The Top 3 Ways Sirius XM Could Create a Flood of New Subscribers — TODAY
There is obviously a long list of things Sirius XM can and will do to grow their subscriber base over the course of the next year. Lets simply concentrate for a minute on what I consider the low-hanging fruit this company could put into action today — with very little effort.
Utilize Social Deal of the Day Websites
It is no secret that social deal of the day websites like Groupon and LivingSocial are all the rage now a days so, why not take advantage of it? This past weekend I watched my local car detailing shop sell 1,260 full car detailing packages in one 24 hour period. This local dealership is going to wind up detailing more cars from this one day deal then they did all of last year.
Just think for a second what that could mean for Sirius XM if they decided to run a nationwide campaign on Groupon – we are talking about tens to hundreds of thousands of new subscribers in one day.
All it would take is for Sirius XM to offer a 50% off a one year subscription and limit it to new activations. You would see more users than any Monday Night Football add ever produced, for half the cost.
Side Note: Hey Groupon, I want my cut of the proceeds when Sirius XM takes this great advice.
Turn Inactive Hardware Into Selling Machines
There are too many inactive Sirius XM radios sitting out there in the dashboards of cars to not somehow make use of them. Rather than scrolling a number to activate, Sirius XM should turn the one default channel into a 24 hour infomercial.
Imagine how enticing it would be for potential customers to constantly hear “best of” clips from the various exclusive shows in the Sirius XM lineup. The company could even target different loops of content for different times of the day with some daytime talk in the mornings, music in the afternoons, and uncensored radio at night.
How much more effective would those unused radios be if people were hearing a couple of minutes of the same compelling content subscribers are treated to every day, followed by a call to action from the likes of Oprah, Martha, or Howard? It’s safe to say that the cost vs benefit on this one is a no brainer.
Capitalize on Viral Marketing
I don’t know how Sirius XM missed this one but, for the past few weeks the entire nation has been riveted by the homeless DJ Ted Williams and more importantly, his new Mac & Cheese contract. We watched in amazement as the man with the golden voice appeared on every major news outlet, talk-show, and nationwide radio show with the ever present reminder of his deal with Kraft Mac & Cheese. Imagine if that was Sirius XM instead of Kraft?
For just a few grand Sirius XM could have locked up this guy and his 15 minutes of fame as a George Takei type announcer on the Howard Stern Show. The entire nation would have been forced to read this story over and over again with the Sirius XM and Howard Stern brand all over it.
Talk about a good return on investment! For the price of a single prime time television ad spot they could not only driven brand awareness but also gained hundreds of thousands of permanent backlinks to their website from all over the net.
The year is 2011 Sirius XM. Its time to start hiring some new blood, thinking about creative ways to build your brand, and driving new customers to this company. Now is the time, your growth is more important than ever, seize this moment and solidify yourself as the future of entertainment.
When you’re ready for some of that new blood, give me a call, I think you’ll find my consulting fee quite reasonable.
Here are some more ideas for Sirius-XM to attract subscribers:
1) Invest in a 24 hr Beatles Channel with participation from Sir Paul, Ringo & George Martin….
2) More religious-cultural based channels – example: Radio LDS from Salt Lake City ….
3) Integrate top local programming from terrestrial radio..At this point Sirius-XM isn’t going away and is only growing in a weak economy. It would be wise for locally based radio shows that have a srong following to use Sirus-XM for a naional platform.
Actually that TJ Williams idea is GOLD JERRY! GOLD! Lol. To bad they didn’t think of it.
Lower the price to a flat $10/month that includes internet option like it used to. Do this for everyone. This will attract new subscribers plus maybe have current subscribers add another one.
Netflix can do this for 9.99, SIRIUS/XM should be able to do it too. Should be adding million(s) per quarter.
YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES!
I agree!
So far the Sirius Marketing Mantra should be, WE SUCK!
I think Sirius is content with where they are right now.
There are so many excellent ideas posted by forum users everywhere on the internet, it is hard for me to imagine that Sirius lacks the same type of futuristic vision and ingenuity. Is the R&D, Marketing Dept run by old farts or something???????? Common let’s hire some young people here, and when I say young 30 and under, and get some fresh ideas.
Maybe someone can ask these type of questions on the next CC.
We all have to wait and see what sirius 2.0 offers!
Price drop – afraid not… Sounds like they’re attempting to do just the oppostie. This report says Sirius/XM filed papers with the FCC asking to increace prices. Not a good move on their part especially in this economy.
http://www.fmqb.com/article.as.....id=2091406
JUST SEND THIS INFORMATION TO THE CEO OF SIRIUS…..GOOD IDEA BUT TELL SIRIUS WHERE IT MATTERS..
pretty sad when we the investors can think of these great ideas but our company can’t capitalize on the most obvious things..great article! makes you wonder whats actually going on in sirius from 8-5.
Great article
And you are so right
Dont wait for HD radio to pick this up.
HD has gone the way of the do do bird buttttttttttt
this could also be a game changer for them as well.
Groupon is a very powerful tool.
There seems to be a wide reaching consensus that the marketing department at SiriusXM is in need of some major improvements. Collectively we need to flood investor relations or the VP of Marketing/ CMO (Chief Marketing Officer)with emails and/or phone calls asking for change.
It seems the current strategy is to go after customers with dormant radios or those who ‘free trial’ subscriptions are running out, which is all good! I’ve had friends/family members receive these direct mail pieces to reactivate radios, etc. However, there needs to be MUCH MUCH more done to attract NEW business and not rely soley on the free trials turning into paying subscribers.
The increased effort will cost $$$ but NOW is the time. 2011 is the year to allocate a large portion of investment into marketing/advertising campaigns!!!