Character-based shows are not only the new breed of morning shows today

, they are the hallmark of shows that build a strong bond with listeners and move the ratings needle. Every successful entertainment effort begins with clearly defined characters and the roles those characters play. Strong characters are core to the success of every great radio show, TV show and film.

There are four types of character based morning shows and each type has its own potentials. Which one are you?

1. Category One: Unfamiliar Characters doing unpredictable things
2. Category Two: Unfamiliar Characters doing predictable things
3. Category Three: Familiar Characters doing predictable things
4. Category Four: Familiar Characters going unpredictable things

Category One and Two:

Most new morning shows by nature fall into one of these categories. Shows that are working on new content or content updated with their own unique twist are in Category One.  Shows that do tried and true benchmarks like “Today in History”, “Today’s Birthdays”, and “Battle of the Sexes” are in Category Two.

Categories One and Two often have a tough time generating strong TSL. The characters on these shows are unfamiliar to most of the audience. There are no loyalties and no rhythms established for listening to one of these shows. Category Two is more likely to perform better initially since they have a built in element of familiarity, but shows in Category One have the most potential for growth when the content they choose clicks with the audience.

It is imperative for shows at these first two stages to develop their individual characters through content designed to contrast and showcase the characters on the show. The time needed to turn unfamiliar characters into familiar ones for most of a station’s listeners can be years. Keeping a large percentage of content aimed at revealing character traits will speed the process of becoming familiar characters in the market.

Morning shows in these categories can be running character based imaging 2-3 times per hour or more in their show to cut the time needed to become familiar from years to months. In addition, strong character based imaging should be running outside the morning show to help develop the personalities with station listeners that don’t use the morning show.

Category Three
Category Three shows are frequently shows that have had some success over time. Their characters are well known, as are their benchmark features. Shows in this category can grow by introducing new content that puts the show’s characters into unpredictable settings and situations.
In addition, a facelift on shows in this category could include new bumpers and stagers that maintain the familiarity of the show while giving it a ‘new coat of paint’. Shows that stay in this category are the most vulnerable to new competitors that build familiarity quickly and do things the audience has never heard before that create buzz. Even though they are familiar characters, the pitfall is their predictability.

Category Four
Most consistently successful character based morning shows, TV shows, and movies are in this category: Familiar characters doing unpredictable things. Character based shows stay interesting in part from having the characters grow, but more from putting the familiar characters in unpredictable settings or having the characters attempt things with unpredictable outcomes. 
This category is where you will find long term successful radio shows like Ryan Seacrest, Kidd Kraddick and Howard Stern, TV shows like Friends and movies series like The Matrix and Harry Potter. For radio shows it’s a three step process:

1. Be interesting and colorful characters.
2. Develop the character’s familiarity.
3. Have the characters do unpredictable things. •  
Stan Main stan@stanmain.com
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