stick it in your ear. radio works.
I like to tell people that I spent the better part of my mother's grandchild-spoiling years chasing a dream to work in Twin Cities' radio. And in the smaller markets a big part of the job was writing radio copy. For all your radio needs, shop small markets. Every other client gets a spot that mentions his name exactly four times and his phone number twice. The rest will include the phrase 'for all your needs." For all your advertising needs, be sure and choose small market radio. To really get noticed, do something different.
Along came this kid who had grown up with Steve Canon as a neighbor. The one who regularly came home to find Boone & Ericson in the living room discussing the new spots for Gedney. Advertising was the family business. Education was the other half. Most of his stuff tried to entertain as well as inform. He, would be me.
The first time I got paid to write was on a spec spot for a small cattle operation outside Little Falls, Minnesota. I was given the particulars of the ranch and how to get in touch with the owner and that most of his business was in frozen bull semen. Excuse me?! I grew up in Kenwood. Not a lot of call for that in my neighborhood. Today, all I recall is the first line: "Looking for a way to beef up your herd?" I got the gig.
In Pierre, South Dakota my "different" ads included a radio serial sponsored by a local saloon featuring helicopter traffic reports and another with a talking dog who despite the best efforts of the local Glidden paint salesman always chose to paint the den 'mailman blue.' As we say in Minnesota, 'that's different."
But none of it was better than the years spent at K102 radio. Especially the early days. Writing 'Keilloresque' vignettes called Minnesota Moments for our new morning drive announcer from New Jersey. Nothing says Minnesota faster than making the new guy say strangely exotic things like 'not too bad' and 'eelpout.'
We beat WCCO for the first time back then. I don't mean the first time K102 was able to best them in the money numbers. The first time perennial powerhouse and good neighbor 'CCO was beaten in their history. We hit them where it hurts in the 25-54 demographic. And we did it with that wonderful little category called time spent listening. We held our listeners though the breaks. When the commercial breaks rolled along, we informed and entertained and gave them a reason to keep listening to the radio. We were good storytellers. We moved a lot of beer and blue jeans. And we had a lot of fun.
"We" means it was a team effort. I spent most of my time hammering out ideas and words and getting the timing right. But I had the best partner in the Twin Cities - - who is still doing the best radio in the business at babble-on-recording here in Minneapolis. Thanks, Andre´.
The spots will load in a new window, but if your connection is slow, you may want to save them before you try and listen. I could transcribe them for you and put the copy online, but copy alone is only half the story.
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