USING LINERS EFFECTIVELY

Salem affiliates have the opportunity to use pre-recorded network liner elements numerous times throughout each hour.  Here's a brief overview of the liner elements available to you, and a word or two about how to best use them:

"MiraCalls" - These are two-second mentions of your call letters, dial position or slogan.  They air over a song fade and immediately prior to the air personality patter which precedes every stopset.  If you identify yourself as "Light 99," as a song fades, the Light 99 MiraCall will come on and will be immediately followed by the air personality doing his or her bit.  To the listeners, it sounds like the air personality did it all live ("Light 99 - Steven Curtis Chapman with Heaven in the Real World.  Before that we heard...").  The MiraCalls (as well as all other liner elements) used during any given hour must be those voiced by the air personality who's on live during that corresponding hour.

"Return-to-music Liners" - These are eight-second elements which are meant to be done conversationally.  They run immediately following most stopsets.  They can incorporate a host of topics, ranging from station positioning slogans to station contests (KROL - where the Fall Giveaway is on.  Keep listening and you could win an Alaskan cruise - from 99.5, KROL), to concert information (91.9 - That's right, I'm not at the Amy concert either.  But we'll still have a great time tonight with Today's Christian Music on 91.9fm), to sales remotes (Z98/3 - I'm Chris Ruleman, and Jon Yates is live at Crown Dodge.  We'll check in with him in just a few minutes here on Z98/3), to community events (102.7 - Don't forget that Atlantafest is coming up June 14th.  Stick around, we'll have tickets for you here on the new 102.7).  Basically, if it's something your station is doing or something that is prominent in your community, it can be done in a return-to-music slot.

"Quarter-Hour Sweepers" - These are seven-second positioning statements which run at approximately :15, :30 and :45 after each hour.

"Legal IDs" - Eight seconds long.

Upon request, additional liners can be cut to run within local breaks to intro and outro weather reports, traffic reports or remotes.  We'd encourage you to ask for these and to implement them locally.

Each network air personality will voice all of the above liner elements for you.  Unless your station's technical setup absolutely prevents it, in every given hour, always match the liner voice with the voice of the person who is on the air.  This puts the network personalities' voices on the air more frequently, gives them the chance to "talk about" things going on in your community, and ultimately makes your audience more comfortable and familiar with them.  This is a key factor in helping the on-air people to become a very local part of the radio station.