How many radio ads should advertising clients run for their business? What’s your goal? Once you know what you want to accomplish, identifying your radio campaign’s ideal frequency and intensity can significantly impact your results. Here are some practical steps and strategies to help you make a more informed decision alongside your radio sales representative. You do have a radio sales rep, right?
What is your goal?
Cumulus Media and Westwood One, in collaboration with the Radio Advertising Bureau, has developed guidelines based on four campaign goals, ranging from reaching 34% to 78% of a station’s audience. These guidelines categorize campaigns and the number of commercials to run each week into four tiers: very light, light, medium, and heavy. Your radio rep will have local research to further customize these goals/schedules. The following is based on an average of at least 11 radio formats broadcast in diary and ppm-rated markets across the USA.
– Very light and light schedules: These are ideal for advertisers seeking a maintenance campaign between sales events. With modest reach and frequency levels, they’re suitable for sustaining brand visibility and engagement, not creating new impressions or generating “Grand Opening” type attention. Very light reaching 1/3 of the station’s weekly audience 1.4x each, and light reaching ½ of the audience 2x each. The average number of spots per week is 12x for very light and 25x for light.
– Medium schedule: This is suited for general sales events or promotional campaigns where many listeners are reached frequently. It’s effective for driving short-term sales spikes and increasing brand awareness. The average weekly run is 49x.
-Heavy schedule: Reserved for significant sales events or product launches, heavy schedules ensure that a large portion of the audience is reached frequently. This is how you generate heavy buzz and drive substantial sales growth. On average, 83 commercials are run over seven days.
What Advertising Clients Should Expect
Start by setting realistic expectations for your campaigns. Understand that lighter schedules may not produce immediate, grand opening results. Your campaign will only be as effective as the number of listeners you reach and the frequency of exposure.
Reviewing Your Annual Plan
Evaluate your annual marketing plan to ensure your schedule intensity aligns with the desired results. Make sure your regular or “special” sales events have enough reach and frequency on radio stations to drive impact. Remember, the number of weekly ads needed for medium and heavy schedules might be higher than you anticipated. Maintain a continuous level of advertising, very light or light, between sales events to keep your brand top-of-mind.
How to Go Heavy and Not Break the Bank
Are you concerned about the cost of running medium or heavy schedules? Consider these cost-efficient strategies:
– Run shorter ads: Fifteen-second ads typically cost half as much as sixty-second ads. You can increase frequency without significantly raising costs. Buy sponsorships of news, weather, traffic, and sports. Those features offer shorter ad options to enhance the reach and frequency-ask your local rep. You can buy this type of inventory at most radio stations nationwide.
– Work nights and weekends: Explore running ads during all days and time periods, including nights and weekends. Radio :30 and :60 ad costs M-F 7 pm-12 midnight, and Saturday-Sunday 6 am-12 midnight can be up to 75% lower than during prime time.
Bottom Line
By ensuring your radio ad strategy aligns with your goals and where you are with your business, you can leverage a cost-efficient strategy and maximize your radio advertising results. Make sure your message and timing are spot on, but you won’t hit the mark if it doesn’t reach enough people enough times. But you may just “lightly” touch it.
Jeff Caves is a sales columnist for BSM working in radio and digital sales for Cumulus Media in Dallas, Texas and Boise, Idaho. He is credited with helping launch, build, and develop Sports Radio The Ticket in Boise, into the market’s top sports radio station. During his 26 year stay at KTIK, Caves hosted drive time, programmed the station, and excelled as a top seller. You can reach him by email at jeffcaves54@gmail.com or find him on LinkedIn.
