Direct Response Radio: The Basics
By: Erica Bystrom
We see constant change around us, but when it comes to direct response radio practices, the basic testing methodology stays true to form. First, you can’t just test a small radio buy on one or two stations to learn if radio works for your product. You must have a decent testing budget that will give you a solid read to the potential for your radio advertising success. The good news is radio is not a pricey platform. The recommendation is to find a solid size group of stations that reaches your audience criteria and to test radio for at minimum 3-4 weeks to gain the necessary knowledge. You also can’t forget that radio is not just broadcast terrestrial AM/FM. There is syndicated network radio programming, streaming, satellite, and podcast audio. If you’re going to test, it’s worth the money and effort to really learn something to build upon or to learn inconclusively that audio does not work for you product.
Along when testing multiple radio placements, test multiple radio creatives. Each ad has its own theme/creative as well as a direct offer/CTA. It is crucial to track results specific to each station and to each ad that was heard. Finding the best ad, or the control ad, for your campaign will increase your sales and your media purchasing trajectory once you’ve solved what works best for your audience.
BDM Inc has 30+ year’s experience in audio media buying. We have the relationships for best DR rates across all audio platforms. We also write and produce specific DR advertising with unique codes/URLS/TFNs to determine quickly how to grow your direct response advertising programs.
