It has been just over 4 days since my first post regarding the format change at WBOS. I have had more than 2000 page views and about 100 comments (just for the record.)

The Boston Globe picked up the story. It discusses the situation from a ratings perspective, provides some insight on audience measurement, and includes a rather vanilla/safe comment from Buzz Knight, VP of Program Development for Greater Media. Is that it, Buzz?

http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2008/02/05/wbos_is_changing_its_tune/

Here is an excerpt from the article discussing the new Portable People Meters:

‘However, analysts said, the station, which had played soft rock since 1989, may be anticipating the next stage in ratings technology. Arbitron’s Portable People Meters, which are being used in New York, Philadelphia, and other markets, are scheduled to be unveiled in Boston in 2009. These passive, hand-held devices are considered more accurate than the traditional diaries, which rely on people reporting listening habits. In cities where the meters have been launched, they have resulted in a boost for rock radio, according to Chicago-based media analyst David Lange of McVay Media.

But the meter data also show listeners changing stations when songs stop: “The whole role of the disc jockey is changing,” Lange said. “The audience is very trigger-happy.”‘

In other words, they want to make sure they are in position to have a good market share when they switch rating systems.

Point of clarification – it really makes no sense to say that the people meters resulted in a boost for rock radio. Rather, the people meters are responsible for highlighting the existence of behavior that was, perhaps, previously unrecognized. So, the behavior didn’t change, just the method of data collection.  Since they haven’t put them in Boston yet, can they be sure that our city will have the same result? 

On another note, it is obvious that people would be inclined to change the station when the music stops…Is that proportion consistent across radio stations? What about those with loyal fan bases? I don’t know what proportion of the WBOS listener base was loyal, but I can’t recall changing the station too much during commercials. Usually, my switching was based on other motives…such as I feel like listening to NPR or some classic rock, or I didn’t like the song they were playing. Hey, that’s just my experience. I have no idea whether I represent the average listener or not. Hopefully WBOS tapped into these types of behaviors before making the change.

All I know is that Greater Media trashed a really great fan base that included a lot of high income professionals.  Even with a small market share, if I had a strong base of listeners and filled a void in the marketplace, I would have tried to build on/expand on it rather than eliminate it and start over. 

Is there a considerable amount of latent demand for the type of music they are now playing?  And, aren’t there already quite a few similar sounding stations? Essentially, they are now fighting for market share with well established players who do it better. That’s going to be tough. Good luck WBOS now Radio 92.9. If it doesn’t pan out for you and you want to come back to us, just realize that it could take a lot to win us back this time.

Lastly, here is a great post from another blogger who apparently is having the same experience.

http://katenev.blogspot.com/2008/02/wtf-happened-to-wbos.html

Last minute update…WBOS has put a feedback link on its one page new Radio 92.9 website with a new and improved URL.

This is the same form that they used in the VIP email. Please go ahead and log your comments with them.

 http://www.bostonradio929.com/

But, also don’t forget to post them here too so we can make sure that our opinions are known publicly.

Thanks to everyone who has visited this site (more than 1700 page views in 3 days) and especially to those of you who commented (over 70 comments to date.) Your input has obviously made a difference!

It’s been a little more than 2 days since I first posted about the WBOS format change. Since then, I’ve had over a 1000 page views from (I’m guessing here) somewhere in the vicinity of 700-800 unique vistors. Plus, I’ve received about 50 comments.  I think that’s pretty good for two days! I’d like to thank all the people who took the time to share their thoughts.  I’m looking forward to receiving many more comments as more people realize what’s going on.

If you’ve read the comments, you’ve likely noticed that the overwhelming majority of people are sad and disappointed about the changes. They are also upset at the lack of respect that WBOS has shown them.

Seriously, in what business (besides radio) would a company make a radical change to its only product without warning, cut off its communication channels, and still expect people to do business with them? If someone knows of another example, please let me know about it.

The fact is that it’s quite likely that WBOS/Radio 92.9/Greater Media doesn’t actually care about its listeners…maybe they haven’t realized that listeners=customers... 

Clearly, the station wanted to move forward with this change regardless of the impact on the current listener base. However, they could have preserved at least some of their goodwill by engaging in an authentic, human conversation that doesn’t insult our intelligence…perhaps something to the effect of:

Dear Customers…We’re about to change our station format…We’re really excited about bringing you these changes, and we’ve got a great line up, especially if you like…x, y, and z bands…etc., etc….We realize that some of you will be disappointed and for that we are truly sorry.  We hope you’ll give the new station a chance…We value our relationship with you, and so we’ll be available 24×7 to answer your concerns. You can email, call us or text us. Or, you can visit our brand new site and participate in an open forum discussion about the changes.  Also, just to let you know, all of your favorite DJ’s have been well taken care of. They are like family to us and making the decision to let them go was difficult for all involved…etc. 

Site Update: Some time on Monday afternoon, Radio 92.9 added a playlist feature to its one page site.  However, since last Friday at 6pm, it appears that the station has not provided a way for the general public to comment on the format changes. As I mentioned earlier, if you received the VIP email you would have had a link to a feedback form.  Just for the record, I actually overlooked the email the first time around and had to retrieve it from my Deleted Items folder.

For more background, please read my previous posts. And, please share your opinions here!