A “first-ever” radio/TV ROI study “for a major national quick service restaurant chain” commissioned by Westwood One and Cumulus Media and conducted by Nielsen shows that the use of both media positively impacted sales.
The mystery QSR may not be germane to the power of broadcast media, based on the study’s findings.
“AM/FM radio is an ideal advertising medium for quick service restaurants (QSR),” Pierre Bouvard, Cumulus’ Chief Insights Officer, said in a blog about the study. “Not only does the profile of frequent quick service restaurant visitors align closely with the heavy AM/FM radio listener, but the visitation patterns of QSR establishments also mirror AM/FM radio’s strong daytime listening spikes.”
The study found that AM/FM radio delivered nearly half the reach and half of the impressions with a smaller budget than TV.
Of the 77 million consumers reached by the entire campaign, 49% was reached by AM/FM radio. Of all of the campaign impressions, AM/FM radio delivered 45%, nearly half of the total campaign impressions.
Additionally, AM/FM radio boosted TV’s impact, adding incremental reach and amplifying campaign frequency. How so? Some 23 million consumers were reached by the AM/FM radio campaign but did not see the TV ad, adding 43% incremental reach to the total campaign. In terms of campaign frequency, exposure to both the AM/FM radio campaign and TV campaign together resulted in a jump to 48% of those who saw or heard the ad 5+ times.
Among the other key takeaways:
· AM/FM radio exposure generated more new buyers than television: New buyer penetration grew 30% overall. AM/FM radio’s exposure grew buyers 40%, +54% higher than TV’s 26% impact.
· The AM/FM radio campaign drove heavy category buyers to try the national restaurant chain: Among heavy category buyers, exposure to AM/FM radio ads drove significant action across key advertising metrics like spend per buying household (+6%), more transactions (+10%), share of category (+17%), and number of buyers (+25%).
· To boost sales, just add AM/FM radio: AM/FM radio and quick service restaurants make a good team as exposure to AM/FM radio ads boosts sales growth and brings new buyers to the table. AM/FM radio also adds incremental reach and amplified frequency to TV campaigns.
