Amanda Woods Interview 1-23-17

Amanda Woods
Events and Audience Promotions Manager
Blue Ridge Broadcasting
WMIT / WFGW
Black Mountain, NC 

Career Capsule: I graduated from Cedarville University in Ohio in May of 2015 with a marketing degree and started my career off at Western Carolina Rescue Mission in Asheville, NC as the Director of Community Relations in August of 2015 through October 2016. I had been praying several months that God would show me where he needs me to be and He did just that. God opened up a position at WMIT as the Events and Audience Promotions Manager which is the type of career that I had been searching for. I’m so thankful for God’s answer to prayer in placing me at WMIT.  

Amanda, tell us what’s new at Blue Ridge Broadcasting, with you etc… ?

Not only am I new to BRB (Blue Ridge Broadcasting), but I am also new to radio so in the last few months that I’ve been at BRB I have had to learn all of the radio lingo. Specifically at BRB we have a new imaging package developed by our in house productions specialist.

What are the 3 main ingredients to make a promotion successful?

From the events side of a promotion the first thing that makes it successful is to engage our listeners. Second (which I think is most important), is to simply serve the listener by helping them in whatever way we can. This may include taking the time to pray with them or sending them a book or CD that is going to uplift them in their time of need. And third, we need to make sure they know how valuable they are to our station and make them feel like a part of our family.

What is the best promotion advice you’ve been given? The worst?

Planning, planning, and more planning! Something will always “pop up” and alter your best laid plans. Prepare for the scenarios you wouldn’t expect. Because I’m new to the radio industry, I didn’t come in with any preconceived notions and the advice thus far has all been positive.

Regarding your career, what are you most proud of?

I’ve only been out of school for a year, and I’ve been able to find a career in the area that I’m passionate about.

What is the one thing YOU must have to do your job every day?

The right team is key. Every Monday we get together and brainstorm different ideas that have popped into our heads throughout the week. We call them “tornados”. One person may start with an idea, it jumps around and people keep adding to it, and before you know it you have this great idea that has been developed by your team.

In your opinion what makes the ideal station promotion?

A successful promotion is one where we are able to partner with other ministries, incorporate their strengths along with our core mission, and engage our current listeners while reaching new ones.

Regarding social networking and promotion, what have you had the most success with?

We have been most successful with our Facebook engagement and especially ticket giveaways.

How do you measure the success of a great promotion?

I think the best way we can measure the success of our station’s promotion is through the feedback we get from our listeners. In the last two months that I have been here at BRB we had a free listener appreciation concert with Denver and the Mile High Orchestra. I wasn’t sure what to expect that night, but I left feeling successful because of one simple comment from a listener as she was walking out. She looked over at us and said, “I feel so appreciated. Thank you!” That is what it’s all about – making our listeners feel valuable and loved!