Considering that 92% of Americans listen to the radio every week, radio advertising has many powerful opportunities for businesses. The wide outreach, coupled with the power of influencer and word-of-mouth marketing, makes radio an impossible channel to overlook.
However, creating top-notch radio ads is harder than advertising through digital marketing channels. While digital ads can convert visitors with a single click, radio ads require more activity on the listener’s part to end in a conversion. This inability to offer a clickable link drives radio marketing experts to exploit all aspects of creativity.
That’s why, before the brainstorming even starts, you need to consider several important elements.
1. Focus on the Target Audience
Before you consider ad creative, you must focus on a particular audience. Your ad offers a solution to the problem and addresses pain points for a certain segment of the population. To know which direction to take, you need to learn all you can about your potential clients:
- Demographics
- Solutions they seek
- Goals and challenges
2. Competitive Research
When it comes to marketing, getting inspiration from your competitors is an integral part of the process. You must know what they are doing, not to copy their ideas, but to innovate. Otherwise, you could risk your campaign's uniqueness.
Research what works for your competitors, and adjust your ads to capitalize on what others miss.
3. Position Yourself
You need to figure out what sets you apart from the competition. Why should the target audience come to you instead of your direct competitors?
- Position yourself as an expert in the industry
- Help people see your unique point of view
- Show your relative strengths compared to the competition
One way to set yourself apart from the competition is to come up with a compelling brand story. If products you and your competitors offer are nearly identical, try to capitalize on your uniqueness as a brand.
4. Brainstorm
To be successful, you need to break through the noise generated by other radio ads. Consider using some of these successful brainstorming techniques:
- Write even the wildest ideas down and sort through them later
- Conduct "5 Whys Analysis"
- Use the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. method
Brainstorming loses effectiveness unless you have all the necessary information about your target audience and the competition. Gather details before hunting for ideas.
5. Write a Draft
Once you have an idea of what the ad should look like, create a draft. The first, second, and even tenth draft may not reflect the final version. However, playing around with these drafts can inspire you to create new ads.
It's vital to run drafts by as many people as you can. Besides involving your marketing team, work with the rest of your company's departments as well as friends, family, and acquaintances.
Get as much feedback as you can.
6. Edit the Ad
Editing the ad is a continuous process that can take a while. Don't try to make all the edits in bulk. Give yourself some time away from the creative so you can come back with a fresh perspective.
When reading your draft, ask the following questions:
- Does the ad grab your attention?
- Does it show the listener how to solve a problem?
- Is it concise?
- Is it impactful?
- Does the creative convey your positioning?
If you answer "no" to any of the questions, go back to one of the previous steps. Make sure to read the ad aloud to see how it sounds. It's much easier to catch mistakes when listening.
7. Write the Final Draft
Once you eliminate all the issues, create a final draft and hand it over to the radio station. If you can't decide which one of your drafts is the best, consider using several. A/b testing is an important part of marketing.
Getting the Most out of Your Radio Creative
Creating an ideal radio ad is much more than coming up with a couple of catchy phrases. Behind the best radio ads stand days (or even months) of marketing research.
Knowing your audience, studying your competition, and figuring out which questions to ask are part of the recipe for top-notch radio ads that will power up your marketing campaign.
