Originally published on June 17, 2005

Alan Burns

Alan Burns & Associates
CEO

Alan Burns is celebrating quite a milestone this month

Alan Burns is celebrating quite a milestone this month: the 20th birthday of his consulting company. Burns has major-market experience as an air personality and programmer, and he and his company have provided programming and marketing research expertise to radio stations in over 100 markets. Just this month Burns reached another milestone: He moved his company from the Washington, DC area to Florida.

 

Getting into the business: "I started in radio in high school and programmed my first Top 40 station at age 19. I worked my way through college in radio and left with a master's degree in communication research. I did mornings at a Rock station in Denver, then I was afternooner/MD at WBBM-FM/Chicago and did afternoons at what was then WDAI/Chicago, edging Larry Lujack in the ratings once or twice.

 

"I then went to work for Frank Magid Associates, a television research and consulting company that decided to get into radio. Bill Moyes, Fred Jacobs and I were the radio division, and Jon Coleman was on the TV side. From there I went to WLS/Chicago as MD and an air personality, and then to WRQX (Q107)/Washington as PD.

 

"One of the great things about the Q107 experience was the competition. Scott Shannon was programming WPGC/Washington when I arrived. Dan Vallie, Randy Kabrich and Bill Tanner all programmed stations shooting at Q107 at various times, and Howard Stern's career exploded during the time he was at WWDC (DC101)/Washington. It was a great workout, but we managed to stay on top for 6 1/2 years."

 

The decision to go into consulting: "I've always been a novelty and variety junkie. I love new problems, and I love opportunities to work with different people in different situations. Consulting gave me that. Starting your own company does that.

 

"Leaving ABC was very difficult. It was a great company, and I loved my job and my boss, Ernie Fears. Ernie wasn't a lifelong radio guy - in fact, he won two national championships as the coach of Norfolk State's basketball team - but he knew how to build teams and how to lead and motivate people. Everyone who worked for him would have run into a burning building for him."

 

On his focus on CHR and AC: "I started out as a Top 40 PD and added AC after becoming a consultant. They are two sides of the same coin, and working both formats seemed to be about the right amount of specialization without becoming too narrow.

 

"Hot AC is struggling in many places, but the format's self-examination is going to be good for it in the near future. We've developed some tactics and strategies, including a new variant of Hot AC that I'm looking forward to implementing. One of the things that's happening is that the format is broadening in some places. I'm seeing some rhythmic records that wouldn't have been touched two years ago do well now.

 

"Mainstream AC is in very good shape, and I think CHR, in general, will have a great book this spring - not only due to seasonality, but also because the music's been good and we've had some great R&B songs lately that will help the format be more accessible while still leaning rhythmic."

 

Measuring success for his clients: "All the obvious yardsticks apply. Are our clients making more money? Are we making more money? But the thing that feels most rewarding - and where I think I've had the biggest impact - is having been a positive force in the lives and careers of quite a few people. For some reason, the question of 'Have I made a difference?' occurred to me on a flight not long ago. I started making a list of people whom I felt I'd helped. That turned out to be a very pleasant flight. The greatest compliment someone can pay me is to tell me that I've had a positive impact on their life and career."

 

Biggest change he's seen in the industry: "Consolidation is, hands down, the biggest force for change over the last 20 years. It has changed the economics, the career options and job market, commercial loads, format choices and strategies, sales approaches, the nature of jobs and the sound of radio stations. Consolidation has been a huge boon to owners and those people who have been given more responsibility at their companies.

 

"On the other hand, it has made GM and PD the most time-stressed positions on the planet, and that has caused creativity and training to suffer. It has also led to a reduction in risk-taking and more short-term thinking in radio."

 

How consolidation has changed what he does: "It has made data less important, and knowledge, such as wisdom, perspective and experience, more important. Consultants used to be a big source of basic data, but now what I call the 'balance of info' has changed. Before consolidation a consulting company might have 20 to 50 clients, and these clients each owned no more than seven radio stations, so the consultant saw more data than the client did. But when the client owns more stations than the consultant works with, it's possible for the client to take in more data than the consultant might see.

 

"But information is one thing. What it means and what to do about it remain the key. With people running more stations with fewer people, it's harder than ever for them to maintain objectivity and to carve out time for creativity and perspective and long-term thinking. So helping clients in those areas is more important than ever.

 

"Also - and this may be a result of more experience as much as consolidation - I spend more time thinking about and planning around revenue and profit-generation for our clients. I'm happy for a client when they have a good book. I'm happier still when they are making more money."

 

Why he has been so successful: "As consultants, we've always stressed several important basics: having an audience focus more than an industry or format focus; consistency; creative, emotional radio; taking care of our clients; continuing to learn; and working our butts off. Those simple principles go a long, long way. And it's more than just me; it's people like Jeff Johnson and Donna Burns - who really runs the company - and Michele Williams, who just joined us. And we've learned from some great people who have been part of the company at various times over the years, people like Dave Shakes, Tracy Johnson and Randy Kabrich. They've all made contributions."

 

Radio's biggest challenge: "Radio's biggest, hardest task is to look beyond the moment. We're consumed by ratings and revenue issues for this month and this quarter. We've got to spend more time preparing for future competition from other audio providers, and we've got to sell the medium more than we un-sell it by slamming our radio competitors. There are some national owners who are beginning to take a leadership role in this, which is great, but it's got to filter down to action on the local level.

 

"We'll see some very creative uses of digital-radio bandwidth, but does the industry know yet how to sell it to the audience? It's one thing for stations to broadcast in digital quality, but it won't mean anything if we haven't motivated the audience to acquire the receivers to appreciate it.

 

"Another 'looking past the moment' issue is serving young people. After the baby boom, the biggest population bulge in America is teens to mid-20s. Are we, as an industry, going to give these people reasons to love radio, or are we going to abandon them to new media for the rest of their lives?

 

"Also - and this is a pet peeve of mine - I hear people reflexively respond 'But radio's local' as the answer to all threats. Local is a potential advantage, but most stations pay lip service to it. If you removed the local commercials, promotions and legal IDs from most stations, you wouldn't be able to tell where they were and who they were broadcasting for."

 

Most influential individual: "I've mentioned most of them already, including some great competitors, but I have to add John Gehron to that list. John is the gold standard, an incredibly classy person and a great programmer and manager. John hired me at WLS, and I learned so much from him. What a great station. Marty Greenberg, now retired, was the GM, and Don Bouloukos was the GSM. I learned from all of them.

 

"Another big influence, although not a radio guy, was Bear Bryant. I was born on the University of Alabama campus and grew up in the shadow of the Bear, with a father who was a football coach when I was young. One of the things I learned from them both was that there's always a way to get it done, always a way to succeed, regardless of any limitations you might face."

 

Biggest challenge: "Getting clients to take risks - to be first, different, etc."

 

Career highlight: "Great ratings books with clients like WHTZ (Z100)/New York, WBBM (B96)/Chicago, KHMX/Houston and KESZ/Phoenix. And moving the company to the beach."

 

Career disappointment: "Not buying radio stations when I should have."

 

Favorite radio format: "While working: AC and CHR. When avoiding work: Classic Rock, Country."

 

His first client: "KBEQ/Kansas City, which was Top 40 back then. I got them the day I left ABC. Eventually, with Steve Perun programming, Don Peterson as GM and Jon Coleman running the company, the station reached No. 1 with double-digit shares."

 

Favorite television show: "The West Wing."

 

Favorite song: "'Black Cadillac' by Lonestar Cowboy. Absolutely the worst gibberish ever recorded. It is so bad, it's good."

 

Favorite movie: "The Man Who Would Be King, the world's best buddy flick."

 

Favorite book: "The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry - a marriage of philosophy, flying and adventure - and Einstein's Dreams by Alan Lightman - fiction and physics."

 

Favorite Restaurant: "Maestro, in the Ritz at Tyson's Corner in Virginia, and La Nicoise Chez Francois, also in the Virginia suburbs of DC."

 

Beverage of choice: "Vodka and tonic, when consumed on the shores of the Gulf of Mexico."

 

Hobbies: Flying, biking, working out, any- and everything outdoors, writing."

 

E-mail address: alan@burnsradio.com.

 

Advice for broadcasters: "Invest in the product. Invest in talent. Promote the medium to potential advertisers and listeners. Help entice brighter young people into the industry. Stop disparaging other radio stations, and go kill newspaper and television."