JACK fm - Oxfordshire

Shiny new equipment! we've got loads!

Do you remember that feeling you used to get when you
were five and it was just before your birthday?  That
butterflies in your tummy,look-at-that-huge-pile-of-presents
-covered-in-pink-bowskind of a feeling? 

Ok, well if you're male pink bows may not have
featured....

But the point is, that's how it feels at FM107.9 at
the moment.  Big boxes of brand-spangly new equipment
are arriving every day.  Empty space is being turned
into streamlined offices and every now and again you
wonder how many sleeps it will actually be until
JACK fm finally launches in Oxfordshire.

It's going to be big, beautiful, bootilicious...
and it'll probably still smell slightly of that new
plastic smell you get when you unwrap a large and
expensive birthday present.

Not only will you get toe-tapping, spine-tingling,
beat-tastic music.  JACK fm will also keep you wham-bam
slap up to date.

So it's the perfect present really.  Fun and useful.
It won't just sit on your shelf looking pretty and get
thrown out next clear out.  You'll be hooked because
you'll want to know...

You'll want to know what's going on here in
Oxfordshire and how you can get involved.

You'll want to know about the bigger picture too...
about politics, about the big news stories of the day
and about what everyone's going to be talking about at
the office and in the pub.

You'll want to know if you can get to the office or
pub without getting stuck in traffic, so we'll have an
exemplary travel service to make sure you're ahead of
the game.

You'll want to know about the game too, so we'll be
pitch-side and track side for all the sporting events
that matter to you.

And if the environment and weather matters to you
we've got that covered, along with everything you've
got a hankering to know about your local community
(everything bar actually twitching those net curtains
- you'll have to do that yourself). 

We'll also fill you in on what's going on with music
events and festivals....but we won't bore you with
what Britney Spears had for breakfast.

So if you want to be at the cutting edge of radio in
Oxfordshire, nay, the UK, you know what to do.

Watch. This. Space.

Right, I'm going to go and buy a brand new party frock
for the occasion.  JackFM is coming soon.... and yes,
there will be balloons.

For more on the news side of things scroll down and
check out what my esteemed colleague and Director Of
News Greg Burke's written... go on....

More from me later, but if you've got any questions or
just want to know what colour dress I'll be buying get
in touch: anna.cookson@jackfm.co.uk

Anna Cookson,
Journalist and Presenter for JACK fm and generally the
one who gets caught up in all the tangly new wires as
JACK fm takes root in the building.

If you've been keeping up to date with these blogs you will have heard the phrase "it's all about the music" a lot. And it's almost true. Almost.

Jack FM is also about great content that is relevant to you, our audience here in Oxfordshire.And those of you who've been following our progress with a close eye will know that this week we bagged some VERY exciting content for Jack FM. After months of behind the scene negotiations, we're now an official media partner of Oxford United FC. It's great news. For Jack, for Oxford United and for you the fans. There's been plenty of speculation about what this actually means, so I thought I'd take the opportunity to let you know. First up, we're now the proud sponsors of the team shirts. Whilst our friends at Buildbase continue to sponsor the front of the kit, you can now see the Jack FM logo on the back of every players shirt. You can even get the logo put on your replica shirt at the club shop for free, if you want. This is the first time that the U's have allowed anyone to plaster their name of the back of those shirts and we are delighted that they've given us the honour.

But it doesn't stop there.

As part of the deal we will be broadcasting full, live commentary on every single Oxford United game, home and away, as part of a brand new dedicated sports show every match day afternoon. The BBC will continue with their commentary of games, but you can expect something very different from Jack. Our coverage will be delivered by a team (sorry - I've been banned from giving any clues) who have full access to the players, management, directors and staff at the club. It will be totally partisan and yellow through and through. You can expect something totally different to what's currently on offer. Oxford United's Commercial Manager Peter Corbett had this to say: “JACK FM will bring a new, dynamic match day experience to fans that can’t attend the games and their unique commentary team will be at every home and away game. This marks the beginning of a prosperous long term relationship with JACK fm”.

We're certain that with the support of Jack, the U’s are destined to be promoted back to the League. Come on the U's!

Its' all about the music?.....god knows!

So can you add to the JACKfm blog the boss asked me.......

So, I’ve eventually, I’ve got round to it….. but let me tell you, I still don’t know what a ‘Blog’ is!

He keeps telling me that JACK's all about the music .......and I keep telling him that it’s all about the revenue and that me and my team have got to bring in lots of money to pay for all this new equipment that keeps arriving in brown boxes and this NEW radio station.   

Now, can you imagine trying to sell somebody something they can't see yet, touch, feel or even hold!. We can tell them how great it's going to be, but naturally we would say that wouldn't we!

By now we all know JACK is going to be a brand new radio station for Oxfordshire, but what will make it different for the businesses who want to target our audience (yeah that’s right…. the audience we haven't got just yet!).Well, as with EVERYTHING with JACK, we'll be doing things a little different - we have to!.

We won't just be giving our advertisers "airtime campaigns" (that's what all the other radio stations do!) .....yawn!!!!

We'll be giving them idea's and solutions, now yeah you may have heard that before, but it's what we do .... and you know what.... we do it well, very well!   

It'll be a bit like baking a cake ........yes a cake…..with JACK we'll give them a mixture of sponsorship, airtime, promotions, website, direct mail the lot and we'll throw in some icing for free and we'll then have the perfect advertising plan for them.

It’s about now that the boss has probably collapsed in a heap with the JACK cake story, but well, to be fair, it's the truth. Businesses who want to get just a good response to their advertising should go to maybe a local newspaper ........ however, if they want a POSITIVE AND GREAT result they should be speaking to us, because JACK will do that!

Now, if you look after the marketing for your company or maybe you own your business your probably thinking, ye heard all that before, ya ya ya, advertising, advertsing, advertising….. and advertising on radio, oh here we go, why should I bother, it can’t possibly work for me!.

WELL!...... guess what….. I’m gonna let you into a little secret ……

Think about the last time you bought a newspaper.

You bought it….

You read it…..

You throw it away…. (but if your really good, you’ll recycle it of course!)

Now, if you’re advertising in that paper, your advert is there for just ONE day, just one… and then it’s gone….. your money that you spent has gone, that’s it, you only had one CHANCE for the readers to see it….. doesn’t that seem a complete waste?!......

Now with Radio it’s a different story, (well it would be wouldn’t it – but it’s true so keep with me and I’ll explain!).

With JACK you’ll simply get more for your money - more adverts and more adverts mean more OPPORTUNITES for people to hear your advert.

The average cost of a decent size advert in press would give you a full weeks campaign on JACK – now what makes more sense, one day or a full week?.

So, advertising with JACK will give you a real cost effective opportunity for MORE people to hear your commercial and not just with airtime, but with sponsorships and some amazing promotions, with the main objective based around getting the audience to hear about your product or service and then come through YOUR door instead of one of your competitors.

Remember…..“One day or one week?”

Now if your still with me, it’s important that we admit that people don’t listen to radio for advertising, that would be silly!.

My old radio station programme director once told told me “Graham, it’s all about the music” ………… now that maybe true I don’t know, what I do know is that JACK will be all about the music, that’s what’s going to make us great, it’s going to make us different and really stand out from the rest of those other radio stations that are on your “wireless!”.

So, my advice, get excited that JACK is here, get excited that if you love music, your gonna just love JACK and if you’re a businesses that wants to take local radio seriously in respect to making money and promoting yourself on air, in a really cost effective way then we have got to be talking to each other……. what’s the worst thing that can happen …… we’ll even pay for the coffee!

Graham Lysaght

Commercial Director

ARI