Radio vs. Digital - what works best?

Radio vs. Digital—Telling the Story Better. In part II of our four-part roundtable look at how radio can better monetize its huge reach number and sell itself to advertisers, we asked our six industry experts about how radio can tell its story better compared to the media world’s Next Big Thing—digital. Our panel, while acknowledging the perception of digital’s place, felt it was up to the industry to better talk up its own advantages. “People love cool new things and there is nothing cooler and sexier than NextRadio,” says Pierre Bouvard, CMO, Cumulus Media/ Westwood One of the technology that wakes up FM receivers on your smartphone and enables new interactivity with content and advertising. “Every time I tell an advertiser, an agency or Wall Street analysts about NextRadio…they are blown away.” “‘Mobile’ is the biggest buzzword in advertising today—and the fact is that radio is more mobile than what people think of as mobile, namely the smartphone,” adds Radha Subramanyam, president, insights, research and data analytics for iHeartMedia. “Radio is the best way for advertisers to reach consumers outside of the home, when they’re on the go.” Drew Horowitz, president and COO, Hubbard Radio, is convinced that the answer lies in overcoming the perception issue. “We have to dim the glare of digital by showing the strength and beauty of radio through ideation, execution and creative promotion using our platform,” he says. “The digital platform is fun and is the shiny new platform, [but] radio is the original mobile marketing medium.” “The same old story is rarely exciting,” admits Bill McElveen, executive VP, Southern region, Alpha Media. “But the story is about delivering results and we need to tell it more effectively.” Roundtable Record—Read the entire conversation only at InsideRadio.com.

Radio vs. Digital Should Be Radio + Digital. To tell its story better vs. the media world’s giant hydra that is digital, radio needs to stop making it “either/or” and start stressing the advantage of making it “one-plus-one” in a smart, collective strategy. That’s the consensus from six industry experts in part II of our four-part radio reach roundtable. “The success of radio has always been, and always will be, about touching people on a daily basis,” says Steve Chessare, VP and market manager, Greater Media Detroit. “As a medium, radio is unsurpassed at meeting marketing objectives for our clients. Digital is a piece of that strategy as one of our many ways to engage people…Digital alone cannot achieve results equal to a plan that is a combination of all we have: on-air, online and on-site.” “Radio can make digital more effective,” adds Bill McElveen, executive VP, Southern region, Alpha Media. “It is to our advantage to provide conclusive evidence that the use of radio makes an advertiser’s digital spend more effective, moving the discussion away from ‘let’s use radio if there’s any money left over’ to ‘let’s use radio to make our digital spend more effective.’ We need to passionately position our medium to not only our advertisers but our staffs as well—and the word ‘passionately’ is key.” New statistics seem to provide more and more ammunition for the effort—Nielsen recently reported that the actual weekly reach of AM/FM is 93%—and if it all comes down to simple results, the panel believes radio has a boast-worthy story to tell. Says Scott Herman, COO of CBS Radio, “Clients who use broadcast radio to promote a product, drive customers into their store or deliver a brand message will tell you the medium is an effective form of advertising.” Roundtable Record—read all our panelists’ answers to this question at InsideRadio.com.

Home Depot praises radio for Awareness

Home Depot Calls Radio Big Part Of 99% Awareness. Home Depot has an ongoing “Let’s Do This” attitude about radio. As one of the medium’s most consistent advertisers, the retailer and its ad agency reps discussed their ongoing affair with the airwaves at the Radio Show’s Thursday morning Advertising Breakfast. Among qualities Home Depot identified as radio’s strengths—pervasive reach, theater of the mind, flexibility and immediacy. “Radio is a major part of the reason that Home Depot has 99% brand awareness. We wouldn’t continue to be so invested with radio if not for the success in reaching our customers,” said Michael Hibbison, Home Depot’s VP of Integrated Media. “One of the things we love is that you’re in your car, backing out of your driveway, and we are engaging interest in the moment for your next home project.” Diane Fannon, principal of The Richards Group, which has Home Depot’s creative business, added that radio’s results are also quantifiable—and provide a thumb’s up. “A year ago, we primarily looked at TV data, but now we look at radio and digital, and what we see from radio is always really strong. Our ads catch people’s attention, they stay with it, and the ads have a very favorable impression with consumers.” Added Hibbison, “We need to make sure we’re relevant when the customer is in the middle of a project, and radio remains such a huge part of that to help us get our message out. It’s the one medium that has really stood the test of time.”