Radio Industry Has Little Time to React
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It's at times like these when my thoughts go to the scene of a General smiling in a foxhole with a subordinate who asks, "Sir, we're totally surrounded by the enemy. Yet, you have this big smile on your face. Why?" The General replies quickly, "Because now I can attack in any direction!"
Radio industry executives are finding themselves cowering in foxholes these days. They're embattled on multiple fronts, yet carry no strong plan of attack for any direction. While there's plenty of buzz and a few attempts to move where the crowd is going, there are no outstanding success stories to report. Radio industry trades carry very little news about internet initiatives, either locally or on a national/regional scale.
There's not much time left. There are maybe five to six years before local merchants, who make up 70%-80% of radio's revenue, begin to move larger amounts of their ad budgets online.
Today local internet advertising is an extremely small percentage of the pie. Five years ago national/international advertising on the internet was a very small percentage of the pie. Times change for a reason.
One of the reasons there has been a substantial boost in online advertising is due to the vast amounts of help available to persons who want to advertise online. Google AdWords Learning Center, Yahoo! Search Marketing Tutorial, and Microsoft's Ad Center are examples of why providing information on how an advertiser can advertise on your media is a good idea. These are three industry-backed web sites, available 24/7 for potential clients who want to learn how to spend their ad dollars online.
Now will someone please direct me to a comparable radio industry web site, where local merchants may learn how to benefit from radio?
As we hear about radio execs making choices that are moving this industry online, see if you don't find multiple holes in their approach. To date, the talk is about selling banner ads, pre-rolls/Gateways, and sponsorships of streams. But these are all words spoken to radio sales managers about convincing clients to keep their advertising dollars with radio's newfound friend, the internet.
I own the domain name "RadioAdvertiser.com." Have never done anything with it, so it sits as a redirected domain which serves up AudioGraphics.com. I also know the person who owns "RadioAdvertising.com." We purchased these domains in 1996/1997. A few months ago we had a discussion that brought up this question - one that I'm still asking today: "Why is it that no radio company has approached either of us to purchase these names?"
I'll take this a step further: Domain names or not, why is there no radio industry-backed web site that explains the process of radio advertising to local advertisers? Why is there very little found on the web that instructs local advertisers on how to use broadcast radio?
Even Clear Channel's once highly touted "Creative Services Group" is lost amid the sea of search engine returns. Truth be shown, it is not present when searching for Clear Channel Creative Services Group, except as two press releases dated November 10, 2005 and April 10, 2006. Do a search for "Creative Services Group" at ClearChannel.com and you're served nine press releases, the last dated April 16, 2007. Try the same search at Google and all that you get are two of those outdated press releases.
Try Googling for "how to advertise on the radio." Take a look at the returns. There are few that read "why advertise on the radio." There are a few with the message "advertise on XXXX Radio." You'll even find a listing (#12) for Google AdWords Audio, which offers its own links showing advertisers how to use Google AdWords Audio to advertise effectively.
What you won't find in that search, or any search of related keywords, is anything from the radio industry that offers help to a business owner looking for guidance on radio advertising. Excuse me. This is outrageous in today's media climate.
As everyone in the radio industry continues their claims of turning towards the internet for non-traditional revenue, here's a clue as to how this is going to end up: same old, same old (as in commitment, effort, and payoff).
There are many ways to attack the problem of falling revenue. Given the number of fronts pushing radio down, you'd think the industry would be smiling because it has so many areas to show a newfound expertise in new media.
Radio industry executives need to move quickly to fill this void of online instruction for using radio advertising.
All those new media companies have already proven it's very rewarding to show clients how to advertise correctly.
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