Top Tips For First Time Radio Advertisers By Martin Sims, Creative Director And Co-Founder, Leading Radio Specialists Eardrum

Top Tips For First Time Radio Advertisers By Martin Sims, Creative Director And Co-Founder, Leading Radio Specialists Eardrum

* KEEP IT SIMPLE

Make sure you have ONE simple message per script. It’s very tempting to cram in a variety of items, prices and product details, but that can be confusing to listen to. The same goes for contact details. Having a website, address, phone number and email address is too much for the listener to take in, so keep the call to action simple as well.

* DRAW THE LISTENER IN

Radio is a very personal medium; people listen to it when they get up first thing in the morning. The last thing they want is someone yelling at them about the price of office equipment. You need to engage with the listener. Research shows that listeners pay more attention to commercials that talk to them as a friend, rather than shout at them like a street vendor.

* MAKE IT SOUND REAL

The rise of reality TV has made us used to hearing real people speaking on the airwaves. So a radio commercial with unrealistic, clunky, dialogue will stand out like a sore thumb. Don’t worry if the words aren’t grammatically correct on the page, it’s how they sound when said out loud that’s important.

* CREATE PICTURES

Clients often ask “Without pictures, how will people know what’s going on?” But no one listens to The Archers and says, “I don’t understand what’s happening”. Radio is very effective at presenting images. If you set your commercial somewhere like a pub, with realistic sound effects and great acting it will sound visual and stand out on air.

* USE HUMOUR NOT JOKES

‘Peep Show’ and ‘The Office’ can be watched again and again because they’re funny situations. Whereas a bad joke is just a bad joke. And if you hear that same bad joke in a commercial 10 times in one weekend, you’ll want to throw the radio out the window. So go for amusing situations not punch lines or puns, they’ll leave the listener amused, rather than groaning at an awful gag.

* SET THE TONE

Don’t let personal taste get in the way of your product. If you’re a Hank Williams fan but you’re advertising on Xfm, don’t use country music (unless it’s a spoof). Having said that, don’t be boxed in either. Just because you’re advertising on Classic FM, you don’t necessarily need classical music. Otherwise you may simply blend into the programming and not stand out at all.

* CELEBRITY VOICES

If a celebrity is highly relevant to your product or script, consider using them to voice your commercial. However, research shows that celebrities voices aren’t always as recognisable as we think. They can also be very expensive. You may also find that using the ’star of the moment’ means they are not only in your ad, but also the three that follow it. In the end it’s more important to cast the right voice for the script, who may or may not be a celebrity.

* SONIC BRAND TRIGGER

If you’re planning on being on air over a long period of time a Sonic Brand Trigger can give you a ’sound identity’. But for every “McDonalds” or “Intel”, there are thousands of “John’s Bikes” who have a Sonic that does nothing for their business. Sonics are great if you use them consistently on your radio/TV/web advertising. But if you’re only doing a one off burst for a sale, you’d be better off without a forgettable three second tune.

* ROTATE OFTEN

Repetition is the most annoying thing about radio commercials, but the fact that people hear radio ads again and again is one of the things that makes them so effective. It’s a fine line. Refresh your message as often as possible to keep the listener entertained and engaged. Make as many commercials as you can afford and rotate them often.

FINALLY

Let’s be honest, no one listens to the radio for the ads. They listen for things that interest and entertain them and sometimes that can be a radio commercial. Listen to your commercial as a listener, not as a business owner or brand manager. You need to connect with the listener using humour, information or in some emotional way that isn’t just marketing speak.

Martin Sims is the creative director and co-founder of leading radio specialist company Eardrum. Eardrum writes, produces and directs radio commercials. It also creates sound design or television and the net.

For further information contact Jane Austin on 0207 485 3222 or jane {at} austinobrien.co(.)uk