The Infinite Dial

There is a lot of focus on the HD Radio lately, and as an industry we certainly need to put the pedal to the medal on this and other digital initiatives to remain relevant and fight declining mindshare, particularly in younger demos. One refreshing byproduct of the HD push is that the industry is flexing its muscle a bit to drive hardware, technology and distribution in a way we haven't seen in years. Mark Ramsey has written that people don't just buy "a radio," but a lot of people bought satellite radios, so it is possible to drive early adopters to purchase single-purpose devices if they are sufficiently cool, and have a compelling feature set (and content, of course.)

So, what would make me buy a new radio? What would really make me excited again about listening to AM/FM? New channels are a part of it, but there are other things I would like to see in the 'radio of the future.'

Starcom MediaVest Group and CNET Networks recently published the results of a large study of 13-34-year-olds, who are responsible for $600 billion each year in consumer spending (and at least half of whom have essentially been given up on by radio.) One of the key findings to me was the identification of the 15-20% or so of these youth who serve as "brand sirens" - advocates, arbiters of taste and influencers of their peers.

A few key facts quoted by this study:

• 82 percent talk about brands with their friends


• 87 percent love sharing info about brands


• 85 percent love brands that keep their promises


• More than half wish they could find brands to stick with


• 70 percent send emails to friends about products and services


• 77 percent post reviews and product feedback online

So, not so fickle, not so cynical about brands, and not necessarily marketing-proof. Instead, for brands that keep their promises and deliver the goods, today's youth are more than happy to spread the word for you. You can't force this, you can't buy this and you can't stop the train from running you over if you deserve it. You can, however, put the tools in the hands of your listeners to be "sirens" for your brand. Just be aware that the siren call both works to your advantage and works to your detriment-silencing one voice invalidates the other. You can't put lipstick on a pig (well, you can, but it will get you arrested in Georgia.)

So, what does this have to do with HD Radio? I submit that the manufacturers of HD Radio technology should be worrying less about "fidelity" (check out a MySpace page--any page--think there is anyone there worrying about "fidelity?") and building us a really cool new radio that enables true two-way communication and sharing. We keep waiting for ubiquitous mobile wi-fi to run us over with thousands of internet radio channels delivered to our vehicles, when we should be the ones driving this change.

We can't beat Internet radio for choice, and we can't beat Podcasting for convenience and niche content. But the radio industry has one advantage for driving new mobile radio technology--it is still a pretty honkin' big industry. Frodo's Home Brewing Podcast might not be able to influence radio technology, but we have already seen that the radio industry can influence change with OEM manufacturers, retailers and the auto industry. The future generations of radio (HD or not) should embrace Wi-Fi and open up the band to as many choices as possible--but save the really cool stuff for terrestrial broadcasters.

My 'dream' radio for the terrestrial radio industry would let me have access to streams from Pandora or Live365, and also go out and get podcasts I am interested in. But it would only let me listen to those things--not interact with them. Instead, the really cool "tell-a-friend" and "post to my blog" and "thumbs up/thumbs down" buttons would only work with HD broadcasts--allowing instant feedback to the station and instant sharing. Now, maybe my dad isn't going to use the "post to MySpace" button so much, but who hasn't wanted to push a "thumbs down" button when OMC "How Bizarre" comes on? That would be addictive. That would be cool. That would be the future radio worth buying.