A New Way To Spot Radio

Radio spot advertising just may be the most cost-effective and customizable direct response vehicle available.

Radio is mobile. Eighty percent of adults listen to radio in their cars, and a quarter of the population also listens while at work. Or at least those were the old stats of yesteryear – how many now listen on their iPhone or other mobile devices?
Radio is always new. Many stations now stream their programming on the internet, create web-specific programming, and design entire online and street-based communities of loyal audiences. What's more, if online listeners like what they hear on streaming radio, they're just one click away from your website. And through all this innovation radio has still managed to maintain its credibility.
Radio is a highly credible medium. For small businesses, online services and many products spots are ideal. Here are some tips and tricks to consider for your next spot ad test.

1. Zero In On Your Audience. Who do you believe will buy your product? If you can answer this question you can craft an effective media buy. Write it down: what does your consumer look-like, act-like, talk-like and spend? Try and make this one sentence. This sentence should include age, gender, and relative demographic information including household income. Send this sentence to your media buying outlets and they will send you back a market specific radio proposal that will zero in on your audience.
Ex. My buyer is 45+, male, with middle level income, who is worried about hair loss.
One place to start might be zeroing in on Classic Rock radio stations.

2. Know the power of 3: Reach, Frequency and CPM
Reach refers to how many people can hear the radio broadcast during the time you buy your media. Frequency refers to the average number of times your audience will hear your radio spot. CPM (Cost-Per-Thousand) is the basis for evaluating the cost effectiveness to reach 1% of your target audience. CPM is the best way to compare station to station and is determined by a blend of reach and frequency. Your media buying team must provide this to you.

3. Always be “promoting” your radio spots.
Radio stations are promotional engines- it’s their life blood. Whether it is through website banners, contests or on-site events you need to use every bit of promotional advantage the station is willing to give you along with your radio spot schedule. Remember, many listeners turn to the radio station’s home page to check weather, sport scores, local events and more. Take advantage of this viewership so that the next time a listener logs on they say “Oh, yeah I heard about that product. Llet me click here for more information!” In this same way you can take advantage of the station’s newsletter sponsorship and local events. Radio listeners are loyal to their stations and the more they see what they have already heard the more likely they are to purchase. Additionally, most stations offer the opportunity to sponsor news, weather reports or other types of regular programming. As a sponsor, you generally get additional mentions and lead in’s to your spot. It’s like the station saying, “Hey listen to this next commercial!” Often, sponsorship will guarantee your spots air first in the commercial breaks, or pods, so you'll reach more listeners before they have a chance to switch stations or tune out during long breaks. You won’t get this type of treatment with remnant spot radio but you’d be surprised how cost effective these integrated spots really are AND how much more profitable.

4. Write Good Copy!
Zeroing in on your audience is only half the battle – entertaining them is the other half! Don’t opt for do-it-yourself spots since they are rarely effective. Your spot needs to grab the listeners attention and hold onto it. Your spots must tell stories or present situations your target audience can immediately relate to. If you are going to run the spots month in and month out creating a campaign theme will help keep spots fresh and the audience responsive. Remember 80% Offer! 10% Big Promise! 10% Details! And always try and make the URL or 800# as memorable as possible. Even without a vanity number you can make the 800# pop using voice and sound treatments. Experiment with the URL and 800# - there are many places you can send a listener to but it is the one that converts them into a customer that matters most.
And always use radio responsibly as it just may be the best way to test your next TV or Online mega-hit!

Hear Your Success on TV Before You See it!

The convergence of TV and Internet marketing has certainly happened and is definitely here to stay. Advertising campaigns have increadible reach with the hundreds of TV channels now available and the ease of online video exchange. It has never been easier to sell ALOT of product very quickly using the combined power of TV and the Intenet. BUT! And it is a big BUT! The risk of loosing BIG TESTING DOLLARS is still very high in these mediums because they still have a high "stumbled upon" factor which does not always translate into product sales. Many product marketers have one shot at testing their product before they run out of money or worse- they get picked off by a competitor (bigger, better faster). When I am approached with a product and asked "Do you see any potential on TV?" I almost always respond, "Let's not guess. Let's listen instead and see if we can hear the success first."

For over a decade, I have been using a talk show interview format on the radio to test product concepts, pitches, spokespeople, and marketing angles with very little financial risk to my clients. What we have proven over and over again with dozens of shows is that these radio talk show formats create a template for the TV version of the same show. This template not only extends to the creative but also the sales metrics. Basically, if we produce a radio talk show 1/2 program and it generates a 100 calls and 30 sales with the average order value being $120 we can safely expect very similar results on TV using the exact same radio show creative. This is not news to some of you. BUT! And it's an even bigger BUT than before... we have now pioneered a highly effective way to combine traditional long form and spot radio with advertorial print and online rich media. We call it PRADIONLINE testing. This is not traditional radio or affiliate marketing or even banner advertising. It is literally a way to increase the number of people listening to your ads and help them "see" exactly what they are hearing. Let me explain!

We use the 1/2 radio show to test the control concept for the product, and then test alternate concepts, buzz copy, price points and visual elements using a combination of advertorial print and online. All at a fraction of the cost of creating a TV spot. Quickly, we distill your marketing message down to make it highly potent. Once we have a winner we increase your listening audience through podcasting and embedding the radio show in highly credible online communities. We use short form radio spots to drive more listners to these credible online communities so they can hear the show or read the advertorial- we have great incentives to get them from listening to clicking through to your website and ordering. And because we have fully integrated the three mediums your consumer has the opportunity to "hear" about your product in many different ways on websites they trust rather than getting SPAM or channel surfing. Rather than allowing your consumer to stumble upon your message we guide them through your message and ordering process. We track which trigger made them order and within a 2-3 week period you have all the data you need to make the jump to TV testing. By testing your product using this interactive radio approach before you produce your TV infomercial or spot ad you will defintley save thousands of dollars and have a significantly higher rate of hitting it big your first time on TV. BUT THAT'S STILL NOT ALL!

Many of our clients have been able to fund their TV production and media testing using the revenue generated from these interactive radio and advertorial campaigns. Most of our radio and advertorial campaigns have generous lifespans of over 18 months each. So, even before you start your TV campaign you will be collecting active customers everyday.

What is so exciting about this direct marketing approach is that it removes the "stumbled upon" affect of traditional TV, banner advertising and affiliate marketing. Using highly credible online communities we put your traditional radio and print campaigns to work for you in new ways. It's not a crystal ball but our clients definitely agree that they heard their own success long before the ever saw it on TV.

If you have a product that targets men or women 35+ and your product has continuity then PRADIONLINE testing should work for you. Think about it.

On September 13th Las Vegas will be invaded by Direct Response marketers from all over the world at the annual ERA Convention - check out www.retailing.org. If you are attending let's find a time to connect and create some synergy!

Dog Disasters to Dating Dynamite!

Meet Indie and Pino, my Boxer and Bulldog. Indie was my "perfect child" for over 2 years when I decided to get her a sister. Enter Pino. After doing zero research I fell in love with her coffee stained face and she came home with me. Little did I know that as she grew to 75 pounds and ate everything in my house she would also turn my perfect little angle Indie into an accomplice. Things were bad so I called the local Dog Whisperer, trained by Ceasar himself. She would fix everything I was convinced. In the first hour she had identified the problem - me! I am a terrible pack leader! And as she began to tell me all the things I was doing wrong I began to feel like I was getting advise on how to improve my relationships: "don't give away affection for free", "demand respect and set boundaries", "never walk the dog in heels". FAST FORWARD> I am now working on developing an online subscription service that will allow people to learn how to Eliminate Dog Disasters and it will double as a How To Improve Your Love Life, and triple as How To Finally Get Control Over Your Problem Child. Using online videos and various offline materials we are creating different ways to serve up the same psychology for training pack animals and making it applicable to achieving success in your personal relationships too! This is a perfect example of 'when life gives you a lemon-make lemonade'. My doggie disasters lead to a creative spark that just may be.... As this develops I'll keep you posted but for now visit www.yourdogandyou.com