In a day and age when localism seems to be getting the short end of the stick at quite a few radio stations, Hispanic radio is delivering big time to its listeners. Over the past few weeks we've spent a lot of time discussing the explosive growth of Hispanic radio, with so many great broadcasters all over the country. One of those broadcasters is Tony Bonicci (pictured), who is running stations for Lotus Communications in Las Vegas. Bonicci is up for Broadcaster of the Year in the Radio Ink Hispanic Radio Awards, the Medallas de Cortez, which will be presented next month in San Diego.
Bonicci says Hispanic radio listeners are as loyal to their stations today as listeners to other formats were a decade ago. "The bottom line is quality," he says. "They are a loyal audience that wants quality. You deliver quality, and they will stick around and listen to your radio station."
Bonicci emphasizes the loyalty of his listeners, just a bit. "They are very, very, very loyal," he says. "They are very loyal people. Again, a lot of what we are seeing today in the Hispanic world is the stuff we used to see in the Anglo world. Hispanics select their radio station and support that radio station, they show up at the events. We just did a Valentine's Day promotion, a concert that was oversold. The casino was asking us what happened. I was like, 'This is what happens,' not, 'What happened?'
"They are very loyal, and that's where the time spent listening comes in. I think a lot of Hispanic broadcasters realize what I am saying, and the products that they are putting on the air are much better than the products they were putting on years ago. Look at today -- I will give you a great example of what I am talking about. The hottest show in television is the Hispanic version of American Idol. That is the reality of it." READ MORE
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