Like much of the business world, January has traditionally been quite a holiday for major market radio people.  Most often they wander back towards the end of the month and ease themselves into the coming survey year. Many not being back before Survey One actually starts.

This year, not so much.

With all the changes that have happened to major, established programs, and the amount of potential revenue to be had, or at risk, most shows are finding themselves on air this coming Monday, January 13.

Many have worked across the holiday season in preparation to hit the ground running. And it’s not just the presenters.

The Content people have been working out what to actually do an air, the Tactics teams have been designing big, new promotional activities, the Marketers high-impact, multi media campaigns, the Production people are up to their ears in re-packaging, the Web folks building new sites, some Engineering staff are fitting out new studios, not to mention Sales  teams trying to convince clients about untested new shows. 

One of the old adages, that’s just as true for a radio show as anything else, is that you only get one chance to make a first impression. This is particularly true in the case of those shows chasing the fickle 18-40 year old demographic.  Lose their attention and interest at your peril.

It’s probably fair to say that many radio people, especially executives, won’t be as rested after this summer break as they have been in the past.

One of the shows that won’t be starting next week is the new Kyle & Jackie O Show which will happen in conjunction with the launch of Kiis 1065 in Sydney on January 20.

There are two schools of thought on this. 

The first is that it will give the dust a chance to settle on the market while everyone else gets up and running – so giving ARN some clear air to launch Kiis 1065.

The other is that they’re taking a risk that the audience might actually like the new Jules, Merrick and Sophie, with Mel B show on 2day – and make it harder to get them over to Kiis.

That said, one thing you can pretty much be sure of is that the cume for Kiis 1065, not to mention the media attention, will be huge on Monday, January 20.

But it’s not just Sydney, every major market has new shows launching.

Throw in a brand new survey company and methodology for the first time in over 60 years – and avid radio observers look like having a fascinating start to the year.

So many unanswered questions. So many intriguing possibilities.