CFBR | 100.3 The Bear | Edmonton | Astral Media | New & Classic Rock
For a radio station that prides itself on being edgy, Edmonton's the Bear (100.3 FM) isn't exactly on the cutting edge of social media.
For one thing, the station's website appears devoid of any user-generated content whatsoever. And, it's not because their fans don't want to upload material and interact with the station online. To prove that point, one only need look to Facebook, where there are at least 5 fan groups dedicated to the Bear—none of which appear to be officially associated with the station.
I can appreciate that the station may be unwilling to hand their fans the keys to the official station website—in this respect they're not alone among Edmonton radio stations—but I'm quite surprised that they haven't at least created a Facebook page where their fans can upload content.
The Bear's website does cover most of the standard points that one would expect: events, contests, and news. However, all of these sections are controlled by station staff. Community organizations looking for the ability to upload information about their events will have to look elsewhere.
One thing that I found surprising about the Bear's website is that, while they provide plenty of information about their on-air talent, they don't appear to have any blogs. And, forget about subscribing to the news or events sections: the Bear's website doesn't have RSS feeds.
It would be easy to sit here and criticize the Bear for being "behind the times" and not connected to the social media sphere, but they're hardly alone. The Bear's website follows a similar format to most Edmonton radio stations: they've covered the basics, but when it comes to engaging with social media, they haven't got their feet wet yet.
Of course, that doesn't mean that the station's website doesn't provide contact information. Their Contact Us page provides email address for everyone from the sales and promotions staff to the creative writers. About the only people who's email addresses aren't listed on this page are the announcers. For those interested in advertising with the station, either on-air, online, or both, there is a contact form devoted solely to advertising inquiries.
While the Bear might not have jumped aboard the social media bus quite yet, communicators looking to contact the station should find plenty of information on the station's website. And maybe, in the not-too-distant future, they'll even find social media tools they can use to engage the station.