Advertising Information

Direct Response Advertising; Radio vs TV


Radio advertising vs. television advertising

Many new advertisers assume that they should start on radio and "move up" sometime later to TV. I find that the road is usually smoother when it is taken in the other direction. TV can usually produce more immediate calls and instant prospects than radio and that is what the new advertiser needs -- especially the new advertiser with a limited budget. Later, when TV has been producing new business for awhile, radio can be added to reach new prospects.

Radio vs. TV

Hey, I love radio. I started in this business in radio, at the University of Texas campus station, in 1963. I listen to radio for hours every day. I would love for all my clients to be on the radio. In fact, I put one of my dental clients on the radio recently, along with his TV, and he did very well with it. But...

There's a problem. My clients usually want their phones to start ringing the first time their commercial runs, and keep ringing, and ringing and ringing. Unfortunately, it is very difficult to get that kind of immediate and continuing response from radio.

That's probably because most radio listening is car listening. People hear the commercials and resolve to call later but then they forget. Also, radio is expensive. For example, in the Austin market, for what I would pay for a spot on one of the top five radio stations, I can buy three or four decent daytime TV slots. My client's cost per prospect is much lower with TV.

And television has one very important benefit that radio does not have: Every person watching television has immediate access to a phone, paper and pencil. Prospects can call while they still remember the message and the phone number. Or, they can write the number down and call later.

On the other hand radio can work very well -- and, apparently, does work (or seems to work) for many advertisers, or radio rates would not be so high.

If you have been using television for awhile, radio advertising can be a way to reach new prospects who might not know about you. And radio can be valuable for advertisers for whom the television reach is too general. They advertise on specific radio programs to target specific audiences.

But, in general, you will probably have to wait longer for the calls to come in than you would if you were using "immediate response" television to reach your prospects. Radio works well for advertisers who want to become part of the landscape and aren't so concentrated on getting immediate calls. But -- it usually takes more time, money and patience while you wait for results.

Steve Moundzouris
BigWater Media Group
http://www.bigwatermg.com


MORE RESOURCES:

InternetNews.com

Google Search Ads Stronger
InternetNews.com - Jul 19, 2008
JP Morgan's Imran Khan agreed, writing in a research note that "search advertising will continue to perform well in a weak economy. ...
Google misses forecast despite 35 percent jump in profit San Jose Mercury News
Google shares slide as search engine faces up to slower US slowdown Telegraph.co.uk
Google Cautious On Consumer Spending Patterns CNNMoney.com
San Francisco Chronicle - New York Times
all 200 news articles


Boston Globe

Google UK not immune to economic downturn
Times Online, UK - Jul 18, 2008
He did not give a comparison between the first and second quarters, but with revenues from UK search advertising improving by 29.8 per cent overall compared ...
Microsoft feeds cash to Online Services Business NetworkWorld.com
Microsoft’s search ambitions are its Vietnam ZDNet
Google, Microsoft augur tougher times ahead Reuters
Washington Post - Hindustan Times
all 512 news articles


NewspaperARCHIVE.com Announces Advertising Relationship with ...
PR Web (press release), WA - 2 hours ago
"Their users share similar interests and perform similar searches as ours, making advertising on their network an easy way to inform their users about our ...


Media General reports 2Q loss on lower advertising
Bizjournals.com, NC - Jul 18, 2008
Classified advertising in the Media General publishing division was down $14.1 million, or 29 percent. In the company's three metro markets -- Winston-Salem ...


Brocktown News

Media General Reports June 2008 Revenues
FOXBusiness - Jul 17, 2008
The 9.8 percent decline was primarily attributable to lower Publishing Division revenues, driven by continued weakness in Classified advertising in the ...
Media General Swings to Loss, Warns Of Big Goodwill Write-Down Editor & Publisher
Media General 2Q Revs Dismal MediaPost Publications
Media General, Inc. Q2 2008 Earnings Call Transcript Seeking Alpha
Bizjournals.com - Bizjournals.com
all 120 news articles


Advertising loses some of its voice
guardian.co.uk, UK - 20 hours ago
Because after decades of receiving complaints about TV adverts sounding louder than the programmes, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has finally ...


Fandango hopes its Movies.com helps sales
San Jose Mercury News,  USA - 1 hour ago
Fandango.com., perhaps best-known for its bag-puppets advertising campaign, sells tickets online for films at major theater chains. Movies.com., in addition ...


Bundesliga chairman warns league is headed toward financial trouble
The Canadian Press, BERLIN - 17 hours ago
Seifert also warned against other pieces of legislation that could drain the league's income, including a proposed ban on alcohol advertising in stadiums. ...


Dividend.com

Drop-Off in Advertising Lowers Gannett’s Profit by 36%
New York Times, United States - Jul 16, 2008
(AP) — The Gannett Company, the nation’s largest newspaper publisher, reported a 36 percent decline in second-quarter earnings on Wednesday as advertising ...
Newsquest classified ad revenue falls guardian.co.uk
Profit sags 36 per cent at Gannett Toronto Star
Gannett 2Q Earnings, Ad Revenue, Take Hit Editor & Publisher
Bloomberg - guardian.co.uk
all 257 news articles


Airlines advertising on tickets
Trading Markets (press release), CA - Jul 18, 2008
"The advertising program appealed to us because we think it will be something that will appeal to our customers," he said. Durrant could not say how much ...

Advertising - Google News

home | site map
© 2006