Tuesday, 11/29

How soon is too soon?

I’ve received a couple of calls and notes from people recently, asking when we’re gonna start playing Christmas music. Usually, we start playing the songs a week or two after Thanksgiving, increasing the frequency as the holiday approaches, but that’s not set in stone.

I guess my question to you guys is--should we play it sooner rather than later, and if we do start playing them sooner, should we be playing them more often rather than less often?

I personally am kind of leery of doing it. I mean, stores are filled with holiday merchandise beginning the day after Halloween, and TV is filled with holiday commercials beginning the day after Halloween. Isn’t that a little TOO much TOO soon? Still, all those commercials and all those sales must start the day after Halloween for a reason. Does that mean people these days (or at least retailers) start getting into the holiday mood a full two months before the actual holiday? Not only that, but there are radio stations all around the country that actually go all Christmas music, all the time, beginning the day after Halloween, and you know what? They score higher ratings with holiday music than they do playing “normal” music.

To me, spending an entire two months on the holiday tends to take away from the “specialness” (if that’s a word) of the season. I mean, if you’ve listened to “Jingle Bells” or looked at a Christmas tree for two straight months, it’s not something out of the ordinary, and it’s not special when the holiday actually arrives. It’s just an everyday part of your life--for one sixth of the year.

That, however, is just me. So here’s another assignment for you as November starts winding down. Give it some thought, and then share your opinion with me—should we start playing holiday music now or should we wait for another week? If we do start playing it, should we be playing it more than once or twice a day? If so, how often is enough? After all, I don’t program this station for me. . .I program it for you. That's why we keep saying it's “Radio Put Together By You”
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So give it a little thought, and let me know!

(jim@wmqt.com)