Waves of savings

Elgin’s WRMN thrives on an innovative business model based on a timeless virtue: thrift

ELGIN – On a dreary, frigid Sunday morning in February, Rick Jakle walked into the office of WRMN, the Elgin news and talk AM radio sta­tion of which he became presi­dent in 1966.

Even the clouds’ gray gloom didn’t compare to the national sentiment at the time, howev­er. It was 1982, and the coun­try was deep in the throes of an economic recession, meaning business at WRMN, like just about everywhere else, was something between slow and stagnant.

Perhaps ironically, inspira­tion would come from an idea that had been shut down just a few ye

ars ago. In 1975, Jakle first brought an on-air shop­ping program to WRMN, but it was ended by FCC regula­tors who limited programs to 18 minutes of commercial time per hour.

Times had changed since then, however. Deregulation of radio meant such restric­tions were no longer in play and a show like the shopping program could now thrive. Af­ter an all-night session, Jakle had his plan in place: every­thing from merchandise ac­quisition sheets to certificates for vendors to a media release ready to announce the new Ra­dio Shopping Show.

“I had the whole business model not just conceptualized but ready to go on Monday morning,” Jakle said.

Whether or not the follow­ing Monday’s weather was as morose as Sunday’s, Jakle announced a “new day” had dawned at that morning’s meeting. He expected resis­tance from the staff and got it but says, once they warmed up to the idea that they were now retailers, the format took off.

Advertisers hit by hard times showed interest in the new program and WRMN had enough customers on board to begin selling certificates on the Radio Shopping Show on May 8, 1982.

Today, the show’s format is largely the same: listeners register for a Key Tag or identification number to provide when they call into the show. The listener can then purchase certificates offering anything from food, goods, or vacation trips at deep discounts – typically over 50 percent off. The station has also kept up with technology, now tracking all operations digitally and offering a smart phone app for even more portable shopping.

The format’s reach has grown – Jakle now owns two more stations that feature the Radio Shopping Show: WBIG in Aurora, and KSHP in Las Vegas. A new franchise venture recently took off in Colorado Springs.

“To my knowledge, we’re the only outfit in the entire country that have built their entire business model on this,” Jakle said.

What has changed more than the show itself is the world around it. The show has outlasted economic crests and valleys, socioeconomic changes in the nation and in Elgin, ever-advancing technology, and the ever-changing media.

“The beauty of the Radio Shopping Show is in good times, people still always want to save money and in bad times they have to,” Jakle said.
Part of what Jakle calls a “triple win” for advertisers, listeners, and the station are the personal testimonials given on goods and services the station offers by its listeners and on-air personalities.

“Anyone can buy a radio commercial, a print ad, a direct mail piece, but you get real life people authentically talking about how they enjoyed a particular restaurant or goods or services,” he said.

The Radio Shopping Show also produces “road shows,” which are broadcast on-location, often at a customer’s business, to help promote certificate sales and patronage.

“We really try and work it like a partnership,” general sales manager Leah Unser said.

Listeners win from the steep discounts provided by the certificates. Unser said two of the most popular certificate categories are for restaurants and hotels.

Because the show broadcasts online as well as over the air, callers can come from just about anywhere. They do tend to be from the show’s broadcast radius, however, which reaches south to Joliet, west to Rockford, north to Lake Geneva, and east to Lake Michigan. Unser said the show reaches across demographics and does not limit itself to a target audience.

“The amount of interest that we get from young people is phenomenal, it floors me,” Unser said.

Finally, WRMN benefits from sales of vouchers, which are traded with customers for airtime and promotion. Vouchers are the only source of income for the Radio Shopping Show.

Loyalty is a mantra for The Radio Shopping Show. Jakle finds it in local businesses that have been with the show since its early days, in listeners who have been calling in since the first broadcast, and in employees who have been with the station for generations.

From Dec. 13-15, WRMN will begin a marathon show session. Held four times per year, marathon shows are 32-hour affairs with nonstop programming and certificates offering discounts, typically based around a seasonal theme. For December, the certificates focus on holiday deals and winter sports, but as always, a wide variety of certificates are offered.

Unser called the marathon show an “all-hands-on-deck” operation, with hosts rotating shifts and a phone bank crew brought in to handle the high call volume. She said caller response “at least triples” during most marathons.

In addition to the shopping and discounts, WRMN offers an all news and talk format for listeners.

“There’s a tremendous amount of local news, local information, regional news, things that you can’t get anyplace else on the radio dial,” Jakle said.

Programs include “Friday With the Fuzz,” a community awareness program developed with Elgin Police; “Advocate Sherman Hospital House Calls,” offering medical news; and “Tradio,” a type of on-air classified sales page. The station has also branched into sports, broadcasting NIU basketball games and Schaumburg Boomers baseball games.

From its conception to its modern form and from offering deals to dispensing local news, Jakle credits The Radio Shopping Show’s success to one factor:
“What makes us work is the best team of broadcasters that a guy could ever hope for,” he said.

The Radio Shopping Show
To register for a Key Tag:
Visit wrmn1410.com or call 847-931-1410 to register.
Once registered, shoppers can purchase certificates by calling the station or visiting the website.
Once purchased, certificates are available for pick up at the station’s Redemption Center at 22 Douglas Ave., Elgin.

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