Radio Advertising Facts

Tag: copywriting

  • How to Avoid The Five Biggest Radio Advertising Mistakes

    How to Avoid The Five Biggest Radio Advertising Mistakes

    Have you ever said the following: “I tried radio but it didn’t work”? Many business owners have that complaint. The fact is radio is just as effective (if not more effective) as any other advertising medium. The reason a spot (commercial) fails is more often due to one or more of these five mistakes given below.

    Mistake One: Phone Numbers.
    Especially if more than one are given. Now I understand that if your phone number is the ONLY WAY a customer can possibly do business with you then you must have a phone number in your commercial. But for everyone else – phone numbers are a waste of time, which is something you can’t afford to do with just 30 or 60 seconds of commercial time.

    Why? Because most people are listening to their radio in their cars or at work. In both cases trying to remember or even write down a phone number is expecting way too much from the listener. And if, as some advertisers do, you have more than one phone number the listener just isn’t going to bother at all.

    The best solution is to not give out your phone number at all, but instead offer a very compelling reason why people should seek your business. They’ll find it if they’re interested. Remember there are many ways to find a business’ phone number… phone books, the internet, even calling the radio station (many stations keep lists of current advertisers handy with contact info).

    Mistake Two: Price points.
    If you think it’s hard for a radio listener to remember a phone number just try adding a bunch of other numbers. I’ve heard many business owners tell me, “Well so what if they don’t remember the prices? This way they’ll know we have a lot of items on sale!”

    The problem here is you are again assuming that the listener cares enough to not totally tune out all those price points. That’s a very dangerous assumption. Do you ever hear the radio personalities reciting lots of numbers or price points when they’re talking (outside of reading commercials)? No. Why? Because they know that the typical radio listener expects to hear clear and concise information. Not a lot of numbers that don’t relate to anything.

    You’re better off keeping price points in your print advertising where people can take the time to look over all the information. For radio spend your time giving people compelling reasons to do business with you instead of sale prices.

    Mistake Three: Confusing locators (the way you describe where your business is located).
    “We’re located just a half mile off Interstate 512 in the Gas-Lamp Strip Mall, 2899 West 333rd Street, with convenient free parking four days a week.”

    Again, you’re expecting a lot from your listener.

    Don’t do lengthy directions. State your location as simply as possible:
    “Downtown at the corner of State and Lake.”
    “Just off I-512 at the Big Town Exit”

    What about street address numbers?

    Unless your address can be seen perfectly from at least a half a block away, don’t use it. Most businesses don’t have street numbers on their doors anyhow or if they do it’s so small you can’t read it until you’re right in front of it.

    The best solution for a locator? Direct people to your website. You can insert a Google Map or Yahoo Map locator that can give anyone precise details on how to get from where they are to where you are.

    Mistake Four: Too many advertising cliches = Major turnoff.
    “Friendly Professional Staff”
    “Storewide Savings”
    “Number One In Customer Service”
    “Dependable and Trustworthy”
    “The Best Prices”
    “We Will Not Be Undersold”

    There are dozens more of these tired cliches. Why are they tired? Because you can hear them in radio commercials right now, and if you were to get in a time machine and go back 50, 60, 70 years you’d hear them in commercials from then. They’re worn out because everyone uses them and to most consumers they’re pretty much meaningless.

    If everyone is using them then what makes them special? Nothing. If every business is using them then what sets you apart and helps a listener remember who you are? Nothing.

    The old adage from Lenny Bruce says it best: “If you have to tell them you’re hip, you’re not.” That holds true for all of those advertising cliches. There is a basic expectation of service from all businesses that includes most of those above cliches. You can’t be in business without meeting those basics, and everyone knows it.

    So why waste your advertising time with it?

    Instead give people meaningful (personal) compelling reasons to do business with you. And by personal I mean your customer. What are your best customer’s personal reasons for doing business with you? Find that out and talk about that in your commercials. You’ll be amazed at the difference in response.

    Mistake Five: Not being convenient.
    I don’t mean in terms of hours or location, though those are definitely factors. But more important, does your radio commercial (or any of your advertising) make it hard for people to get what they want?

    “Mention this ad for a free can of cheese whiz”.
    “Bring in the coupon from last Sunday’s newspaper”.
    “The first 12 people to call in the next five minutes get a five percent discount”.

    Making people do extra work to get something is only worthwhile if the payoff is incredible (i.e. “The first caller right now gets one million dollars!”). Very few customers will actually care enough to jump through hoops to get a five percent discount or even a 15 percent discount. But more importantly you’re telling the vast majority of potential customers that they have to do something extra besides just showing up at your store. And most people don’t want that extra hassle. What you should be doing is rewarding them equally for showing up. Remember, your customer is doing you a favor by showing up – not the other way around.

    Just offer great values and great service to everyone all the time. Also remember, value doesn’t mean low prices. It means CONVENIENCE. All your customers really care about is how fast you can give them what they want and how nice you are about it. As pointed out in Mistake Four – let your best customers tell your story. Nothing compels people to act more than hearing why other people prefer your business over everyone else.

    Article courtesy of John Pellegrini.

  • For All Your Stupid Cliché Needs

    For All Your Stupid Cliché Needs

     

    cli·ché (klēˈSHā)
    noun
    A phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original thought.

     

    In the world of bad advertising clichés, none are cliché-ier than “For All Your (blank) Needs.”

     

    By Ryan Patrick, www.timemilesandco.com

    Just listen to commercial radio for one hour. Read a newspaper from front to back. Watch local TV commercials during the 6 o’clock news. I can almost guarantee you will hear/read/see the phrase “For All Your (blank) Needs” at least once. Maybe more.

    “Wait. If that phrase is so bad, why do so many companies use it?”

    a) It’s safe

    b) It’s easy to use

    c) The ad writer had nothing else to say.

    Nothing particularly special about your lumberyard? No problem!  Just use, “For all your homebuilding needs!”

    Can’t compete with the price or selection of the other pet store? Easy fix: “For all your pet supply needs!”

    My favorite was a radio commercial for a diner in Kentucky that advertised “for all your breakfast needs.”

    “Yes, I want you to smother my pancakes with beluga caviar and truffles. What do you mean you can’t do it? That’s my breakfast need!”

    Each of us has different needs.

    Mine are different from yours.

    Yours are different from his.

    His are different from hers.

    There will ALWAYS be needs that you simply cannot meet.

    “For All Your (blank) Needs” is an empty promise. It doesn’t convey the unique essence of your business.  It won’t convince consumers to buy from you.

    Congratulations. You have a marketing slogan that says nothing.

    Is that what your business “needs”?

    (Used by permission, www.timmilesandco.com)

     

    Here are some examples of how not to do it:

    “Pick O’Reilly Auto Parts for all your car care needs.” – Sponsorship credit on CBS Radio Network.  Some ad agency was probably paid thousands of dollars to come up with such drivel.

     


    “For All Your Needs”, no matter what they are.

     

    “We Cover Your Roofing Needs”

    Two great clichés on one – “”One stop shop” and “for all your allergen information needs:

     

    Butcher needs anyone?

     

    “For all your garage door needs”

     

    Electronic needs?

     

    My broadcast needs?

     


    Somewhere in South Dakota
    “For all your concrete needs”
    Credit: Dean Sorenson

     

    “Remolding needs.”  I suppose that’s like remodeling, but with fewer letters.

    At least they spelled “remodel” correctly.

     

    “Septic needs” anyone?

     

    The gift that keeps on  giving.

     

    “For all your Chick-fil-A” needs.

     

     

    If you have a streaming need, they have a solution.  “Solution(s) is another over-used ad word.

     

     

    Have any “Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam and Route 66 tour needs?”

     

     

     

     

     

    “Ambitions?”

     

    “
    Where do we begin?  “For all you pumps, hoses, fittings, vales and tank trailer needs”, plus “Your source for all your tanker needs.”  Additionaly, a good proof-reader could have caught all the typos – “all you” instead of “all your”, “trade in’s” should not be possessive, and “stanless steel” should be “stainless steel.”  Sigh!

    Does anybody really have any toilet bowl needs?

    Can I renew my subscription to Hustler?  If not, you can’t handle all my subscription needs.


    Don’t we all have RF connector and RF cable assembly needs?


    Not just some of your real estate needs…  all of them!


    Dude!

     

    In Pollock, LA.  Does Walmart know about this?

    Whether you are an inpatient or an outpatient, they have all your needs!

    Staffing needs anyone?

    Trees have needs too!

     

     

     

    I need to fly to Kathmandu.  “Sorry sir, we don’t fly there.”  But you said “all my travel needs.”

    They have a tool for that!

     

    How many clichés can we put in one ad?

     

    Me:  Can you replace the window in my car?
    Them:  Sorry sir, we don’t do car windows.
    Me:  But you said “ALL my window needs.”

     


    Me:  I need you to fix the AC in my car.
    Them:  Sorry sir, we don’t work on automobiles.
    Me:  But you said “ALL my cooling needs.”

    \

    I don’t even know what a monetization need is.

    If you’re going to spend money on a full color, full page magazine ad, shouldn’t you have a more compelling headline than “For all your motorhome needs?”

     

    You have no idea what my outdoor needs are, but they don’t involve boats.

     

    Drone needs anyone?

     

    OK, I’ll admit it.  I don’t even know what a charcuterie is, so how could I possibly need one?

     

    This is a small boutique grocery store.  Although they have great stuff, their limited selection certainly won’t satisfy all my grocery needs.

     

    My daily needs of WHAT?

     

    Sign on a bus in Danville, Illinois – “For ALL your banking needs.”


    Two clichés in one headline!  And bonus clichés in the copy.

    Why go anywhere else?

    Sign at Walgreens on Las Vegas Blvd.


    Facebook ad for Lamp Post Liquor in Ponca City, Oklahoma


    Real Estate needs anyone?

    I guess it depends on what you are shopping for.

    I was just telling my wife, “I wish somebody could help with my trolling motor needs.”

    “We’re here for all your mask needs!”

     

    These folks can handle “all your home needs”, and they can repair your pluming.
    That’s like plumbing, but without the B.

    At least they spelling “Plumbing” correctly.

    She can handle all your publicity needs.  As long as your publicity needs don’t
    involve anything more than overused clichés.

     

    Travel health needs?


    Boning knife?  The jokes just write themselves.

    These folks have the cure for all your water needs.


    Great t-shirt – “For all your home improvement needs.”  (Photo credit: Cameron Ford)

     

    Let’s put “for all of your residential painting needs” on the back of our truck.
    And use a font that’s difficult to read.

    Liquor?  I hardly know her.

    Got any waveguide needs?

     

    What?

     

    More auto repair needs.

    “All your RV needs.”

    They left out the word “needs”, but the real cliché is “for all your…”

    Billboard in Cleveland, MS.

    Heating and Cooling Needs anyone?

    I don’t know who these people are, but they have “all your business reopening needs.”

     


    I don’t even know what an arboreal need is!


    From Australia.  “For all your lolly needs.”


    “My dog needs a hernia operation.”  “Sorry sir, we don’t do surgery on animals.”  “But, you said ALL my surgical needs.”


    Stucco needs anyone?

    We have 40 years experience, but we don’t how how to write a good ad.

    Need a pillow?


    Need to make someone sleep with the fishes?  This place has all your concrete needs.

    All your shipping needs!  But what if I needed to ship an elephant to Nebraska?


    Do you ever know what a Nautel is?


    Boating needs anyone?

     


    “For all your bulk grain, feed & fertilizer transportation needs.”  
    Geez, what a mouthful.  T-Shirt for Flenker Brothers in Princetown, Iowa.

     

     

    “For all your advertising needs.”
    As long as your advertising needs don’t include anything other than a Filipino newspaper.

    From the website of a radio group in Oklahoma.
    “For all your Radio & TV needs.”

     

    40 years of bad marketing!

     

    “All your restoration needs.”
    As long as your needs only include vehicles.

     

    Unless you need creativity.  In which case, these folks can’t help you.


    Connector needs anyone?

     


    Can I get this notarized?


    Do you have any Chevrolet needs?  Me neither.  This is an ad on a grocery cart in Las Vegas.
    Grocery cart ads are a true waste of money.

    Really?  I mean, really?

     

     


    Even in Australia…


    Seen at the Westgate Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.

     

    Seen at a trade show in Minnesota.

     

    That’s an awful lot of needs.

    Do the gun control people know about this?

     

    King of Variety, a store in New Zealand.


    Riveredge Kennel in Owego, New York.  “For all your pet grooming and boarding needs.” 
    Plus, “Family owned and operated for more than 20 years.”

     

    Got any mortgage needs?


    Ready to move?  These folks can handle all your moving needs.


    Sign at a HyVee store in Iowa.


    Seen on the highway in Jackson, MS.  I never realized I had so many catering needs.

    Sign posted at the checkouts at Walmart in Cleveland, MS.  Not only did he manage to say “shopping needs” 3 times, he also butchered the English Language (“whenever your shopping needs is not met.”)

    Stupid Cliche Needs
    “Backyard Needs” Anyone?  If you have any, this place is the “one stop shop.”

    Ad on Facebook…  “for all your shooting sports and concealed carry needs.”

     


    Home Depot Sign – “For all your installation needs.”

     


    Insurance sign in Mississippi.

     

    Stupid Cliche Needs
    Seen on a truck in suburban St. Louis

     

    “For all your dirt, gravel, rock, track hoe, dozier and hauling needs.”
    And, they have the “same personelle.”

    Stupid Cliche Needs
    Sign at the pool shop at Treasure Island Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas

     

    Ad for Weaver Appliance in Ohio.  “For all your appliance needs.”  Plus, they’re “Family owned & operated since 1989.”  I guess that makes them better.

    And then there’s this…  “For all your urgent appliance care needs.”

     


    These folks will gladly service ALL your needs.  They have no idea what I really need!

    Ad for OptimDental in Springfield, IL.  “For all your family’s dental needs.”

     

    Stupid Cliche Needs
    Just last week, I was asking my neighbor “who can I call for all my farm needs?”  And what the hell is “poroceesing?”

    Stupid Cliche Needs
    Everyone needs pumpkins and gourds for their fall decorating needs, right?

     

    Stupid Cliche Needs
    “For all your advertising needs.”
    OK, but what if your “advertising needs” include Radio, TV, or billboards.  Can she handle that too?

     

    Finally… an ad agency that can handle “ALL your website, internet, and social media needs.”
    Just don’t count on anything original.

     

    Stupid Cliche Needs
    Have any irrigation needs?  Don’t we all?  If so, this is the place to call…

     

    The UPS Store managed a double header of useless cliches…  “one stop shop” and “for all your shipping, postal and business needs.”

     

    Insurance companies are some of the worst offenders.

     

    Sign at Delta Eye Care – Indianola, MS

     

    This Realtor in Florida can handle “all your real estate needs.”  And she offers “Professional service with a personal touch.”  Isn’t that what one would expect from a real estate agent?


    If Lois can’t handle all you real estate needs, perhaps these folks can.

    Hallelujah!  My spraying needs have been met.
    Ad for Roundup.

     

    “Save on all your cooling and heating needs.”
    Ad for One Hour Air Conditioning & Heating in Las Vegas

     

    “All your digital multimedia needs in one solution.”
    A great example of gobbledygook copywriting.

     

    IHOP has all your To-Go needs.  It even says so on their receipt.
    But what if I need steak & lobster to go?

     

    “Supplying all your entertainment needs.”
    And his URL is dead!

    Adamson Construction & Remodeling
    For all you roofing including metal roofs, remodeling, decks, carports, new construction, windows, doors, and siding needs, give Adamson Construction & Remodeling a call!
    From Facebook.  Written by somebody who doesn’t understand punctuation, grammar, or good marketing.

    “Your one stop shop for all your automotive needs.“
    Two great clichés in one – On the San Francisco 49ers radio network for speedyauto.com

    “For all your criminal needs.”
    Radio commercial for a lawyer in Montgomery, Alabama

    “We have the commercial trucks for all your truck needs”
    TV Ad for truck dealer in San Antonio, Texas

    “For all you car care needs.”
    National radio ad for O’Reilly Auto Parts

    “For all your screen printing and t-shirt needs.”
    Ad on the University of Southern Mississippi Football Network

    “For all your practice management needs.”
    Huh?
    Radio ad for Lexicon Services

    “For all your concrete and asphalt needs.”
    TV Ad on a Denver TV station

    “Walgreens is the place for all your diabetes needs.”
    Radio ad on KMXB-FM Las Vegas

    “Your one stop shop for the brands that you demand.”
    National radio ad for Quick Fix Auto Parts.  Wake me when this commercial is over.

    “For all your breeding needs.”
    Radio ad for a bull sale, as heard in Nebraska.  Ummm..  OK.

    “For all your payroll processing needs.”
    Ad on the Mile Gallagher Radio Show, Salem Radio Network

    “For all your Kubota tractor sales and service needs.”
    Ad on KHQ-TV in Spokane during the Olympics

    “For all your birth control needs.”
    A radio ad for Women’s Health Associates of Southern Nevada, as heard on KSNE-FM in Las Vegas.

    “For all your tent, tailgating and other rental needs.”
    Radio ad for Taylor Rental in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.

    “For all your lawn watering needs.”
    Radio commercial heard in Oklahoma.

    “For all your air conditioning needs.”
    An AC contractor in the Midwest.  When asked “can you fix the AC on my car?” he said “no, we don’t work on cars.”  But you said “all my air conditioning needs.”

    “For all your sewer and drain cleaning needs.”
    Somewhere in Illinois

    “Schedule an appointment with GI Associates for all your gastrointestinal needs.”
    Print ad for GI Associates & Endoscopy Center – Jackson, MS

    “For all your tobacco needs.”
    Sign on tobacco shop at Rio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas

    “For your banking needs.”
    Radio ad for Bancorp South in Mississippi

    “For all your asphalt needs.”
    Sign for M&K Asphalt Sealing in Kentucky

    “For all of your commercial kitchen needs.”
    Radio ad in Las Vegas.  (How many of us have commercial kitchen needs?)

    “Your one stop stop for your printing and marketing needs.”
    National radio ad for Staples.  Obviously written by an ad agency that doesn’t know how to write compelling copy.  (“One stop shop” is also meaningless drivel).

    “For all your scrap metal recycling needs.”
    TV commercial for Longhorn Recycling – San Antonio, TX

    “We can handle all your appliance needs.”
    Radio ad for appliance store in Greenville, MS

    “For all your storage needs.”
    Radio ad for a storage facility in Las Vegas

    “The UPS store has all your moving needs.”
    Radio ad for UPS Store in Las Vegas.

    “Visit DukeMedicine.org to learn how Duke Medicine can meet all of your healthcare needs.”
    Letter to patient from Duke Medical Center

    “Call Allied Heating & Air for all your HVAC needs.”
    Radio ad in Denver

    If you run across any others, feel free to send them to us at info@radioadvertisingfacts.com.

    Improvised and sung from the heart, this video will change how you see the world and how it sees you.  (Courtesy www.risingabovethenoise.com).  Click to view.

    Click here for another great article:

     

  • 12 Causes of Advertising Failure

    12 Causes of Advertising Failure

    1) The desire for instant gratification. The ad which creates sufficient urgency to cause people to respond immediately is also the ad most likely to be forgotten immediately following the “expiration” of the offer. Such ads are of little use in establishing an identity for the advertiser in the mind of the consumer.

    2)  Attempting to reach more people than the budget will allow. For a “media mix” to be effective, each element in the mix must have sufficient repetition to establish “retention” in the mind of the prospect. Too often, however, the result of a media mix is too much reach, not enough frequency. Will you reach 100% of the people and convince them 10% of the way? Or will you reach 10% of the people and convince them 100% of the way? The cost is the same.

    3)  Assuming the business owner knows best. The business owner is uniquely unqualified to see his company or his product objectively. He is on the inside, looking out, trying to describe himself to a person on the outside looking in. It’s hard to read the label when you’re inside the bottle. Too much product knowledge causes the business owner to answer questions that no one is asking. This makes for extremely ineffective advertising.

    4)  Unsubstantiated claims such as, “Highest quality at the lowest price. Advertisers will often have what the customer wants, but fail to offer any evidence. A cliché is nothing less than as unsubstantiated claim to the public is tired of hearing. You must prove what you say in every ad. The prospect will not make a new decision about your product until you have given him new information and a new perspective. Do your ads supply new information? Do they provide a new perspective? If not, prepare to be disappointed with the results.

    5)  Improper use of passive media. Non-intrusive media, such as newspaper and yellow pages, require the use of a reticular activator (such as a photo or illustration) because passive media tends to reach only those buyers who are actively in the market for the product. Passive media is very poor at reaching prospects prior to their need, which means it is extremely difficult for passive media to create a predisposition toward your company. With patience, the consistent use of intrusive media (such as radio and television) will win the heart of the customer before he is in the market for the product.

    6)  Creating ads instead of campaigns.  It is foolish to believe a single ad can ever tell the entire story.  The most effective, persuasive and memorable ads are those most like a rhinoceros. They will each make a single point very powerfully.  An advertiser with seventeen different things to say should commit to a campaign of at least seventeen different ads, with each ad being given sufficient repetition to accomplish retention in the mind of the prospect.

    7)  Obedience to unwritten rules.   For some insane reason, advertisers want their ads to look and sound like ads.  Why is this?

    8)  Late week schedules.  Advertisers justify their unreasonable focus on Thursday and Friday advertising with the statement, “We need to reach the customer just before he goes shopping.” Why do these advertisers choose to compete for the prospect’s attention each Thursday and Friday when they can have a nice, quiet chat all alone with the prospect each Sunday, Monday and Tuesday?

    9)  Overconfidence in qualitative targeting.  The importance of qualitative data has been grossly overestimated by many advertisers and media professionals.  In reality, Saying The Wrong Thing has killed far more ad campaigns than Reaching The Wrong People.  It is amazing how many people become “the right people,” when you are saying the right thing.

    10)  Event driven marketing.  A special event should be judged only by its ability to help you more clearly define your market position and substantiate your claims.  If one percent of the people who hear your ad for a special event actually choose to come, you will be in desperate need of a traffic cop and a bus to shuttle people from remote parking lots.  Yet your real investment will be in the 99% who did not come to the event!  What did your ad say to them?

    11)  Great production without great copy.  Too many ads today are creative without being persuasive.  “Slick, clever, funny, creative, and different”, are poor substitutes for, “informative, believable, memorable and persuasive.”

    12)  Confusing “response” with “results.”   The goal of advertising is to create a clear awareness of your company and its Unique Selling Proposition.   Unfortunately, most advertisers evaluate their ads by the comments they hear from the people around them.  The slickest, clearest, funniest, most creative and most different ads are the ones most likely to generate these comments.  See the problem?  When we confuse “response” with “results” we create “attention getting ads” which say absolutely nothing.

    Article Compliments of Roy H. Williams Marketing in Austin, Texas.