
Mining future talent is one of those missions. We all know that youth today do not consumer as much radio and TV as in the past. So they set up opportunities to expose them to broadcasting and understand the value.
- ChannelYou.com provides resources and videos for people interested in broadcasting.
- NBA provides $30,000 annually in scholarships for high school students and college students who are entering the field of broadcasting.
- They also have camps and workshops for people interested in broadcasting
Jim then talked about the effective reach of radio and TV broadcasting.
No matter what we hear or think, on-air broadcasting still reaches 9 out of 10 adults. Statistics show that over air messages combined with online, mobile platforms are generating results.
He referred to the "big digital stampede" but pointed out that digital alone does not bring in the results.
In a case study Procter & Gamble moved hundreds of millions from radio and tv to "big digital". Within 6 months they experienced declining sales. They moved their money back to radio and tv and in the 1st quarter sales were up 5%.
He sited three examples of companies in Nebraska who chose to stop all air messages and use digital (Facebook) only.
The reasons they stated:
- - my staff is made up of millennials and they convinced me that today people get all of their information digitally
- - my son is taking over the business and said we needed to move to Facebook
- - they bought into the "big digital stampede" concept
He urged everyone in business to read the statistics and get the facts straight - don't just listen to a sales pitch. Get testimonials and review results. Make sure for your product and target audience you are using the right mode - digital may work for some but not for all.
Statistics about instore traffic, website traffic, phone calls, new and repeat customers are good but bottom line is an increase in sales.