1-26-2012
David Darling voiced his first radio commercial when he was 4 years old. His dad was in the radio business for 40 years working at stations such as WTRY, WMCA, WIND and WHK so there was in the family DNA for Darling to get into radio as well. He started out at the high school radio station where he caught the radio bug. His first paid position was in Houston Texas and ever since he's been working his way through the ranks of radio. Today he works for Salem in Dallas. In addition to his radio gig, Darling is an entrepreneur. He saw a need for a product in the radio industry, he figured out how to create that product and now he's selling it all over the world through his company DLD Media. We asked him how it all got started.
How did you start DLD media?
Over the years when we would have a local show come on the station, the Sales Department would ask for a Program Clock (or Hot Clock) for their potential advertisers. I always had to ask our graphics person to draw something up - and after several days of waiting, it was usually incorrect. It wasn't their fault, they just knew how to work the graphics software, but didn't have a grasp on programming. I looked around for some software that would create a hot clock, but really couldn't find what I was looking for, so in 2008 I set out to create my own software from the perspective of a radio programmer.
Developing software is not simple. How did you get into that?
The first thing I had to do was find someone who I could partner with that understood software programming code. So after posting a few ads, I finally found the person I felt comfortable with. Now the hard part - conveying to a
programmer what you are trying to accomplish from a radio perspective and have him translate that into software. This process took about a year of testing, working and re-working at nights and on weekends. In addition, I took some college classes to better understand the coding process. But finally, I felt that we had developed a workable piece of software that accomplished the goal -
The Broadcast Clock Creator.
- Are you finding there is a need for this product? Where and from whom?
I first started to use The Broadcast Clock Creator at my office. I would create clocks for our local shows and give to the Sales Department to use on presentations. After being asked several times "Hey, how did you make this", I realized that I could market this. So I created a website, studied up on low-cost marketing techniques and search engine optimization, and over time I began to see the sales grow. I would ask for feedback from users, then take the money from the sales to modify the software with these suggestions. I'm now up to the newly released 3rd version of The Broadcast Clock Creator - which in addition to allowing the user to print a clock, export to PDF or image file - there is also a paperless version that is displayed on your desktop in real time. I have found this new desktop version to be especially helpful for fill in hosts. The host can have the hot clock in front of them on their desktop and it displays the current segment you are in, how long until the next segment, etc. in real time. The Broadcast Clock Creator has been translated into several languages (by people, not computer) and the response has been positive from around the world. Probably the most unique purchase has been from the Ugandan government which has purchased several copies. I have also found that non-broadcasters have been purchasing the software as an easy way to create pie charts, which I thought was interesting.
- What is the pricing structure, the delivery method, installation, service, etc. And how can people get in touch with you for more information?
The price for The Broadcast Clock Creator is only $19.95 - which not only makes the software accessible to radio professionals, but also college students who may be studying communications or part-time broadcasters looking to gain experience. All sales are online and you can purchase the software at http://www.broadcastclockcreator.com. Once you pay through PayPal, you will receive a unique download link for the software to install on your PC (no Mac version - yet). I usually try to respond to emails as soon as possible if anyone has installation or usage questions. For more information, simply fill out the contact form at the website.
Reachout to David HERE
