Here are some reasons for the recent comeback of radio: Radio attracts more ad dollars this year than it has in a decade. National radio spending increased 19% during the past year, local a modest 2%, digital a solid 18% this year, contributing to an industry wide grand total gain of 6%, according to a brief titled “Radio Results Best in a Decade” by the Center for Media Research and published in the June 2, 2010 issue of Mediapost(1). How can this be? In the era of commercial free subscription radio, ipods and mobile TV, why do agencies and advertisers still see radio an important part of the media mix?
Why this resurgence? 5 Reasons:
Reason 1: Control Brand Image
As consumers speak up on-line about products, create ads, and pass along info, brands lose control of their message and image. Consumers disseminate product info and their ratings. Remember that ‘broadcast’ originally meant to cast seeds on a field. For media it meant, to send a message out, planting seeds of an idea, so to speak. But now it’s not just the brand manager and agency ‘broadcasting’ the message. For example, take the new Philips Lumea hair removal system. Type into your search window Philips Lumea and first you will see the Philips site, but then a list of other pages posted by consumers with running commentary, videos, and ratings on the product. If the product does not deliver the silky smooth skin it promises, everyone will hear about it, today.
Rupert Murdoch reminds us that this is not so dissimilar to the change brought about by the printing press. With the press, books could be mass produced, people could now have access, read and interpret them. The aristocracy and religious leaders lost their ability to control people’s interpretation of the Bible. Well, brand managers, like the former aristocracy, can no longer totally control interpretation.
Of course brand managers could not control word-of-mouth or convince users that a bad product was superb, but they could create an allure. How can Lumea create an allure if people post unsexy videos of the product being at people in their homes?
Traditional media, like radio, provides a valuable platform for brand managers eager to build and sustain an image in the midst of this change. Radio is messaging in one direction. Advertisers control the message and therefore the brand image. Consumers cannot talk back. In the Philips Lumea case, a radio ad would give them a chance to carefully select their testimonials and/or medical commentaries.
Reason 2: Association Control
This relates to number 1. Not only are consumers commenting on brands, they are also passing the message along. Many brands, especially luxury ones, take great care to ensure that their advertisements are found in places that support the brand image. For example, Tiffany & Co.’s jewelry is advertised on street kiosks in affluent neighborhoods, in publications like Vanity Fair, and on classical music stations. They are not found near beer ads. They pay for that exclusivity. But with the internet, their brand name and logo is thrown here and there and everywhere. Their merchandise is being auctioned on eBay next to last year’s Tickle Me Elmo.
Here’s where radio steps in. Radio allows brands to ‘place’ their ad in the traditional sense. Not just how they want them, but where they want them. Image creation requires strategic placement, not just a great creative.
Reason 3- Back to What We know
As much as people love the new, in times of crisis, people tend to go back to what they know. Traditional media buys bring comfort in crumbling times and rather than try to convince their clients to try something different, advertising agencies suggest the fundamentals. Even if traditional media was imperfect, no one considers it the cause of the crash and frankly, we know it works.
Reason 4: The Internet is Still Hard to Measure!
Agencies still struggle to find measurement techniques for Internet advertising that brands can trust as tangible ROI. It’s hard to prove that increased online dialogue has a business impact- and there are no clear benchmarks to measure against. One of the greatest digital phenomenon of the past decade, the viral advertising campaign, has an unquestionably powerful reach and impact that will never be predictable or measurable.
Agencies and advertisers need new metrics like reach velocity and daily reach to measure a campaign. And they want to find targets that are sociable and receptive.
In radio, you think of a funny or brand-appropriate creative, put together an entertaining little pitch, place it, estimate your GRPs and do it again until you reach your desired reach and frequency. It may be simple, clean, and less sexy, but it is effective.
Reason 5: Internet and Digital Revive Radio
More people are turning to the Internet for streaming radio. Most markets still measure radio via diary (users fill out a questionnaire by hand on a daily or weekly basis) and only ask a couple of questions related to the internet (i.e. where did you listen to the radio; car, internet, etc.). Just as consumers listen to the radio while driving, they listen to digital radio while surfing the web. According to the RAB’s study, digital radio’s returns increased by 18% during the recession.
Okay, so people don’t all gather around the convertible on roller skates to hear the Beach Boys’ latest hit, but they love music as much as ever and are finding ways to consume radio along with, rather than in spite of new media. It appears there is still money in radio and therefore, old school media planning (reach + frequency etc), still has a place alongside of its new more talked about cousin, new metrics such as reach velocity. Controlling one’s brand message, placement with something proven that can be measured seems to appeal to advertisers to control one’s image and respond to the increasingly vocal chorus online.
(1) Radio Results Best in a Decade. Mediapost. June 2, 2010. Web.
–Sarah Federman serves as Telmar’s Chief Branding Officer coordinating its strategic alliances, new product expansion efforts and digital promotions. Having worked with clients in all sectors of the media business, she truly has a 360 view of the industry as it stands today. For more information about Telmar, visit www.telmar.com
