Mobile Natives

I first encountered the concept of “digital immigrants/digital natives” in my local school district as today’s Millennial Generation started to come into kindergarten and first grade 25 years ago.

Their teachers discovered that their digital background started with video games like “Pong” and “Frogger,” while their students were texting each other and writing their own software.

Now, Millenials are the youngest teachers playing catch up learning a new language.  They struggle to incorporate the ubiquitous mobile devices in their classroom into their curriculum as their students see no need for laptops or desktop devices, intuitively figuring out how to do everything they need on their device formerly known as their “phone.”

This is speeding everything up.

No one has an instant for a slow website to load, a video to buffer, unwanted ads to crowd their way in.  That requires "mobile native" software.

Even native advertising, which Twitter does better than almost anyone, must be entertaining, informative and relevant or the sender gets unfollowed fast.

The pressure is on.

The listener of analog radio is increasingly mobile native wondering what we’re doing to make their life better, more manageable and easier.

Fortunately, the country format has a bit more time than the formats whose audience is now becoming completely addicted to their mobile device.

You may not need the best app in the world yet, but it’s well past time to have a strategy and a time line.

Nash FM? Or Nash Rambler?

There are so many exciting things in development right now for the vehicle dashboard and it all appears to be coming at lightening speed that it's easy to forget - from HD Radio to the new Cumulus national country brand - how painfully long it sometimes takes for even things we take for granted now to achieve mass adoption (let alone how many never made it).

Thanks to the legendary Chuck Buell for putting it all in a proper context:

I know you know the big part the radios in our cars played back in the day with the rockin' music of our favorite local rock station turned up loud as we cruised around with a carload of friends  --- or spent some quieter in-car moments with someone special and the late night more mellow sounds of the conservative music station turned down low?

We sure took "The Car Radio" for granted, didn't we?!

So, with that in mind, I thought you might find of some possible minor interest this (under five minutes) audio narrative I recently voiced about how "The Car Radio" actually came about and how long it really took!

Country Radio: The Backbone Of Rebuilding Domestic Car Sales

Radio-Info's Tom Taylor was in the room yesterday at the Albright & O’Malley Pre-CRS session.

He accurately reports today: The Media Audit country qualitative report presented "should a wakeup call (or jump start, to use another automotive cliché) for sellers at country stations."

With an index number of 125, they’re 25% more likely than the average U.S. consumer to cruise past that Toyota lot and “buy domestic.”



Country radio reaches the most domestic vehicle owners. Country has a cume rating of 14.1 with domestic owners, ahead of News/Talk (13.2), CHR (12.4), Classic Rock (8.8), Dance CHR (8.6) and Public Radio (8.1). Interestingly, those rabid fans of talk radio are near the bottom of domestic car-buying loyalty, at 7.7.

"New GM" Dollars Are Flowing To Radio, In Spite Of What You May Read

A GM spokeswoman told Advertising Age yesterday.

"We felt that some TV and print ads were necessary to communicate, in mass, to our customers, in a quick and timely manner," the spokeswoman said.

It's easy to critique, but heck since we all now own a big part of the company, why NOT? Click on that Ad Age article link and read down to the by and large very savvy comments, like:

"Strangely this spot looks to the past rather than the future...long on American imagery, quick cuts and big boxcar concepts. Short on smarts and economy...starting with the length of the spot."

PS to MAB President/CEO Karole White: I have a hot topic for Michigan Broadcasters to add to your list of concerns. How do we get them to add the word RADIO to press releases like this?

The automaker is also directly contacting all GM vehicle owners throughout the month of June.

The campaign is a sign that the troubled car maker is taking pains to educate customers about its reorganization. Radio's REACH and efficiency makes it the perfect medium to do just that!