Was invited to speak at, and moderate the FMQB: THINK TANK Symposium, here in downtown Philadelphia. It was massive gathering of record label and radio execs coming together to celebrate the Friday Morning Quarterback’s 40th anniversary.
They also wanted to update their thinking in regards to Internet opportunities. I was asked some questions about the state of Radio, the Internet, and how my work in local media has evolved through the years:
FMQB: The early part of your career was spent in Radio as an on-air personality. How did you end up segueing into the Web 2.0 world to help local media?
Mel: After 13 years of on-air Radio work, and a great run of doing mid-days at WYSP (following Howard Stern ), I started to really sense that consolidation and the growth of the Internet was going to impede my progress in Radio. The year was 1998, and I knew I had to think more about my future.
So I moved into the direction of what I thought would absolutely grow in demand: companies needing help with understanding and making money with the Internet.
There are many similarities and challenges that all media face today when it comes to Internet strategy. What areas need the most attention?
Your main competition is now online. They’re not just the radio station or Newspaper across the street. These new competitors have no legacy business to protect. They are singularly focused on growing their online share.
Another area that needs attention is the modification of job descriptions and compensation plans to include web. This is the only way to get employees to get serious about the web. Also: hire as many web savvy people as you can get your hands on. You may have to remove anyone who drags their feet or thwarts the efforts of moving forward digitally. It’s something I call “The Enemy Within.”