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Are you dialed into radio advertising?

Written by: Donna Williams

Article Overview: Have you ever wondered whether or not you should include radio advertising in your marketing mix? In this article, you'll learn some very specific reasons why radio is a good buy for small businesses from a 25-year advertising industry expert.

Are you dialed into radio advertising?

As someone who has worked on both the creative and executive ends of advertising for 25 years, I can tell you that radio is one of my favorite mediums.

Why? Because radio truly is the "theater of the mind." Radio uses voices, music and sound effects (sfx) to create moods and images that spark the imagination in very different ways than print or television ads do.

Advertise on radio, and you have the opportunity to deliver a powerful message to a specific group of listeners. Radio stations know exactly who their audiences are, so if know who YOUR target customer is, radio gives you the perfect opportunity to reach him/her. Find the station with your demographic, get a sales rep who will partner with you, and get ready to mine for gold.

Another great thing about radio is that it's everywhere. At home, in the car, at the office, at the ballpark...wherever your customer is, radio isn't far away.

And have you ever noticed how loyal radio listeners are to their stations? Seriously loyal. Bordering on fanatical loyal. Mention a popular radio station's call letters in a group of people and you will inevitably hear someone say "Oh, I listen to them all the time!"

Radio stations are also strong on community involvement. Whether it's broadcasting a live remote at the grand opening of the new car dealership, or sponsoring a local charity event, no other medium touches listeners quite the same way radio does.

In conclusion, here are a few quick facts about radio you can use to impress your friends and family.

Radio's ROI is much higher (some studies say as high as 49 percent) than television's ROI. Much of this can be attributed to the fact that television is much more expensive to produce and run than radio, so the money you spend to produce and run radio is much lower.

96 percent of people who drive or ride in a car use the radio.

In-car radio listening averages two hours and 12 minutes weekdays, and two hours and five minutes on weekends.

43 percent of drivers leave their car radios set to one station.

There are 5.6 radios per U.S. household.

There are over 13,500 registered radio stations in the U.S.

Okay, I'll stop...you get the picture. Radio is everywhere! And if you want the most bang for your advertising buck, radio is still one of your best resources.


(c) Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.

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Article Tags: car radio, charity event, community involvement, effects sfx, family radio, grand opening, mediums, mind radio, moods, new car dealership, radio listeners, radio station, radio stations, sales rep, sound effects, specific group, target customer, television ads, time radio, weekdays



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