Meet DJ Stout

D.J. is a passionate, creative, accomplished leader with over 30 years experience in the media and marketing business in Charlotte, North Carolina. He is a Charlotte native who graduated in 1990 from West Charlotte High School. He started his college career at Wingate University on a soccer scholarship and later transferred to The University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

D.J. began his journey in the media and marketing business in 1989 as a 17 year old when he worked part time in the research department at WSOC 103.7. In 1995, while attending UNC at Charlotte he became an intern for 99.7 WRFX and Fox 610 where he learned production and how to produce shows. It was during that time D.J. gained valuable knowledge and experience which led to his first full time job in radio as executive producer of The Gerry V and Matt Show for Fox Sports 610.

In 1997, Fox Sports 610 became Sports Radio 610 WFNZ and D.J. became one of the youngest Program Directors in the country at the age of 26. It didn’t take long for D.J. and his team to find success. By 2020 WFNZ had become the place Charlotte came for sports and one of the top sports stations in the country. In 2004, things came full circle when D.J. added being the Program Director and Operations Manager where it all began at 103.7 WSOC.

Over the next 13 years WSOC was one of the top country radio stations in the country and won multiple awards including ACM Major Market Radio Station of The Year in 2009. D.J. was named one of the top 20 Program Directors over 10 times during that span and became the 1st ever Country Format Captain for Beasley Media Group in 2017 where he helped oversee country stations in markets such as Boston, Tamps, Las Vegas, Philly and more.

In 2010, despite the success of his music festivals , DJ couldn’t help but to be drawn back to the community he was raised in and decided to focus on helping local Charlotte businesses grow and survive. D.J. had been doing the marketing for businesses in Charlotte such as McKoy’s Smokehouse and Saloon, Libretto’s, Coaltrane’s, Whisky River, Blackfinn and a few others, but only did it because he had relationships with the owners and he enjoyed working with them and seeing their business grow. His passion grew stronger and DJ. decided it was time to grow his business and focus only on businesses in Charlotte and the surrounding areas.

Stout Factor Marketing has been growing ever since and so has their client businesses. D.J.’s relationships, loyalty , passion, experience and creativity are the reasons why.

In 2018, after 30 years working in the radio business where he helped create award winning content for his listeners as well as his advertisers. D.J. decided to resign and take his knowledge, experience and passion to the music festival business. D.J. was a critical part of building Carolina Country Music Festival in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina into one of the top 5 music festivals in the country. He was able to use his marketing experience, his ability to pick which artist would be hot and sell tickets as well as his relationships with key media groups and artist such as Eric Church, Luke Bryan, Kenny Chesney, Jason Aldean and more!

Meet Krista Stout

With over 20 years of expertise in sales and marketing, Krista demonstrates a thorough understanding of the marketing and advertising business. Krista began career at Beasley media Group in Charlotte as an account executive and quickly became one of the top sales executives. She was promoted to the Digital Sales Director position and later to the General sales Manager where she oversaw the sales department for all 6 Beasley Charlotte Radio Stations.

Before joining Beasley Media Group, Krista gained experience in her field through her work as a marketing consultant at CBS Radio, managing partner of Upward Mobility LLC and marketing and event coordinator for Catering Creations. In total, Krista has amassed over 20 years of professional experience. In recognition of her professional excellence over the years, she has been the recipient of two Gracie Allan Awards for her local PSA radio work honored by The Gracie’s’. She was also named a Radio Wayne Finalist for Top Digital Seller/Manager by Radio Ink Magazine. When asked of her success, Krista notes that her achievements have come from her ability to build and maintain great relationships with her clients by being personable and reliable. It has also come from the foundation of knowledge that she possess from her education, which includes a degree from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

When Krista started in radio, she was not the “traditional” media seller. She believed that every successful marketing campaign required a 360-degree approach, which meant that she needed to find ways to think outside of the box and be creative. In addition to the on-air packages, she began creating and selling on –site packages to further promote through the stations’ various platforms.

Krista has been very successful in the digital side of the business, as she saw the quick evolution of digital sales in her field before it began to catch on. At the crux of her professional drive is her family, especially her children for whom she always wants to be a great example to. When adding Krista to your marketing strategy you are not only adding her passion and experience, you are gaining a team member and someone who treats your business as if it were hers.