In radio boardrooms, I often hear executives talk about exposure. “We need to get our station exposed longer to the audience.” The primary concern and goal is how to get more listeners exposed to the station’s audio for a longer period of time (especially those with a PPM device). Most radio chiefs are satisfied with a listener being casually exposed to the brand, but in 2010, exposure is just the beginning of developing a relationship with your customer.

For Starbucks, exposure is not enough. Starbucks has a new vision for in-store customer experiences that goes far beyond exposing customers to coffee. Now, customers in Starbucks will have free access to a collection of premium digital content accessed through free, one-click Wi-Fi in Starbucks stores. Some big names are behind the content, too: Rodale, Nick Jr. Boost, iTunes, The New York Times, Patch, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, Yahoo! and Zagat.

Starbucks is not stopping at a goal of brand exposure—they are strategizing around immersion. Once you are in Starbucks, they are aiming to create a full well-rounded experience that engages more than your taste buds. A company spokesperson told Radio3D, “Our goal is to deliver a way for customers to access and experience content in a way that is true to the Starbucks Experience. The Starbucks Digital Network, in partnership with Yahoo!, offers a collection of hand-picked premium news, entertainment and lifestyle content along with local insights and events.”

Thinking outside the coffee box is nothing new to Starbucks. They have recommended music, books, films, and other media to customers over the last few years.

They’re no strangers to digital marketing either. They’ve done viral videos, some of which have accumulated millions of viewers. They have also been aggressive in building a social presence. Now with over 12 million Facebook fans and a million Twitter followers, they are looking to expand the “digital” experience for in-store customers.

A Starbucks spokesperson told me that their goal is to create more frequent visits to Starbucks—and to reinforce the Starbucks brand as more than just a coffee house.

In radio terms, they’re trying to create more tune-ins by giving the audience more relevant reasons to come back. And, those reasons don’t necessarily have to do with coffee.

What are you doing to create an immersive brand for your listeners?

Once they are listening to your station (the Starbucks equivalent of being “in the store,”) how are you inviting them to experience more? What makes you different from any other music service?

In the Sports Talk world, WEEI in Boston is a brilliant immersive brand. When I hear something I like on the air, I know I can go to weei.com and get the rest of the story—audio, video, additional commentary, and other information that didn’t even make it to the air. In fact, I don’t even need to be in front of my web browser, because they have a killer mobile app too. I’m not even a huge fan of Boston sports (sorry), but I find myself using their app on the treadmill because I know that I can get the information I want easily.

The JoyFM (thejoyfm.com) is a Christian radio network across Florida that puts their commercial competitors to shame in many regards. They’re so much more than an audio stream. Besides being strategic in their approach to be in the community 24/7 (with no more people than you’d find at a commercial operator in the market), they host thousands at local charity events and station remotes or “sticker stops.” Their personalities are blogging, tweeting, and even producing video content. Sure, you can be a casual listener to the JoyFM and enjoy the music and presentation. But you can also spend 24/7 with the station in person, online, on mobile, and you’ll get so much more out of the experience. This station wants more than your PPM’s green light. They want your heart!