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WTAQ-AM History
WTAQ was originally licensed to Osseo, Wisconsin on September 4, 1923 on the 1180 frequency. In 1930, the Gillette Rubber Co. bought the station and moved it to Eau Claire on the 1330 frequency. In 1940, The Norbertine Fathers bought the station and changed its city of license to Green Bay and moved the frequency to 1360. About a decade later, the call letters were changed to WBAY, joining WBAY-TV and WBAY-FM.

In 1977, the Norbertine Fathers sold their radio stations to Midwest Communications. WBAY-AM was changed to WGEE and the FM station's calls became WIXX.

The format for WGEE was country music with local news, ABC network news, and agriculture reports. Due to the declining popularity of music on the AM band, the station began a gradual move toward news/talk programming in 1996. The station's moniker became "News Radio 1360 WGEE". Music programming, apart from WGEE's Sunday morning polka programs, was completely gone from the station by the end of 1998.

In the year 2000, the nationally syndicated Rush Limbaugh Program moved to WGEE from sister station WNFL , which switched to a hot talk format. WNFL now carries a sports format. WNFL's affiliation with CBS also moved back to WGEE. The CBS affiliation would go back to WNFL, once again, when WTAQ picked up Fox News Radio on April 1, 2009.

In 2003, the historic WTAQ calls became available and Midwest Communications decided to bring them back. The official change took place on March 17. Midwest Communications gave the WGEE calls to its ESPN affiliate in Duluth, Minnesota.

At the 2007 Wisconsin Broadcasters Association "Awards for Excellence" ceremony, WTAQ was named "Station of the Year" and awarded "Best Morning Show of the Year". In addition, WTAQ took first place for "Best Sportscast or Report" and first place for "Best Use of Audio". WTAQ also received seven Merit Awards.

In 2008, WTAQ was again named WBA "Station of the Year" plus "Best News Operation" and awarded First Place "Best Newscast".

WTAQ-FM
A construction permit was granted in 2008 to Radioactive, LLC to build a class A FM facility, licensed to Two Rivers, Wisconsin as WTRW. The station was on the air briefly, mainly for testing. Its frequency was to be 97.1 MHz, but Radioactive applied to have the city of license changed to the town of Glenmore with it moving to 97.5 MHz.

In Fall 2008 Midwest Communications began negotiations with Radioactive about buying the construction permit. The sale was finalized on July 29, 2009, with Midwest paying $1.55 million for the station. The WTAQ-FM call letters were applied to the station on August 5, 2009.

A deal was struck with WHDG in Rhinelander which moved to 97.3 MHz, freeing up the 97.5 frequency for use in Glenmore in July 2009.

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Advertising increases sales - successful businesses are usually strong, steady advertisers

Advertising generates traffic - traffic generates sales

Advertising pays in the long run - businesses that maintain or increase advertising over a five-year span realized a 100% increase in sales while those who cut back increased only 45%

Advertising retains customers - consumers have more choices than ever and businesses need to advertise to keep pace

Advertising reaches new customers - in an ever-changing market, the more potential customers you reach, the more likely they will do business with you

Advertising is being done by your competitors - for every customer, there are at least two businesses that want your business. Don't let your competitor's have it.

Advertising maintains awareness - most people comparison shop and take their time making a decision. Advertising keeps your business, products and services top of mind.

Advertising conveys a positive image for your business and boosts morale among your employees, suppliers and vendors.

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Radio Today - Long considered to be a secondary medium to television and print, Radio is emerging as a primary media for advertising and branding in today's fractured media landscape.

Radio is Now - With shrinking circulation, declining revenue and cutbacks in staff, newspapers and magazines are no longer as effective and efficient as they once were. Likewise television has seen a proliferation of alternative visual media with the emergence of cable, internet and smart phones. Add the ability for viewers to record and playback programs at will and skip commercial content, television becomes a fragmented shell of what it once was during its Golden Age.

Radio is Relevant - Radio keeps reinventing itself by adapting with the changing times and maintaining its relevance in people's lives. Radio connects with its listeners at a very high emotional-level that can lay the foundation for creating a bond between consumers and a company's brand or products. The 'theater of the mind' creative ability inherent in radio advertising hits listeners much more personally and relevantly than advertising on any other media.

Radio is Personal - Consumers often relate to radio in a very personal way, many times talking about "My Radio Station" and develop strong loyalties to one or two of their favorite local stations. A Harris Interactive, Study concluded; "Listeners feel an emotional connection with Radio, describing their relationship in emotional terms such as 'improves your mood', 'makes you relax', 'comforts you', 'makes you feel motivated', and 'helps you have a good time'."

Radio Reaches - While far from a new concept (commercial radio just celebrated its 100th birthday) radio reaches an impressive 93% of all Americans age 12 or older every week. Listeners continue tuning to radio for news, information and entertainment.

Radio is Flexible - The various radio formats offer advertisers the ability to target-market their products and services, making marketing dollars more efficient and marketing plans more effective. If you want to reach young women 18-34 years old Current Hit Radio will do the job. If reaching affluent men and women 35-64 years old is your goal, News/Talk Radio is a great choice. What's the best format appealing to women 25-54? Try a station with Country Radio or Adult Contemporary format.

Radio is Easily Accessible - Radio is where people are - in the home, on the road, at the workplace, in stores and businesses. For many consumers, radio is the first media they wake up to in the morning and the last media they are exposed to just prior to making a purchase in the grocery store, the mall, the department store. People have to go to other media - Radio comes to them.

With the right creative message targeted to the right audience, Radio Gets Results!

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Strategic Planning: How Do You Measure Success?
From the day you first went into business, you did so with a plan of action and a set of goals and objectives. We will start your radio marketing campaign with the same sense of urgency and excitement. We will work with you, asking questions that are critical to making your marketing campaign successful - why do you advertise, who is your target audience, what do they know about you, what would you like them to know about you, what kind of return might you expect on your investment

Your Prospective Customers: Why Do They Need You?
Effective advertising builds a relationship between you and your customers. Great ads are all about the prospective customer. We will work with you to put the listener in the ad as the center focus, answering the all-important question "What's in it for me?" and leading to answer "Why Should I Buy From You?" and "What Action Should I Take?" Prior to your customer contacting you or walking through the door, they must first envision themselves doing so.

Top of Mind Awareness: Creating A Long-Term Relationship
A long-term commitment means exponential growth for your business. The best use of advertising is to have customers remember your advertising long after the commercial has run. Every time a potential customer hears your ad, he or she is one step closer to saying "YES" to you. Major companies advertise every week, every year because they realize the power of owing one of the top places in your mind that the frequency builds. You become the McDonald's, Wal-Mart or the Apple of your category

Surprise the Listener: Make Ads They'll Really Notice
The first job of advertising is to get the listener's attention - to make them stop and think about the rest of your message. With thousands of messages coming at them per day, your ads need to be noticed and enter a consumer's memory bank. Don't yell, but use words consumers understand. Speak as though you were talking to a friend or family member. Appeal to the emotions of your target audience and make the connection between your product or service and their needs.

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