Have we really come to a point where you can just tell a robot what you want your website to look like, and it’ll build it for you? Well… yeah. But should you?
Welcome to the world of vibe coding. It’s fast. It’s slick. And in some cases, it might even be free. Tools like Wix AI, Framer AI, and ChatGPT can take a few of your sentences and generate a halfway decent website in a matter of minutes. But is it the right move for your radio station?
Let’s walk through the idea—because while it sounds convenient, there are some serious downsides that make vibe coding a risky path for stations looking to build a real digital presence.
The Few Pros of Vibe Coding
First, let’s be fair: vibe coding has a few upsides.
- Speed: You can get something online quickly, sometimes in under an hour.
- Low/No Cost: Many tools are free or low-cost to get started.
- Creativity Boost: These tools can help generate design ideas or break through creative blocks.
If you’re a student, a podcaster, or launching a personal project—vibe coding could be the jumpstart you need.
Why Vibe Coding Fails for Radio Stations
But if you’re running a radio station—a real broadcast brand with real listeners and advertisers—you need more than a digital business card.
1. Missing Radio-Specific Features
Vibe-coded sites don’t come with:
- Persistent stream players
- Podcast integration
- Local news, sports, or obituaries
- Advertising management
- Event calendars
You’d have to request every one of those individually (if they’re even possible). And you’re still likely to end up with a clunky workaround that doesn’t perform well.
2. No Strategy, No Structure
AI tools don’t understand your station’s goals. They won’t organize content for ad revenue, SEO, listener engagement, or sponsor conversion. You get a site that might look okay, but one that does nothing for your business.
3. Poor SEO and Generic Content
Most vibe-coded sites use generic placeholder text. That kills SEO. Google needs fresh, relevant, original content to rank you well in search.
4. You Become the IT Department
When something breaks, who do you call? No one. It’s just you. AI tools won’t help when your stream stops working, your images won’t load, or the layout explodes on mobile. If something in the code becomes outdated over time, it could pose security risks.
5. Short-Term Convenience, Long-Term Pain
That “free” site could cost you thousands in missed ad revenue, lost visitors, or frustrated sponsors down the line.
A Vibe Code Example
As part of our podcast episode, we gave an AI tool this prompt:
Build a modern, professional website for a fictional rock radio station called Blaze 97. We’re a high-energy FM station playing classic and new rock for adults 25–54. Include pages like Home, About Us, Contact, and Advertise With Us. Use a red and black color scheme with bold fonts and imagery that reflects concerts, guitars, and on-air studios. The homepage should feature a big hero section with a “Listen Live” button and sections for featured shows and DJs. I should be able to open the site on my computer without a server, so generate the necessary HTML, CSS, and JS files for local testing. Make it look legit and ready for a real station.
The result? It looked pretty good. A modern, clean brochure. And that was it. No real backend to give your team for making changes, no audio streaming, no ad platform, no content support—just a shell.
Final Thoughts
Your website is like your station’s front door. If it doesn’t serve your listeners and advertisers with the tools they expect, they’ll leave.
Vibe coding is fine for fun or experimentation. But when it comes to your brand, your revenue, and your reputation—you need more than vibes.
We want to help your radio station grow and succeed online. That journey starts with an amazing website that keeps visitors coming back often. Reach out to us to start your path to online success, or schedule an appointment to see our tools in action.