Why the Radio Fever??

Mike Dougherty, CEO & Co-founder, Jelli discusses why radio advertising is experiencing a renaissance and why advertisers should capitalize on this growing medium  

Radio is seeing a renaissance. While reach has never waned, the misperception that it’s been on the decline has dominated headlines. But the tides are turning with advertisers left and right raising their radio ad spend. Reasons include recent challenges with digital — Facebook debacle is a case point — general brand safety issues and murky returns on TV ad spend, among others.

But the main reasons is it works. In the U.S. alone, people spend more than 202 billion minutes listening to audioeach week. Of that total, 188.6 billion minutes come from AM / FM radio. In short, the opportunity is massive.

If you aren’t convinced already, here are few a more reasons why radio should be a big item on your annual ad budget.

Radio is with us wherever we go

It’s at home in our smart speakers; it’s in our cars on the way to work; it’s on our phones on the go. It’s one of the only forms of advertising that your customers take with them everywhere they go. This allows you to reach consumers during unique windows of opportunity when they can take immediate action.

Picture this: it’s a hot summer day and you hear an ad for a new iced coffee drink at Starbucks. Coincidentally, you happen to be passing a Starbucks on the way. That might just prove difficult to pass up, making the chances of conversion quite high. It’s the perfect case of reaching your consumer with “the right content, at the right place, at the right time” — it’s what marketers live for.

Audio is engaging

There’s no question that audio is a natural medium for humans. It captures emotion in a way that a static visual ad cannot. Have you ever wondered why you can’t get that catchy radio jingle out of your head? Or why you’re drawn to a certain radio host? No medium conveys tone and inflection like audio does and that’s why it has such an impact on the way we receive information.

There is further proof that audio is highly engaging. The rise of podcasts over actual reading is one; the rise of Alexa, Siri and Google Home is another.

Radio is safe

In the age of fake news, marketers are deeply concerned whether programmatic advertising is safe for their brands. And they have a right to be. Imagine you wake up to see your family-friendly brand appear next to a hate speech video. Radio is a safe medium for advertisers and it has joined the technological data wave to provide marketers with more transparency than ever.  You can see exactly when and where your ads are playing in real-time and easily measure compliance.

Radio has never been easier to buy

Radio ad buying has come a long way. Thanks to programmatic, you can buy radio ads as easily as you can buy digital. Advertisers can plan, buy, and book radio ads with just a few clicks and in minutes. The days of endless planning, back-and-forth with radio reps, and stacks of spreadsheets are a thing of the past.

So what are you waiting for? Look for that right programmatic partner, get everyone internally on board and get your radio strategy on track. Just “follow your ears” and everything else will fall into place.