Now they call it Hyperlocal, at the time I thought it was purely connecting with the community and providing the information people wanted about the local area we serve. When compared to some "big" markets, our content sometimes seemed a bit ridiculous as we read and sold obituaries on the air every day (we still do and the phones light up if we miss a person) along with other "small" market features that all added to the bottom line. We have accepted the dollars and popularity of the content based on the fact that we are a "small" market and that is what our community wants, but as "Local TV Garners Revenue From Obituaries" explains, some of the things we did for content and revenue are gaining popularity....
"A CBS affiliate in Saginaw, Mich., is generating revenue by running on-air and online obituary ads after three of the region's four daily newspapers reduced publication to three days a week. The venture could make obits "one of our top billers within two years," said Jeff Guilbert, general sales manager of WNEM.
For $100, the station will run the deceased's name and photo on-air and publish a full-length obituary on ObitMichigan.com. Full-screen graphics listing names of people who have passed away are broadcast during the local station's morning and noon shows Monday through Friday, as well as on weekend morning shows. Viewers are pushed to the website for more information about the deceased as well as funeral-services information.
The station's owner, Meredith Corp., expects to roll the concept out to its other stations and says it is also in licensing discussions with other station groups. Newspapers "have dominated" obituaries "for so long and set the price on everything," said Tom Cox, VP-broadcast solutions at Meredith's local media group. Funeral directors and mourners "are now comfortable with the technology to take a look at an alternative."
The article goes on to list 3 other ways stations are tapping into alternate revenue streams...
"MULTICASTING: Thanks to digital technology, some local stations can transmit multiple feeds to area viewers. In Chicago, local stations transmit as many as 27 different signals, according to Mark Fratrik, VP at media consultancy BIA/Kelsey. WCPX, an ION affiliate in the city, broadcasts digital channels devoted to religious worship and kids, for example.
PRODUCT PLACEMENTS AND SPONSORSHIPS: TV stations aren't as resistant as they once were to unique kinds of ad pacts that weave marketers closer into the on-air proceedings. An advertiser might be able to sponsor a specific segment of a morning-news program, for instance, or even get its products on set. In one memorable example in 2008, McDonald's was able to secure prominent placements of its coffee in several morning-news programs in stations in Seattle, Las Vegas, Chicago and Atlanta.
SELLING NON-TV INVENTORY: To generate revenue down the road, TV stations will have to develop local content that can play across several media venues -- online and mobile, for instance. NBC Universal's local media group offers advertisers placement not only on its owned-and-operated stations but in "1,000 gyms, 3,000 New York taxis, 8,000 schools, 1,005 grocery stores, 181 college campuses, as well as countless screens on commuter trains, arenas, and in Times Square."
Some other idea's we had great success with were:
SWAP & SHOP: A daily buy, sell, & trade show, think classifieds on the air.
COACHES CORNER: A weekly 1/2 hour show with all the local High School sports coaches discussing their schedules, awarding top player honors, and informing the audience.
BUY LOCAL: A on-air campaign featuring generic spots reminding people why shopping local is so important with liners from various merchants played on each one to give it the local feel. You can take this one step further and integrate a sweepstakes or contest with it where one person wins a gift certificate from each merchant as a grand prize, on a daily basis they win a certificate from the "featured merchant of the day".
There are a lot of ideas you can generate revenue with, as media changes and the information that is available changes, position your property to deliver the content easily. Make it sponsorable and you have satisfied your community as well as your bottom line.