Radio Gets Results
You might remember that phrase…it was featured in jingles and ads back in the 1990s promoting the use of radio advertising. The industry pointed out that getting a message out via radio was effective, and at a fraction of the cost of other media. It was true then…and true now, according to a new survey by Nielsen.
The survey was in partnership with various large media corporations and showed that early deployment of ads on AM and FM radio significantly helped political candidates, especially among undecided voters.
The study showed that AM/FM radio outperformed both over-the-air TV and cable/satellite TV in reaching voters across all segments, notably among independent and unaffiliated voters. Experts say this challenges conventional use of radio to target narrow voter segments, or last-minute pitches to “get out the vote”.
Allocating just 20 percent of the political campaign media budget to traditional radio not only recovers lost voter reach from previous campaigns, but apparently also significantly boosts overall voter engagement…especially for key demographics such as undecided voters, light TV viewers, Gen X, and Millennials.
The study cited high-profile examples, including U.S. Senate races including John Fetterman in Pennsylvania and Raphael Warnock in Georgia. Those campaigns used AM/FM radio early and frequently, with double-digit growth in reach over time…compared with repeating the same mix of TV and digital advertising, which resulted in a 12 percent drop in voter reach.
We’ve known for some time that our radio audiences are special and valued. Just another set of data to prove it.
