07 May The Top Ten Tips To Create Great Radio Ads
Despite the digital era ushering in a plethora of new devices on which to listen or play music, traditional radio still remains the most popular medium on which to discover new music, catch up on great talk shows or listen to your favourite sports broadcast. A survey by the Pew Research Center reports that 93% of Americans own, or regularly listen to an AM/FM radio. Considering this from a marketing perspective, it is clear that radio advertising remains to be one of the most effective ways in order to reach your target audience.
In order to take advantage of this, you will need to create gripping, dynamic radio advertisements which grab your audience’s attention. You have a very narrow window of opportunity in order to achieve this – so make the most of it! With that in mind, here are the top ten tips for mastering the art of radio advertising:
1. Grab Your Audience’s Attention
At risk of regurgitating a commonly used cliché, you can’t make a first impression twice, so make sure it counts! The opening of your advertisement is the key make-or-break point, get this wrong and it’s likely the rest will fall on deaf ears. You must entice listeners to find out more about your product, why they need it and where to buy it.
Make certain that within the first 15-20 seconds, listeners are blown away by what you’re selling!
2. Be Original!
A large majority of Americans listen to the radio whilst driving. They will literally hear dozens of advertisements throughout the day, most of which will be taken in by the subconscious and disposed of very quickly. Therefore, it’s crucial that your advertisement stands out from the pack.
Captivating radio advertisements are never rehashes of old material. Creating great content involves creating new content, so get those juices flowing!
3. Make the Best Use of Sound Possible
Television advertisements have the luxury of selling their products using sleek video packages and visualisations of their product. This is the radio, and so we can only work with what we have – sound.
Don’t let this deter you. When done correctly, radio advertising can be even more impactful than those on television. Use vivid (but not overly complex) imagery in order to create a strong, lasting picture in the listeners’ minds. Make use of all tools at your disposal – a catchy tune and a well written script can do wonders for your advertisement.
4. Make Clear the Benefits of Your Product
By this, we don’t mean rambling on with lots of technical jargon and comparisons with similar items. Think of it from the listeners perspective, what can you do to help them?
Ideally, choose 2 or 3 of the best features of your product, and sell them hard. Make sure you place emphasis on how customers can implement your product in order to solve daily problems. If you can encourage them to realise the need for what you’re selling, then it’s already sold.
5. Production
The production of your advertisement is critical in engendering trust in your audience and encouraging them to respond to your call to action. In reality, no consumer will want to respond to an ad which has poor sound quality, a terrible voice actor and choppy production, so make sure this doesn’t happen to you!
Although a polished rock doesn’t turn into a diamond, focusing a great deal of effort into your production can make a great ad truly stand out from the crowd. Your advertisement should highlight everything that’s great about your business – slick, professional and high quality. Note however, that this is no substitute for getting the raw material right, so ensure that this is in place beforehand!
6. Play to Your Audience’s Emotions
The majority of great radio advertisements will strike a balance between engaging logic and emotion. However, it is usually our emotions which are captured first and act as the catalyst for impulse decisions, after which we justify our actions with logic.
Take advantage of this when creating your ad; there is no need to explain each and every detail so long as you are passionate about what you’re selling and fully engage the listeners’ emotions.
7. Simplicity
You only have a short time in which to make your pitch, so don’t overload it with numbers and long explanations. It’s best to follow a straightforward format – great opening, product benefits, cost and call to action.
By keeping it short, simple and snappy you’re using the little time you have to maximum effect!
8. Know Your Audience
Understand the people you are trying to reach. In the end, it’s going to be these people who buy your product. Tailor your radio advertising around them, not you.
Radio advertisements have the advantage of reaching a wider audience. However, by designing your ad with a certain demographic in mind, you are more likely to establish a great rapport with future customers.
9. The Offer
Be sure that your call to action is compelling enough for listeners to act immediately. Don’t overload them with figures, but be clear about what you’re offering and why your price can’t be beaten.
Also, don’t oversell the phone number! These days, potential customers who are interested in your product can quickly look up your website. Make use of this extra time wisely rather than repeating digits.
10. Create Foot Traffic
The aim of radio advertising is ultimately to create “foot traffic” – getting people in the door. Don’t waste time promoting various products or services, choose one and push it hard – your sales figures will thank you!
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