Radio stations are fantastic audio mediums for small and medium-sized businesses that are looking to grow their sales. With over 36 million cumulative audience – the number of people listening to radio stations for at least five minutes at any time – commercial radio advertising is unbeatable, helping local businesses reach new customers and build brand or product awareness. Making radio stations work for your business week after week requires tact, skillful media buying, and creativity.
Ways to Succeed with Radio Advertising
The perfect radio strategy is a mix that utilizes both local stations and internet radio. Compared to television advertising, radio advertising costs are low. Many factors determine the success of radio advertising, not just the time of day or the location of those listening. Here is how you can make a greater impact with radio advertising in Austin, TX.
Know your audience
Radio audiences are as diverse as the radio stations in Austin, TX. You need to know your customer and connect with them personally and genuinely. The best radio ads create an authentic connection and influence your ideal customers.
Try not to be all things to everyone, rather connect with people that relate to your products or your taste in ads. Is your product or service something that everyone needs right now, or do you need to brand your business so that you’re top of mind when your potential customer needs you? Advertising a fashionable clothing store on a pop radio station makes a lot of sense. Promoting power tools on the same station does not cut it. Radio stations have various programs, so know which works for you before buying a commercial radio spot. Take advantage of low radio advertising costs and voice talent to reach your audiences.
Here are some of the touchpoints to consider:
- Listeners on their daily morning commute
- Listeners on their evening commute
- Early morning and afternoon school runs
- Morning and evening workout
- Weekend chores or lazy Sunday evenings
- Saturday chores at home or lazy Sunday evenings
Write a great script
You may have the best talent, the time slot for radio ads, target audience nailed, but a poor script makes your efforts worthless. Make sure your script shines. Consider hiring a professional copywriter or creative advertising agency to help you write a great script. Listen to other radio commercials and pay attention to what catches your ear. Which radio ads speak to you? Which ads do you still remember, hours or even days later? Which ads started well but became boring after a few more plays? You’ll want to make sure your radio ad uses the right language, tone, and voice actors to reach your audience. A great script paints a picture in your listener’s mind. Whether you are promoting special events or a business, using strong on-air personalities and sound effects can help you achieve your advertising goals.
Grab attention early
Whether you create an ad for streaming radio or a local radio station, you have one chance to grab the attention of your radio audience. We call this the hook in radio advertising. A great hook is what sells the radio ad and the product. Sounds pretty simple, right? Listeners are constantly bombarded with many ads from advertisers trying to do the same thing across radio stations. So, it is not that easy. To grab attention, you have to surprise or provoke the curiosity and imagination of your target market audience. You only have five seconds before their minds start to drift.
Use imagery to enhance the message
Commercial visual ads rule the world. Billboards, TV ads, internet banners are the top visual mediums for advertisers. Radio, however, is not. Audio broadcasts require the listeners to create visuals in their minds…Theatre of the Mind if you will. This can work to your advantage as radio stations engage listeners differently and uniquely.
Most ads are written to drive this form of engagement, which numerous studies show is longer lasting and impactful than the visual ads that wash over the listener’s consciousness. Local personalities with imaginative skills can help you create a vivid radio ad for your ad spot.
Choose radio spots wisely
Radio advertising can fall into three categories – sponsorships, live reads, or produced spots. A typical radio station has an ad time inventory of roughly 18 minutes every hour, which it sells in 15 seconds, 30 seconds, and 60 seconds. Live reads are good for entertainment events or special events, where the commentator reads the brand aloud. If you target an audience with an affinity for listening to specific on-air personalities, on-site broadcasting might work for you.
Most radio stations offer onsite events to advertisers, where the personality comes to the business premises, and broadcasts live to get customers to go to the business. Traditionally produced spots feature radio advertisements that use voice, dialogue, voice actors, a story, and a jingle. Such informative ads usually encourage listeners to the products and services from a certain business. If you don’t need radio ads to run at specific times, you may request run-of-schedule ads, in which the radio decides when to run the ads, reducing your radio advertising cost even more.
Use a strong call-to-action
End your radio advertisement with a relevant, compelling, and a simple call to action. Relevant means it resonates with potential customers. Compelling means it has a surprise or “wow” factor. As in, the listeners must believe in your product to exclaim “wow”. Simple means your audience can understand what you are saying. It doesn’t make them stop, think too much, or confuse them with a language that sounds great but, in reality, isn’t.
Want to run a successful advertising campaign? Contact Brand Water Media
If you’ve read this far, then you know that this is a LOT to take in. Brand Water Media has close to 40 years of combined advertising experience and will ensure your radio ads contain all the essential elements to reach and impact your target audience. From conception and writing spots to communicating and scheduling with radio stations, we have the expertise necessary to do radio right for your brand. If you want to grow your revenue through the execution of a great radio campaign, call us at 512-689-0946 to discuss your needs and goals.
