June 2021 Newsletter

Covid in rear view mirror: We are all hoping it stays that way too. Positives cases are plummeting as vaccine distribution increases in New York and across the United States. Numbers are expected to continue to trend lower with warmer temperatures as well. Mask mandates have been dropped for the most part and businesses are returning to more traditional purchase patterns. Concerts, live venues, casinos, and sporting events are not back to capacity- but future events are being projected to return to full capacity- likely by Fall. 

 Employment / Recruitment: One of the largest reemergence issues is the imbalance in employment. As the economy pushes to reopen and grow, there are still a high number of potential and previous employees not fully returning to work. Primary drivers are not being vaccinated (changing quickly), school and childcare issues (also returning to normal levels and in person), and additional stimulus money inside unemployment payments. Individual states are recognizing that the time may be NOW to eliminate these additional monies in order to get people back into the workforce. The marketplace for employees is perhaps greater now than any time in the past 20 years as employers are offering higher pay, greater incentives, and bonuses to attract new employees.

 The Cayuga Radio Group and Oven Fresh Jobs held its first LIVE job fair in over a year featuring over 40 employers at our sold-out event. We incentivized candidates with great prizes throughout the day in order to draw more people. Steady crowds and hiring on the spot. 

 We expect the category of employee recruitment to stay hot right into Fall. Clients use radio and Oven Fresh Jobs to push company imaging, incentives and most importantly…attract working people.

 Finger Lakes Favorites: We are excited to be promoting Finger Lakes Favorites! This is an online voting platform that features over 200 categories of businesses, places, and services in and around the region. We started with a nominations period and recently completed the voting period. Over 23,000 votes were entered. Winners will be announced and culminate with online listings and the release of 5,000 publication magazines that will be distributed in mid-August along with an e-magazine version. Just in time as students come to area colleges- and seek information on the “best” places to know!

 Football trade: We have been carrying both the Buffalo Bills and New York Giants on our stations. This year we will swap the affiliates with he Buffalo Bills moving to WIII (I-100 Rocks) and the Giants to 96.3 The Buzzer. This gives us the opportunity to expand the reach of the Bills with the larger signal, while still covering the Giants here in Ithaca. The NFL expands the regular season to 17 games this year and packages are already filling up…get yours now!

 Adding powerful visual- transit ads: 2021 has already seen strong demand for ads on our TCAT buses. Most clients are purchasing long term campaigns for branding. TCAT recently introduced seven (7) new electric buses into the fleet. See some examples of our work here: Cool Bus Ads – Transit Advertising in Tompkins County, New York

Contesting on radio: Covid negatively impacted our ability to do live, in-person events in 2020, but it led to a massive increase in our creating and executing online contests that saw record entries including our “He said, SHE SHED” promotion that delivered over 12,000 entries. If you would like to be a part of an exciting promotion for your business- one that will bring in new customers…we probably have just the idea! If not, we will create it! Our current contest is the “King of the Grill”…a kickoff to summer promotion tied into Father’s Day. 

 Serving and Protecting The Cayuga Radio Group introduced “Serving and Protecting” to our region this year. This program is a support media campaign of our area First responders: Police, firefighters, EMT’s, Sherriff Departments, Doctors and Nurses, and many others. The program features interviews, profiles, educational campaigns, and discussions to engage our community to these very important people in our communities.

 Trends:

Online vs. in person: 2020 saw the rise of the Zoom call. It was a necessary tool for communication during Covid, especially for those important calls that may have required travel by car, air, or across states. Zoom allowed for video and audio connections between parties. In some cases, this will become the “new normal”- reducing company travel costs and perhaps increasing productivity and efficiency. However, it is more likely that employers and even employees will seek to increase face to face interaction. 

 Airline Travel: Not just business travel but recreational and vacation travel too. Numbers are dramatically increasing. Airports are packed, flights are full, even “middle seats” are getting sold once again. In May, air travel was the highest in over 18 months.

 Cruises too: Remember when Covid first hit, there were several cases of outbreaks on cruise lines. It was devastating on the cruise industry. Today, the major cruise lines are reporting Q1 losses BUT are showing strong demand for future bookings. Consumers are offering great deals…and bottom line- the customers are returning!

 Back to office: Employers are evaluating the best time and way to bring employees BACK to the office. In some cases, the answer might be “never”. Many jobs can be done effectively remotely. But several employers are noting productivity declines and other negative effects of not having employees in a central location (collaboration, Brainstorming, speed of communication, decision making, etc.). Some companies, specifically in larger cities with expensive real estate leases may be reevaluating traditional structures. Here, we are seeing most organizations rapidly trying to get employees back into the office.

Fashion upgrades: The following article talks about how Covid has changed fashion in the past year. How Coronavirus Will Change Fashion - Style Changes Post-Depression | InStyle. But what will be most interesting is to see what happens once people start returning back to the office and out socializing. Expect people to want to make a break from the past and reemerge from Covid not just feeling better- but looking better too.

 Cosmetic surgery: The driver? Zoom calls. Plastic surgery practices are seeing massive patient increases for facial rejuvenation procedures referred to informally as “The Zoom Neck Lift Boom”. Makes sense. We are spending far more time on Zoom calls than we are looking in the mirror. The Zoom Neck Lift Boom: How Video Calls Are Inspiring Requests for This Cosmetic Plastic Surgery Procedure in Tallahassee, FL | Southeastern Plastic Surgery, P.A. (se-plasticsurgery.com). Even stores like Ulta Beauty are growing fast post Covid.