Radio station websites have significantly transformed over the last 10-15 years. Today, it’s vitally important to offer all kinds of content to keep visitors returning, like local news, events, sports information, etc. With this focus on adding more content, one element has seen a decline in importance: the radio personality page. When we ask stations to give us content for their new websites, personality page information is often left out, with each one showing “information coming soon.” Others disable show personality pages entirely.
Personality pages are one of a radio station’s most crucial website components. These pages serve as a digital ‘home’ for each show, allowing listeners to engage more deeply with the personalities they hear – even if that show is voice-tracked or syndicated. Beyond digital business cards for your talent, they are vital for deepening listener engagement, enhancing your station’s brand, and ultimately driving listener loyalty and revenue.
Why the Radio Personality Pages Matter
If you want to differentiate your radio station from the other endless listening options available to your audience, lean in. Today, we’ll explore why personality pages still matter and offer content ideas to make these pages more appealing and engaging.
1. Building a Personal Connection
Sure, listeners tune in for the music and visit your website for news and events, but many people still connect with your personalities. Personality pages allow listeners to put a face to that voice and learn more about who they are. This fosters a deeper, more personal connection between not only them but your station as well.
2. Enhancing Your Station’s Brand
Each of your personalities is unique, and their individual styles and personas contribute to the overall brand of your station. A well-crafted personality page allows each host to showcase their unique style and voice, enriching the station’s broader brand identity.
3. Increasing Listener Engagement and Retention
A dynamic and engaging personality page encourages listeners to spend more time on your station’s website. This increased engagement boosts your site’s SEO and encourages listeners to explore more of what your station and website offer.
4. Monetization Opportunities
Because loyal listeners often visit these pages, they can be an attractive placement for targeted advertising. This provides an additional revenue stream for the station.
5. Promoting Events and Appearances
Personality pages are the perfect place to promote upcoming events in which your DJs or hosts will be involved. This helps to increase attendance at these events and positions your station as an active and engaged community member.
6. Social Media Integration
By linking to your personalities’ social media profiles from their pages, you encourage listeners to become followers, extending the conversation beyond the airwaves and fostering a sense of community around your station. Many radio managers do not allow links to personality social media channels and do themselves a disservice. An audience that is more engaged with your personalities on social media will make them more likely to tune in when they are on-air – increasing your ratings.
7. Content Marketing Opportunities
A great way to improve your site’s SEO is to include more different and relevant content. Personality pages can host blogs, podcasts, and more, offering valuable content that can attract new visitors through search engines and social media.
8. Analytics and Insights
Which hosts are attracting the most online attention? What kind of content resonates with the audience? This data can inform programming decisions and advertising strategies.
9. Competitive Differentiation
Personality pages can help your station stand out in a crowded media landscape. They showcase what’s unique about your station – your people – and that’s something no competitor can replicate. And I’ve already noted how most stations are deemphasizing their personality pages. This is an opportunity to step in and do better than your competitors.
Content Ideas for the Personality Pages
Having a page for each show is not enough to bring people back often. Here are some content ideas for air personality pages.
1. Bio and Backstory
Share the air personality’s journey. Where did they grow up? How did they get into radio? What are their passions outside of broadcasting? This humanizes the personality and allows listeners to feel a personal connection. Unfortunately, most radio stations stop here. While a bio can be interesting, it’s not compelling enough to bring people back often.
2. Behind-the-Scenes Content
Post photos or videos that give listeners a glimpse of behind the mic. This could be a tour of the studio, a day-in-the-life video, or candid shots during a broadcast.
3. Personal Blog
Encourage air personalities to write regular blog posts. I hated these when we were forced to do them, but it was because they were not presented to us in a way that allowed us to see the big picture. Personality blog posts are an excellent way to bring listeners deeper into their world. These could be thoughts about recent shows, new music releases, local events, or personal stories and reflections. Anything goes because it’s their blog. Check out episode 95, where we go in-depth regarding adding blogs to your website.
4. Personal Photos
Share photos from the air personality’s life outside of the radio station. This could include hobbies, pets, vacations, and family. It adds a personal touch and helps listeners feel like they are friends with the personality.
5. Listener Interaction
Feature a section where listeners can ask questions or leave comments for the air personality. This could be a Q&A, where the personality responds to listener questions in a weekly blog post or on-air segment.
6. Event Calendar
If the air personality is involved in local events, such as DJ gigs, charity work, or public appearances, include a calendar with all the details on their page.
7. Video
If the personality has a Youtube channel or regularly posts within the station’s Youtube channel, feature those videos on their page.
8. Podcasts
The personality page is a great place to include podcasts the personality hosts or is a part of.
9. Exclusive Content
Offer unique content that listeners can only access on the Air Personality Page, such as exclusive interviews or early access to certain segments before posting to other areas.
Conclusion
Air personality pages should be more than just a bio and a photo. It should be viewed as a vital part of a radio station’s digital strategy. It’s a space where personalities can express themselves and connect with listeners on a deeper level.
Even if your entire radio station is voice-tracked and/or runs syndicated programming, you can still create compelling content on these pages to keep visitors returning for more. Imagine that you’re the listener who connects with one of your personalities and cannot find information about them on your website. How does that make you feel about the radio station?
Our listeners now have more options than ever to get the same music and information we broadcast, so we must do everything possible to keep them invested in our stations. By devoting time and creativity to these pages, you can enhance listener engagement, loyalty, and overall enjoyment of your brand.
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