Taylor Hohulin “Becky, Bluey, and Baby Songs That Slap”

If you want free advice, have a baby. Works every time.

My wife and I became parents for the first time earlier this year when our son Silas was born, and there has been no shortage of advice on how to best take care of him. And I’m completely fine with that. I’m happy to collect wisdom from people who’ve been there already and are hoping to spare me a little grief and frustration.

One of the most common pieces of advice we get comes in the form of entertainment recommendations. Friends have shared with us a whole library’s worth of baby books. There are multiple Spotify playlists named some variation of “Baby Songs That Slap.” And since our dog is part blue heeler, roughly all of Earth’s population has told us to watch Bluey.

And I think all these recommendations may hold a lesson for us Christian radio folks. Hear me out on this.

There’s no shortage of conversations about our infamous target listener Becky, or whatever name she has at your particular station. And I get it. As Christian broadcasters, we have a message that is for everyone, but a format that does particularly well when it targets one demographic in particular. It’s natural to wonder if it’s possible to make radio that’s financially viable while still reaching people who aren’t as likely to fill out a Nielsen diary or sign up for a monthly donation.

In my opinion, this is where the babies come in. Because all these songs, shows, and books we’ve been discovering are created for one demographic, but have high appeal to another. Created for babies, loved by parents.

So what can Christian radio learn from this? Here are a few quick thoughts…

Identify your target’s bullseyes and boundaries

Let’s talk about TV shows for babies. For my 8-month-old, a TV show hits a bullseye with high-contrast colors and dramatic character voices. It doesn’t matter what else you do with the show; if you don’t get that part right, it won’t hold his attention. But then even if you do have the brightest colors and the silliest voices, you won’t be able to use that show to teach an eight-month-old the ins and outs of filing taxes. That’s a boundary Silas isn’t capable of crossing.

So what’s your target’s bullseye? For many of us, our core listener is comes to us for spiritually-oriented mood improvement, but maybe it’s something else for your audience. Our target’s boundaries could be any number of things, from the amount of time she has available to listen, to the words or subjects that make her want to tune out.

…but understand the boundaries may be wider than you think

It would be easy to assume you can’t make children’s media featuring panic attacks, confronting mortality, or addressing miscarriage…but that’s exactly what happens in Puss In Boots: The Last Wish, Toy Story 3, and Bluey, respectively. Each one approaches mature issues in a way that works for their younger audience while also providing insight and encouragement for any adults who happen to be watching.

It’s natural to assume your target listener has a long list of topics and musical styles that she has no interest in hearing on her radio station, but when you dig into what your bullseyes and boundaries actually are, you’ll find there’s more room to color without going outside the lines.

Know who else is in the room

One of the hallmarks of the best children’s movies from both Pixar and Dreamworks is the humor for the adults. Not adult humor, but little winks and nods to tell a parent “we see you” without alienating the child the movie was made for.

Pixar and Dreamworks understand that, even if their movies are made for children, those children will often be watching the movie with a parent. There is a secondary demographic that their target brings with them.

Christian radio may mostly target women in their 40s, but these women have children, husbands, and workplaces. Chances are, your target listener isn’t the only person in the room when she’s listening to your station. When you ignore everyone else in the room, that’s when you end up pandering. You may be able to get your target to love you, but people who don’t perfectly fit the mold may feel like they don’t belong.

Having a target listener can easily lead to radio that alienates everyone who isn’t a 40-year-old woman with a husband, 2.5 children, and a golden retriever, but it doesn’t have to. Does it take a little more work to appeal to one demographic while remaining welcoming to another? Sure, but then again, so do most things worth doing.

Taylor Hohulin co-hosts Mornings with Taylor and Jen at Northwestern Media’s Life 107.1 in Des Moines, where he also serves as Program Director.

You can contact him to chat radio or weird science fiction at Taylor@Life1071.Com