KBA'S WEEKLY NEWSLETTER

APRIL 1, 2021

LATEST COVID RELIEF PACKAGE

VACCINE AWARENESS CAMPAIGN INCLUDED

The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, recently passed by Congress, includes $1 billion for a vaccine awareness campaign. While specific details about how the campaign will be administered are not yet known, The NAB and KBA applaud Congress for again prioritizing broadcasters as essential message carriers for vaccine awareness efforts. Local radio and television stations are the most trusted and most frequently accessed sources of local news and information and are therefore ideally suited for delivering critical vaccine information to the nation's hardest-to-reach communities. We appreciate the work of federal agencies to leverage broadcasters' megaphone and encourages spending across additional stations and markets to maximize audience reach.

WKYT'S VIDEO CHIEF RETIRING

RECOGNIZED ON KENTUCKY HOUSE FLOOR

WKYT's Ken 'Harv' Harvener honored on Kentucky House floor

FRANKFORT, Ky. (WKYT) - Kentucky lawmakers gave special recognition to a beloved member of the WKYT family Tuesday. Chief Photographer Ken "Harv" Harvener is retiring after 36 years. For much of that time, he's helped cover the legislative...

Read more
www.wkyt.com

ARE YOU CERTIFIED??

RAB CERTIFICATIONS FREE TO KBA MEMBERS

Your membership in the KBA grants you FREE access to the RAB's gold standard of marketing certifications. These online courses are perfect for all media sellers, from new hires to seasoned veterans. And better yet, you can complete the courses at your pace and when convenient to your schedule. Become certified today... you can not afford not to be!

LBS WEBINAR FREE FOR KBA MEMBERS

TUESDAY, APRIL 13TH @ 12:00 PM ET

OVER-THE-TOP:

WHAT EVERY LOCAL TV AND RADIO SELLER MUST KNOW AS YOU'RE SELLING FOR, OR COMPETING AGAINST, OTT

This fast-growing segment of media sales is doing more than taking your money. In many ways, it's defining the future of advertising. So, drop in and find out the things you should consider and know about what's available to your clients on this "new TV" front. "But wait", you say, "OTT isn't television!" Really? Your advertisers think it is!

Hear Mark Landon, Co-Founder & Managing Principal at OTTBuyer.com. OTTBuyer.com, a Recrue Media division, supports TV and radio stations nationwide to compete in the OTT space successfully. They are also a television media planning and buying company. They provide agencies and advertisers with high-quality video advertisement solutions. "Unlike other providers in this space, we do not own inventory; we resell it."

KBA SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS & COLLEGE MEDIA MAJORS

Applications are now being accepted for both the KBA High School Senior Scholarship Fund and the Harry Barfield Scholarship. The deadline to submit an application for either scholarship is May 1, 2021.

To lean more about KBA's scholarship opportunities and to submit an application, click here or find on KBA's website under the RESOURCES tab.

JEFF SCHMIDT'S SALES TIP OF THE WEEK

READ THIS BECAUSE WE WROTE IT

Friday morning a meeting was scheduled with a couple of colleagues. Two hours before the meeting, the organizer sent an email: "Can we move the meeting to 1 p.m.?" My immediate (internal) response was, "why?" since no reason was provided. Whether you realize it or not, in both personal and professional situations, we have an internal desire to know why.

Wouldn't it be great if there were a word that would cause people to change behavior? It would be a word so powerful that it doesn't seem to matter what follows; when you use it, you can cause people to do things.

Psychologist Ellen Langer at Harvard University conducted a study that changed our understanding of human behavior. Read the details and see if you can pick out the magic word.

A researcher would spot someone waiting at the library copy machine and walk over with the intention of cutting the person in line. Then, the researcher would look at the innocent bystander and ask them one of three questions.

Version 1 (request only): “Excuse me, I have 5 pages. May I use the copy machine?”
Version 2 (request with a real reason): “Excuse me, I have 5 pages. May I use the copy machine, because I'm in a rush?”
Version 3 (request with a fake reason): “Excuse me, I have 5 pages. May I use the copy machine, because I have to make copies?”

Version 3 didn't make much sense. Using the phrase “because I have to make copies” was a fairly useless reason for skipping the line. Everyone waiting at the photocopier needed to make copies.

When the researchers analyzed the data, they found the following:

Version 1: 60% of people let the researcher skip the line.
Version 2: 94% of people let the researcher skip ahead in line.
Version 3: 93% of people let the researcher skip ahead in line.

Langer’s research, which soon became known as The Copy Machine study, was published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

The study became famous because it uncovered one of the most powerful words we can use to drive behavior: because. Langer's work proved that if we could justify a behavior in our brains (“I'm doing this because…”), we would perform the behavior even if the reason didn't make sense.

Sellers - use the word "because" in your client strategy presentations to validate the plan you created solely for them. Managers, in these unusual times, incorporating "because" a lot will help your team understand what's being asked of them. It will make them more amenable to changes they might have previously deemed as unusual or uncomfortable.

We encourage you to use the word "because" whenever you are asking people to do something. Because we suggested you do so and it's a magical word.

Jeff Schmidt is the SVP of Professional Development at the Radio Advertising Bureau. You can also connect with him by email JSchmidt@rab.com or on Twitter and LinkedIn.

NEWSLETTER QUICK NOTES...

EEO WEBINAR ARCHIVED

Even in this most unusual time, the FCC has continued to enforce its EEO rules, reviewing a station’s compliance both in connection with its license renewal and through periodic audits. Stations still need to engage in wide dissemination of information about job openings and engage in specified outreach activities designed to educate their communities about broadcast employment and to train employees for advancement in their broadcast careers, even if they have no job openings. David Oxenford of the Washington DC law firm Wilkinson Barker Knauer reviews all of the FCC’s obligations and how you can meet those obligations even while social distancing. Click here to view the archive.

PLAN APRIL FOOLS' DAY ON-AIR STUNTS WITH CARE

After so much turmoil in the last year, radio stations may be inclined to blow off some steam this year with some big April Fools” Day stunt. But because of the continuing issues with the pandemic and social tensions throughout the country, a prank that may seem funny to some could trigger concerns with others. As we do every year about this time, we need to play our role as attorneys and ruin any fun that you may be planning by repeating our reminder that broadcasters need to be careful with any on-air pranks, jokes or other on-air bits prepared especially for the day. While a little fun is OK, remember that the FCC does have a rule against on-air hoaxes. Issues under this rule can arise at any time, but a broadcaster’s temptation to go over the line is probably highest on April 1. Click here to read more.

"TAKE IT FROM ME" COVID-19 VACCINE CAMPAIGN

Adults who are hesitant to take the COVID-19 vaccine may be likely to do so if they know someone who has received it. That’s the premise of the new “Take It From Me” campaign, launched today by the Kentucky Medical Association (KMA), Kentucky Foundation for Medical Care (KFMC), the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky (FHKy), the Kentucky Hospital Association (KHA), and the Kentucky Primary Care Association (KPCA) to encourage residents to receive the shot when it’s their turn.

“Take It From Me” includes social media advertisements as well as a series of video and print public service announcements that the partner groups will be asking media outlets and health providers across the state to share, particularly as vaccine eligibility in Kentucky now has been expanded to include all adults ages 50 and older. The PSAs feature a diverse group of residents reassuring others to “take it from me” that the COVID-19 vaccine is safe and effective. Click HERE to access the campaign materials.