The One Thing That Can Derail Your Christmas Programming
Every year, the pattern is the same. You flip the switch to Christmas music and the reaction is off the charts. Ratings spike. Social media lights up. Sales is thrilled. Then, a few days in, the familiar comment pops up, usually from someone inside the building.
“Why are we playing the same songs over and over.”
Soon after, an email or two from listeners lands in your inbox.
“There are so many Christmas songs out there. Why do you keep repeating the same ones?”
It sounds like valid criticism, but it’s not.
The truth is simple: there are only about 100 to 125 Christmas titles that truly matter. These are the songs with real appeal, the ones listeners actually want. Everything else lives on the fringe.
Christmas programming is a high cume, low TSL situation. Listeners come and go quickly, often in short bursts throughout the day. They want the comfort of the familiar. They want the memories. They want the songs they grew up with and still love. That’s why stations that stay tight and lean into the proven classics win every single year.
The real danger is letting internal grumbling push you off your strategy. When programmers panic, they usually reach for one of two wrong solutions.
- Adding older, low appeal titles just to “mix it up.”
These songs may feel nostalgic to someone on staff, but they don’t test, they don’t pop, and they don’t help your station. - Trying to get more contemporary.
This leads to the biggest Christmas mistake of all: adding newly recorded Christmas songs that nobody knows. A new Christmas track, even from a big artist, rarely connects. Listeners don’t have the emotional history with it, and it won’t bring them back.
If you want to keep your Christmas strategy on track, stay focused on what works.
Proven classics. A tight list. Familiar favorites.
Don’t worry about the age of the song. Worry about its appeal. Listeners vote with their ears, and they consistently choose the songs they already love.
Stick with that and your Christmas programming will stay exactly where it should be: on top.
