Thursday, April 20, 2006

Theatre of the Mind

Corey Sprouse, our assistant deputy producer, is back from his stay in the hospital…looking tanned and rested. I need to go to that hospital.

Corey was well taken care of with pretty nurses, good food, and apparently, lots of bottled water… which is why he tested positive for Evian flu.

Sorry, couldn’t resist.

Just another glimpse behind the scenes at The BizRadioNetwork. Some of you have asked for proof that Kristina Ramirez actually arrives at the station in a limo. But of course. Here’s proof!

Of course, I realize I just shattered your image of what we all look like, what we’re doing when we work.

That’s that “theatre of the mind” thing I frequently mention on the show. The “theatre” part is what a really love about Radio. Sure, the Internet and TV have all altered the way Radio is used for marketing. A picture’s worth a thousand words, right? Not necessarily.

What if you don’t want to be limited by a photo? What if you want to let your audience’s imagination be the painter of that mental image you’re trying to create with your message? The only way you can achieve that piece of magic with TV or Internet ads is by using a blank screen…which is a little self-defeating when you’re using visual media. Not so with Radio.

If, as you’re reading this, I were to tell you that I am writing this from high atop an uptown office building with a corner view of one of the busiest freeway systems in the country, what’s the image that pops into your head?

Glass and chrome contrasting with concrete slabs and steel-reinforced pillars, heat waves shimmering off the sun's glare on all that white, grooved pavement, right?

As I continued to describe my environment, your mind created your own personal image.

And your mind’s idea of that visual image could be very, very different from the person in the next cubicle you just told to click on this site and see what that guy on the Radio this morning is writing about on his blog. (You did do that, didn’t you?)

Notice how I just painted a picture of your work environment, even though I’ve never seen it?

That’s the beauty of Radio…and that’s why an investment in radio advertising is a far more valuable commodity than TV or internet by virtue of the fact that the limits of the message you convey are restricted only by your own creativity in expressing that image.

By the way, a while back I promised you a peek into some pretty amazing qualitative numbers about the audience we’ve amassed without the usual dog and pony show.

Watch this space tomorrow for those details. I’ll see you in the morning on the Radio.

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