Why radio does work, and how to make that happen (featuring Bec from Southern Cross Austereo)
Want to hear more? Check us out on these platforms.
Warning: our content is super addictive.
In this episode of Marketing + Margaritas, Jade is joined by Rebecca Trewick from Southern Cross Austereo. Bec lives + breathes radio so is here to help educate us on the do’s + don’ts of radio, as well as some top tips on how to make the most of your radio campaign. Working in marketing, we often get told "Oh 'blah blah' doesn't work". This almost always boils down to either, you didn't think about your target market + this wasn't a good fit for them, orrrrr (as Jade so eloquently put it), you just f&%#ed it up.
The one industry we hear this quite a bit is radio.
Radio is just like any other marketing channel. It’s a tool, if you use it correctly, it’ll be effective. But to get the most out of it you need strategy, planning, + a damn good message to tie it all together. Radio taps into a lot of those core human experiences. Music, conversation, community engagement – when you advertise on the radio, you can weave your message amongst those good vibes.
“But isn’t radio dying?” I hear you cry out. Nope! Quite the opposite actually. Apparently during 2020 radio experienced a bit of resurgence. When you can’t go outside, turns out that listening to someone on the airwaves was a pretty nice escape. Since then, the numbers have been steadily rising! Not only has the number of listeners increased, but the amount of time that the average person is listening has gone up as well. Radio is more than just the morning commute, people are listening both throughout the day and at home as well!
Okay, enough gushing about radio, let's get into the specifics. What are the big pros for a radio campaign?
Recruitment:
Having a consistent presence on a variety of platforms will help you reach your audience. Radio can help you reach a very large audience pretty consistently. Especially for entry positions or workshop types (have you ever been to a workshop where they don't have the radio on all day, every day?!?).
Recognition:
It's not the client's job to seek you out, it's your job to let them know you exist. Advertising means that someone is always peripherally aware of you. Maybe they don't need to buy floor tiles right this instant, but if they've been hearing about you sporadically for the last 3 months + are now renovating their home, guess who's going be front of mind.
Credibility:
If you can afford it (and the timeslots work), getting a live read can be awesome for your brand. Having a personality that people relate to, trust, + listen to almost every day read your message can do wonders for consumer trust. Just make sure you can afford it in addition to other radio messages. One really good message isn’t as good as 40 okay messages spread out over time (more on this later!).
Consistency:
On average, it takes someone between 3-11 times to fully register + process a message. Having a radio ad regularly help your message sink in, making it more likely to stick around.
Cool, so how do you get the most out of your radio ad?
Sort your shit!
Whether it's radio, social ads, signage, etc – when you have any kind of marketing that drives someone to your website or socials, make sure it works + looks nice. You can drop all the money in the world on marketing but if people click the ad only to get a webpage that doesn't load, you’re not only wasting money, but actively paying for people to think badly about you.
What's your point of difference?
I know we've been harping on about this a lot recently, but it's just THAT important. If you don't know what yours is, make one. You’re not just competing with local companies anymore. There are global institutions, chains, etc that are all competing for your business. It’s just so important.
Make every syllable count!
No one is going to pull over while driving to write down your mobile number. So don't put it in your ad. Focus on your message + make sure your name is prominent! If people want to find you, they'll Google you!
‘Always on’ campaigns are effective (if you can afford it).
You know the age-old cliché, you have to spend money to make money. We don't believe in spending money for no reason, especially if you can't afford it. But an ‘always on’ campaign will mean you are consistently in people's orbit. In conjunction with your other marketing, it can help make you someone’s first choice when it does come time to engage with your business.
Wrap up tip:
A successful campaign boils down to: Compelling message x (Reach + Frequency).
Make sure that enough of the right people hear you at the right time, with a really good message. It’s a tried + true recipe that will produce results if done well. However, if one of those elements isn’t done well, that’s when you’ll have issues.
Reach + frequency multiplied by a shit message won't get you very far because people won’t care.
If you have an awesome message that’s blasted constantly, but no one sees it, then it’s worthless.
Lastly, if you tell an awesome message to everyone, but they only hear it once in passing, it’ll never stick in their mind long enough to convert to a meaningful interaction.