Electronic Retailer - October 2011 - 32

RADIO: THE WAVE OF THE FUTURE
fashion to television, the creative for both channels vary greatly. There seems to be a myth floating around that television campaigns easily translate into radio campaigns – just take away the picture and use the sound. Advertisers figure radio will instantly yield the same return as television. But Robinson assures the industry that this is the cheap way to do radio, and it greatly takes away from the channel’s value proposition. Which direct response television commercials integrate best with a radio campaign? Often, it’s not a 60-second spot on television that complements a 60-second radio spot. In fact, Robinson says that more often than not it’s a 30-minute infomercial that works best in conjunction with a 60-second radio spot. Also, television often uses celebrity endorsements. While their faces are recognizable, it doesn’t mean the audience knows anything about these famous people. Radio personalities, however, are often much more accessible and relatable to the average listener. Regular listeners of a show often know the names of a host’s family members, pets and favorite foods. “It’s more of a friend or a confidant telling you about the product than just a celebrity,” says Robinson. The internet and radio have recently formed a tight-knit relationship when it comes to selling DR products. That does not mean the internet is taking buyers away from radio, but rather, it’s making the radio value proposition more robust. “If you hear a message on the radio, you can remember the URL or to Google it easily,” says Robinson. Once online, the person can often watch a video of a product demonstration on the website. Then that radio campaign, if it had a unique URL, is easy to track. with the P90X fitness/weight-loss product, but watching the success stories on television alone may not be enough for them to make a purchase. However, if an on-air personality tells listeners a personal story about using the product, it just might convince that listener to buy the P90X program. “It’s an uber-testimonial from someone the audience knows and has confidence in,” says Robinson. Also, radio is a good fit with today’s consumer and his or her evolving buying habits. These days, most people aren’t ready to talk to a telemarketer immediately after seeing or hearing a direct marketing pitch. Instead, he hops on the internet to do research. This is when a radio ad that talks about a product and offers a unique URL can draw more traffic to a website. “On numerous campaigns, if I hadn’t had the internet as an option but just a phone number, they would’ve done radio and failed,” says Robinson. “But now they were able to utilize the web, and it was the decisive factor to making them success stories on radio.” With more consumers tuning in to satellite radio with SiriusXM, direct marketers shouldn’t forget to think about its role within a radio campaign. For a long time, most satellite radio did not offer commercials in its programming line up. But now that media buying time is available, it can be an effective medium for DR marketers. Marketers, however, need to be aware that the strategy for satellite radio may not be the same as it is for terrestrial radio. There are somewhere around 20 million listeners and hundreds of channels, so the approach for media buyers is to buy on hundreds of stations rather than a single frequency. Robinson warns that, with satellite radio, not all of the stations will be an effective outlet or reach the audience your campaign is targeting. Despite that fact, Robinson says the medium offers a lot of advertising opportunities that are in no way taking away from terrestrial radio. “It’s just a new iteration,” he says.

When the economy took a turn for the worse a few years back, many thought radio would die out with it. On the contrary, radio has gotten more popular.
respects the advice and opinions of the radio personality whom they have formed a relationship with. For instance, a consumer may be familiar

The Power of Radio
Much of the power in radio lies in the social aspect it contributes to a campaign. On radio, listeners and hosts form a personal bond. Often a listener is loyal to a show and, therefore, 32

electronicRETAILER | October 2011

Electronic Retailer - October 2011

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