There are many ways to promote your product or service, but advertising on local radio still proves to be one of the most effective ways to get your message out. As one of the more traditional forms of media, radio advertising has seen continued growth yera over year, and is still on the rise. Radio advertising trends show that growth is expected to reach 18.4 billion by 2020.
Radio proves to still be the leading platform to gain reach and impressions. Ninety-three percent of Americans listen to AM/FM radio, compared to 85% of people who watch TV and 74% who spend time on their smartphones. With this kind of growth happening with the state of radio, it is advantageous to consider it for your business. Here is what you need to know to make smart marketing decisions while implementing radio into your plan:
Look At Your Budget
Your marketing budget is the first step in helping to determine how often you can run your ad. Two types of campaigns in radio are: An Action campaign, which runs your ad on the radio more often in a shorter amount of time, or a Branding campaign, which has an average frequency running for a longer amount of time.
While determining radio advertising costs and what’s permissible within the budget, you will also want to research which radio stations you want to advertise on and what time of the day you want that will best reach your target audience.
How Old Is Your Target Audience?
Knowing what age group you are trying to reach will greatly influence what type of radio station you will advertise on. This “Targeting Radio Advertising” chart by Fit Small Business breaks down age groups and what types of music they are most likely to listen to.
Your advertising partners at the radio station can verify that you are reaching your intended audience. They should also be able to provide a breakdown of the station listener demographics with variables such as gender, age, income, and location.
Location, Location, Location
Radio advertising is effective, in part, because it allows you to target specific localities depending on the radio station reach. Additional and specific demographic information provided by the radio station can help you make sure that the channel is in line with what you know about your customers, and assist you to pair your ads with their best stations.
Don’t Forget Your CTA
In developing your radio station ad, remember to include a call-to-action. A CTA is a specific action you want your customer to take that can help them engage with your business. Knowing who your customer is and what their motivation is for buying your product can help you determine a CTA. Here are some examples of calls-to-action:
- “When you come into our restaurant, say ‘tasty’ to get a 2-for-1 deal!” (This way, when the customer says “tasty” to the host/hostess, you know they heard it on the radio.)
- “Text “Tasty” to 12345 to get a 2-for-1 deal!” (Your radio representative should be able to help with a specific number to text for listeners and provide the results of who entered.)
- “Visit Tasty.com* to get a 2-for-1 deal!” (If you lead listeners to a website to redeem a deal, make sure it’s easy enough for them to remember. *Tasty.com is not a real website and used as an example only.
Investing your marketing dollars in radio is a great way for people to become aware of your business, but if taking that first step is daunting or you simply don’t have time for it, Zimmer Radio & Marketing Group is here to help. We can help steer you in the right direction to give you that boost in ROI and brand awareness that you are looking for.
