If you’ve ever signed on with a major broadcast company, you likely received a welcome aboard kit containing guidelines about your job, responsibilities, expectations, and company culture. You might have also received guidelines specific to your job or role. These resources ensure that new employees hit the ground running and function in perfect alignment with the station’s objectives from day one. But does your station offer the same clarity when it comes to managing its website?
Let’s imagine you hire a new air personality, newsperson, or even a freelance content creator. Wouldn’t it be great to provide them with a resource that would get them up to speed quickly instead of spending countless hours of one-on-one training?
This is where a digital playbook comes into play. It ensures consistency, efficiency, and a clear strategy for how your website fits into the station’s overall success. Whether you’re a single station or part of a group, this document helps new hires, content creators, and sales teams understand best practices, technical specs, and monetization strategies.
What is a Digital Playbook?
A digital playbook is a strategic guide that outlines how your radio station’s website should be managed, updated, and integrated into your broader goals. It covers everything from branding and content guidelines to image sizes, post formats, SEO strategies, and advertising policies.
Why Your Radio Station Needs a Digital Playbook
- Maintain Brand Consistency – Just like your station has a specific sound and feel, your website should follow a set of branding rules to maintain a professional image.
- Streamline Content Creation – Ensures that everyone follows the same guidelines for blog posts, news stories, events, and images.
- Improve Audience Engagement – Your website should be more than a static brochure; a playbook ensures it remains dynamic and engaging.
- Drive Revenue Growth – Digital ads, sponsorships, and online promotions should be planned and structured for maximum effectiveness.
- Reduce Training Time – New hires can quickly learn how the station’s digital presence works without constant one-on-one training.
What to Include in Your Digital Playbook
1. Website’s Role in the Station’s Strategy
- How does the website complement the on-air product?
- What are the key goals? (e.g., listener engagement, advertising revenue, streaming, event promotion)
- How should the website be referenced on-air?
2. Content Guidelines
- Post Types & Frequency
- Blog posts: Suggested topics, ideal length, posting schedule.
- Local news: How timely should updates be? Sources for verification. What areas are considered “Local,” “State,” “Regional,” etc?
- Events: How and when to create and update event pages.
- Contests: Standard formats, legal disclaimers, and best practices.
- Writing Style & SEO Best Practices
- Tone: Conversational, professional, or a mix?
- Headlines: Best practices for engagement & search visibility.
- Keywords: How to optimize content for search engines.
- Links: Internal linking strategy to keep visitors engaged.
3. Image & Multimedia Standards
- Image Sources
- Authorized stock services or AI Image sources
- Always attribute the image source inside the caption.
- Size Restrictions
- News post featured images: [Example: 800×500 pixels]
- Show images: [Example: 400×400 pixels]
- Sponsor banners: [Example: 300×250 pixels]
- Video Guidelines
- Where videos should be hosted (YouTube, Vimeo, self-hosted?).
- File formats and embedding best practices.
4. Technical & Security Best Practices
- How content should be uploaded and formatted.
- Who has access to make updates?
- Website security best practices (passwords, backups, HTTPS, malware scans).
5. Monetization & Advertising Policies
- Banner Ad Specs
- Size requirements.
- File formats.
- Rotation frequency.
- Sponsorship Opportunities
- Sponsored content rules.
- How advertisers can integrate digital with on-air spots.
- Affiliate & Revenue-Generating Content
- How to incorporate affiliate marketing and e-commerce opportunities.
6. Social Media & Website Integration
- How the station’s social media should be used to drive website traffic.
- Best practices for cross-promoting web content on social platforms.
7. Analytics & Performance Tracking
- How to measure the success of website content.
- Which analytics tools should be used (Google AnalyticsGoogle Analytics, Facebook Pixel, etc.).
- What key performance indicators (KPIs) should be tracked?
How to Implement a Digital Playbook at Your Station
- Draft the Playbook – Work with your team to create an initial version based on your station’s needs. Download our starter playbook (PDF).
- Get Input from Departments – Have programmers, sales managers, and content creators review it. Revise the playbook to include answers to questions they have.
- Train Your Team – Host workshops or training sessions to ensure everyone understands the guidelines.
- Update Regularly – Digital best practices change all the time. Your playbook should evolve accordingly.
- Store It in an Accessible Location – Make it easy for your team to reference the playbook when needed.
Final Thoughts
A well-structured digital playbook transforms your website from an afterthought into a powerful, revenue-generating, audience-engaging tool. It ensures that everyone—from DJs and content creators to sales teams and management—understands how the website fits into the station’s broader success.
If your station doesn’t yet have a digital playbook, now’s the time to create one. Here’s a download to get you started.
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.