Building your own radio station can be very rewarding; not only for yourself but the community you serve. Judging by the traffic to our sites; interest in do it yourself broadcasting is growing rapidly, with the mass layoffs in the industry. With advances in technology, it is easier than ever to set up a network of transmitters at reasonable cost.
As far as programming is concerned; there are plenty of sources and options. From News/Talk, to just about any kind of music you can think of. From Country to Big Band and everything in between; Before we program a station, we find out what the community is missing and wants to hear. In Arizona, when the snowbirds flock to the desert/river communities; we run our Big Band format during the day for the Seniors who gather at various RV resorts by the thousands, at night; Old Time Radio shows provide entertainment for everybody. The key is to interact with the audience, at the resorts; listeners can make request and dedications via CB & Family radios. With the downturn in the economy, we are finding more and more families showing up at the resorts; for those resorts, we are running family programming which includes children's programming on one of our stations. To help measure our audience; we have dedicated websites that are only advertised over the air, and using our stats site; we know we have plenty of listeners who are able to connect to the internet while on the road to send in request and community announcements.
Our new stations are operated completely off the grid; using wind and solar to power transmitters, STL's and studio equipment. We do it to provide us flexibility, we can set up anywhere without worries about power or Internet availability. The trick to a successful operation; is to be flexible and responsive to your audience, knowing your community helps allot too.
We are turning this downturn into an opportunity, and responding to it rapidly. If a Rangemaster or Procaster shows up on E-bay; we snap it up quickly, which saves us allot of money and allows us to expand our operations on the cheap. We also carry a good selection of pre-owned AM radios, we find at thrift stores and swap meets at a reasonable cost. The older radios are more sensitive and can be tweaked out for improved sound, they also provide a nice revenue stream for us.
If you live in a dense area; and have no place to set up a transmitter, we have another option that works out well and cheap to do. In one area full of hotels and apartments we serve; Our very own TV channel was the answer to getting into some MDU's, we provide local information on the video, and our radio station on the audio, which is inserted into the buildings MATV system, (if a channel is not open, a channel elimination filter is used to make one). Some of the apartment buildings we serve; have over 600 units each. 5,000 units in just a few blocks, and easily reached by wireless links, makes for a pretty good sized audience. Could you imagine what that would cost to stream? Let alone the royalties to the greedy foreign owned record companies.
Cable modulators can be found on e-bay for pennies on the dollar, character generators can be found at low cost to, or use Powerpoint and a old PC with a video output. Most mangers welcome having the channel added to their systems, sometimes a little arm twisting (Bribes) helps.
We have an advantage over the mega broadcasters; We are not millions in debt like they are, and can afford to offer lower advertising rates; we can live well on dollar spots, Cheap Channel cant!
As far as internet streaming is concerned; you can have it! I would rather be able to focus on a locally targeted area, where you can meet the folks you serve. Nothing like a local girl bringing a hot pizza and beer over to the studio on a Friday evening. Thanks to WAN, and cheap wireless links; setting up a private network could not be easier. Barix
www.barix.com is our new friend for expanding our network on the cheap.
Steve
www.outlawradio.usDIY Broadcasting
We Nich We run Big Bobs Memory Lane
