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Radio Advertising

By Edmond A. Bruneau

Since its inception, radio has become an integral part of American culture. In some way, it touches the lives of almost everyone, every day. Radio, as a medium, offers a form of entertainment that attracts listeners while they are working, traveling, relaxing, or doing almost anything. A farmer, for example, may listen to the radio while he is having breakfast or plowing his field. People driving to work often listen to the radio. Radio offers information such as news, weather reports, traffic conditions, advertising, and music for your listening pleasure.

What Are Some of the Good Things About Radio?

Radio is a relatively inexpensive way of reaching people. It has often been called the "theater of the mind" because voices or sounds can be used to create moods or images that, if created by visual effects, would be impossible to afford.

You can also negotiate rates or barter for your commercials. Stations are often looking for prizes they can give away to listeners, so it's possible to get full commercial credit for the product or service you offer. Advantages to radio advertising include:

The ability to easily change and update scripts is paramount to radio broadcasting since news stories can and often do happen live.

Radio is a personal advertising medium. Station personalities have a good rapport with their listeners. If a radio personality announces your commercial, it's almost an implied endorsement.

Radio is also a way to support your printed advertising. You can say in your commercial, "See our ad in the Sunday Times," which makes your message twice as effective.

What are Some Limitations to Radio Advertising?

Radio advertising is not without its disadvantages too, such as:

1. You can't review a radio commercial. Once it plays, it's gone. If you didn't catch all the message, you can't go back and hear it again.
2. Since there are a lot of radio stations, the total listening audience for any one station is just a piece of a much larger whole. That's why it's important to know what stations your customers and prospects probably listen to. Therefore, most of the time, you'll have to buy time on several radio stations to reach the market you are after.
3. People don't listen to the radio all the time...only during certain times of day. So, it's important to know when your customers or prospects are listening. For example, if you want to reach a large portion of your audience by advertising during the morning farm report, you'll have to specify that time period to the radio station when you buy the time.
4. One of the most popular times to reach people is during Drive Times (from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.) It's called that because most people are going to or from work during this period and because most people listen to their radio when they drive. Unfortunately, radio stations know that this is a favorite time to advertise, so commercial costs are much higher during this time.
5. As a broadcasting medium, radio can effectively sell an image...or one or two ideas at the most. It is not, however, a detailed medium...and is a poor place for prices and telephone numbers.
6. Radio listeners increase in the spring and summer, contrary to television audiences which increase in the fall and winter and decrease in the summer. This is an important aspect to consider when you are choosing advertising media.

How Should I Buy Time on the Radio?

Like a newspaper, each radio station has its own advertising staff. Each wants you to believe that their station is the absolute best buy for your money...and many will go to great lengths to prove it. But if you've done your research, or you are using an advertising agency, you probably have a good idea of the station you want to buy time on and when. If you don't know which stations you want to use, ask each station for its own research: that is, the type of programming, musical format, geographic reach, number of listeners, and station ratings.

By getting the station ratings and the number of people it reaches, you can figure out the cost-per-thousand people (CPM) by simply dividing the cost of a commercial by the thousands of people you are reaching.

Without getting complicated, here are two cardinal rules for radio advertising:

1. It's better to advertise when people are listening than when they are not.

2. It's better to bunch your commercials together than to spread them apart.

A lot of radio sales reps will try to talk you out of advertising during specific times. They'll offer you a reduced rate called TAP (Total Audience Plan) that splits your advertising time into 1/3 drive, 1/3 mid-day and 1/3 night. This may sound like a good deal, but airing commercials during times when your audience isn't listening is bad advertising. If however, you are sponsoring a show such as Paul Harvey or the Morning Farm Report, it makes sense to advertise once or twice a day on a regular basis, since those programs have regular listenership. Frequency is a vital element for effective radio advertising.

Since you can't automatically recall the radio commercial and hear it again, you may have to hear the same commercial two, four, or maybe six times before the message sinks in. If you missed the address the first time, you consciously or subconsciously are hoping the commercial will be aired again so you can get the information you need. That's the way radio advertising works. And that's also the way you buy it.

Most of the time, radio advertising should be bought in chunks. High frequency over a short period of time is much more effective than low frequency over a longer period of time. It's important for your audience to hear your spot again to get more information out of it. For example, if you wanted to advertise a two week campaign and you could afford 42 radio commercials, the following buy would serve you well: On Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, place three spots between 7-9 a.m. and four spots between 3-6 p.m. for two weeks. Notice that both day and hour periods are concentrated.

By advertising in concentrated areas in tight day groups, you seem larger than you really are. And people hearing your concentrated campaign for two or three days will think you're on all the time. The radio sales reps may try to sell you three spots everyday on the station for 14 days (a total of 42 spots). But your campaign won't be nearly as effective.

Here are a few tips to help you plan your commercials:

If you're including your address in the commercial, simplify it. Instead of "134525 East Pines," say "at the corner of First & Pines, next to Gumbies." It's easier to remember.

Don't use phone numbers in your commercial. If you have to mention your phone number, refer to the Yellow Pages in the local phone book.

Radio works better when you combine it with other advertising media.

Check out the price differences between 60-second and 30-second commercials. Normally, 30-second commercials are only 1/3 less than 60's, which makes a 60-second commercial a better buy.

Be creative with your radio advertising, too. If it sounds like all the rest of the commercials, it won't stand out. Your message won't be heard nearly as well. Advertising agencies are usually quite good at producing creative radio commercials.

If you decide to write your own radio scripts, remember these basic copy writing rules:

• Get your listener's attention immediately.

• Write in conversational style.

• Avoid using buzz words or jargon.

• Repeat your important points.

• Make your ending strong and positive with a call-to-action for response.

Edmond A. Bruneau is the owner of Creative Consultants in Spokane, Washington, and author of the book, Prescription for Advertising.

Reprinted with permission from Howto Advice.com - www.howtoadvice.com/SmallBizAdvertising

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