Radio consultant Tim Moore returns to his Mt. Pleasant roots

By the time Tim Moore began studying broadcasting at Central Michigan University, he had already been on the air for over a year. At 16 years old, Moore had snagged his first radio job with WCMU in Mt. Pleasant, and after decades away, he’s returned to continue his career in his hometown. 

After graduating from CMU with a degree in broadcast and cinematic arts, Moore moved on to start working at what would soon become the No. 1 radio station in northern Michigan, WKHQ in Charlevoix. He spent a few years starting the station up and then stepped away for a period of time to work in Dallas as vice president of the TM Companies.

Tim MooreMoore says he intended to stay in Dallas until he got a call from his old Charlevoix crew letting him know that they’d finally won a 100,000-watt license, allowing them to expand their broadcast coverage area beyond Charlevoix and into most of northern Michigan. 

“So we put it on, and it went from nowhere to No. 1,” Moore says. “I didn’t want to do it; I thought, we’ve only been on air nine months, this is crazy. There’s no way we could make that much headway.” 

The station was a success for many years, but as the tides of radio began to shift in the late 1980s, Moore says he predicted deregulation was on its way, and he made the choice to sell the station. 

“I said to my partners, ‘I think it’s time to sell,’” Moore says. “But it was a pretty big game for eight years, and I was so proud of us.” 

Rather than continue to work for other stations, Moore’s career changed gears, and he began his own radio consulting business to help other stations stay successful in their markets. 

Today, Moore is managing partner for Audience Development Group consulting firm, where he works with radio stations across the country to train their talent, rework their music selection, and help them engage with their audience. The firm has offices in both Grand Rapids and Indianapolis, but Moore will be working remotely from Mt. Pleasant. 

When Moore and his wife, Patricia, were looking for a place to relocate, his only request was to be within close range to an airport. He says they settled on his hometown because he loved growing up in the area. 

Moore’s father was a teacher and coach for Mt. Pleasant schools for many years. Although he moved on to work for other districts, Moore says his father always told him Mt. Pleasant was his favorite place to work in. An appreciation for the area’s schools was passed on to Moore as well. 

“I just love Mt. Pleasant. My high school education, and all the broadcasting that I got early, all the faculty,” he says. “It’s just a great place to live.” 

Moore says other opportunities have come his way since working with Audience Development Group, but he can’t imagine doing anything else. Now that he’s mostly settled into his Mt. Pleasant home, Moore says he’s ready to reintegrate into a city that’s always felt like home.