Win a state-of-the art Dyson dc36 vacuum cleaner! Or an Antelope Zodiac DAC converter that converts MP3 to mighty digital audio! How about romantic helicopter tours for two around Tokyo! 2 people will win iPod iTouch! Over 40 pairs of ski lift tickets to Japan's top ski resorts and much more! All for free! All you have to do is listen! InterFM Special:
Tuesday January 3, 2012 from 7:00 am ~ 11:00 am on76.1 InterFM.
From April of 2006 to October of 2009, the highest rated and most popular radio show at the time was "Good Morning Garage." "GMG" as it was called was the flagship morning show of 76.1 InterFM and was the first time in that station's history to be #1 in ratings in the extremely competitive Tokyo Morning FM radio drive time competitive slot.
L to R: George, Taro, Mike
GMG was the first time that 76.1 InterFM beat the dominant Tokyo FM radio station, J-Wave, in ratings. It was the last time also.
On Tuesday January 3, 2012 the GMG gang with Wakana san will be back for a four hour special that will also feature Feng Shui trainer Shiuma san. It's going to be a blast.
Not only that, there's tons of presents too!
One lucky winner will get a chance to win an Antelope Zodiac DAC converter. This fantastic device converts your crappy sounding MP3 sound files into awesome sounding digital music the way it's supposed to sound.
Another lucky winner will also win the world's best vacuum cleaner, a Dyson DC36!
Three people will win ¥5000 coupons for flower arrangements from "Hana Boukujyo"
And five people will win "Boardsmart face masks" and forty lucky couples will win free ski-lift tickets for Japan's top ski and snow board resorts courtesy of Boardsmart.
And there's much more!
The show is entitled "InterFM New Year's Holiday Special 2012 - Bam!" (featuring George Williams, Taro Furukawa, Wakana san, Feng shui trainer Shiuma san and finally, me, Mike Rogers)
Left: Wakana san Right: Shiuma san
That's Tuesday January 3, 2012 from 7:00 am ~ 11:00 am on 76.1 InterFM.
And we give away free booze every night! Yes! We can!
The good folks at iwine.jp are providing two bottles of Chile wine from the Emiliana Vineyards for some lucky winners who can send in some e-mail concerning something we talk about on the show. If the email is very funny or interesting, that listener wins a free bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon!
Last night, I sat and drank next to a guy at my local watering hole. I had seen him there before and last night was really the first time we had spoken. I didn't know who he was, or what he did, but was very surprised to find out that he is the program director of one of the top, and most famous AM radio stations in all of Japan. Now before you say, "Hold it, Mike! AM radio!? Boooooring! I'm turning it off!" Then let me ask that you read this story to see an example of how not to do things.
SPIKE JONES - BEETLEBOMB
WHO IS THIS GUY? DON'T KNOW,
BUT LOOKS LIKE THE TYPICAL FM RADIO LISTENER
This is a real-life example of failure. Not of the AM radio station, but of stations that mimic them.
I had gone to one of my favorite drinking holes in Yoga, a Izakaya named Sakura. Sakura has been in the same place for nearly 30 years. It is a very old fashioned neighborhood drinking hole in the wall.
I always like to go to these places like Sakura early as that allows me to drink quietly before the crowds, to talk to the owners about what's really going on with the Japanese people in the neighborhood (I've never seen any foreigners there), and it allows me to reflect on various things.
When I entered the bar, there was one other gentleman sitting there drinking. I had seen him there before. And, as with the last time I saw him, he was already pretty drunk when I entered.
Since I had seen him before, and since Sakura is a very friendly place with a "family" type of atmosphere, I said, "Good Evening" to him. He was, as before, pretty fashionably dressed (for a nearly 65-year-old guy) and was deep in conversation with the bar owner. I started listening to their conversation. He was talking to the "Momma" of the joint and explaining something about a sponsorship with a world famous sports wear maker - thereby explaining why he was so fashionably dressed. He explained how the sports wear maker traded clothes for advertising and how the old model of advertising (paying for commercials) was dead.
I knew from just hearing a bit of his conversation that he must have been in broadcasting and knew what the hell he was talking about. I joined into the conversation. I was surprised to find out that he was working at one of the most famous AM radio stations in Japan.
I asked what he did and he told me what his position was at the radio station. I was shocked when he told me his title and job and gave me his card. Now, don't misunderstand, this is not some crummy little radio station in Japan; there's not a person over the age of 12 who hasn't heard of this radio station. They broadcast horse racing and professional baseball too. This station is one of, if not thee, most famous of the (generic) AM radio stations in Japan.
Well, the old guy went on and told me all about his problems at work with declining revenues and sponsorships. I listened and didn't say anything about having worked at an FM station before (actually, in the late 1980's, I did host a radio show for three years on that very same AM radio station... I think... Or was it the competing station? I can't remember because in Japan they all sound alike.
In fact, all of the radio stations in Japan all sound exactly alike, be they AM radio or FM radio. The only way anyone can tell the difference between one station to the next is by looking at the number on the radio tuner or waiting until that station's call letters and name are announced.... Yawn....
Anyway, the guy went on and told us about how, about 4 years ago, that this station had made the genius move in a policy switch to target only 35 ~ 55-year-old people with a emphasis on mostly males. This little tidbit of information just floored me. Why?
Well, because, here is a very old school AM station that's been around since the late 1950's. They are one of the four or five dominant radio stations that everyone has heard of. All cars in Japan have AM radios (FM radios are rare). Everyone knows this particular station.
With that ancient history and the fact that this station broadcasts boring stuff like professional baseball and horse racing that interests old people, you'd think that their policy was always to target 35 ~ 65-year-old men. But no, you'd have thought wrong.
So why is this interesting and why is this an example of how not to do things with an emphasis on branding? Well, because, it's not so much that this old, dusty, tired and worn out old war-horse of a radio station picks such a policy, it's because, about 4 years ago, about the same time that this old guy says his AM radio station embarked on this policy, a FM radio station announced that they were doing the exact same thing!
Yes. About 4 years ago, the so-called international FM radio station in Tokyo, InterFM, proudly announced that they were going to target 35 ~ 65-year-old males. Talk about a bunch of parrots!
AM radio is supposed to feature talk radio and target older people. FM radio is supposed to feature music - and, in the case of a supposed "International radio station" like InterFM, they're supposed to target a younger audience and not broadcast things like horse racing.
But, unbelievably, InterFM did start broadcasting horse racing! Have you ever heard of such a thing? A FM radio station broadcasting horse racing? And not in the native language of the host country. Absurd.
Now, considering the above, you can see why this is a lesson in how not to do things.
If your company is a smaller or a newer company in a well-established market and you want to succeed in that market, if everyone is selling turnips, you'd better find something else to sell or you will be out of business.
InterFM? Targeting 35 ~ 65-year-old males? What a brilliant - and so incredibly original - business strategy.
Why do they even bother? If they are not going to even try to make money or set out a niche in their market then it's time for them to shut the power down and go off air.
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For more on the death of major broadcasting in Japan here's more information:
