Radio

Radio advertising uses audio messages broadcast on radio stations to promote a product. A business pays for a short advert to be written, recorded and played between or during programmes.

Targeting listeners

Radio lets you target listeners by choosing the station, the programme and the time of day. Different stations attract different listeners, so a taxi firm wanting early-morning commuters could book slots during a breakfast show, while a garden centre might choose a weekend slot on a station its local customers tune into. Matching the station, programme and time to your target audience means less of your budget is spent on people who would never buy from you.

Advantages

• Relatively cheap to produce and broadcast compared with bigger media such as television.
• Broad reach — one station can put your message in front of a large audience.
• Repeated exposure — an advert played several times a day, with a catchy jingle, can stick in listeners' minds.

Drawbacks

• It is audio only, so you cannot show what the product looks like, its colours or how it is used.
• Listeners may ignore or miss adverts if they are talking, driving or tuned into another station.
• Adverts are short-lived, so they need repeating to be remembered — and that adds cost.
• They carry limited information: a short spoken message and maybe a website address.
• Even so, there are production and scheduling costs for studio recording, a voice artist and the slots themselves, with popular times costing more than quieter ones.