Radio advertising

Radio advertising is advertising through the radio, a means of communication created with the intention of entertaining its listeners and not keeping them informed (which was the case of the press), This was seen through the broadcast of songs and programs that fulfilled the function of seducing the audience of this medium.

Since the appearance of Radio in 1924, its potential effect on listeners was noted, and the first sponsored programs emerged, mentions in the form of stories or catchy songs. This means of communication was occupied, to a large extent, by the United States in the Cold War. Three decades later, his fury diminished due to the appearance of television, that is, the image. Today it is the second medium in the audience ranking, but the fourth in terms of advertising investment.

General characteristics

• Flexibility of formats (it is the most innovative medium and the one that more new formulas could offer, great offer adaptable to each need) and the creation and advertising planning (ideal for last-minute campaigns, daily offers, which is because it is often the radios themselves that produce advertising with their resources, and not the agencies).

• The message You listen to the publicity.

• Geographical segment (precise delimitation, it reaches the entire local audience with personal and very close messages) and audiences (well defined, abundant generalist, specialized or multi-sport offer).

• Credibility transfer between journalism and information, advertising is impregnated with the values of the medium in which it is inserted.

• Compagination of radio listening with other activity take into account the context and the conditions of receipt of the message. Knowing through research what activities the listener usually performs in the meantime, to delve more into the message.

• Fugacity of message high level of repetition of content, which should not offer much memorable information.

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  Economic and communicative income cost for less impact than in other media, thanks to a segmentation that provides greater success of the target audience. In addition, there is no problem of zap and counterprogramming.

• Accessible production costs This allows more ads by campaign according to different target audiences, circumstances and broadcasters. It will also serve to avoid the boredom of the audience.

• Personal thus reaches the public to whom no other means is directed personally or directly.

• Personalization of the message the receiver further internalizes the message, because he thinks he addresses it in particular, so a more immediate reaction is achieved. This close relationship is encouraged by the use of the phone and, together with the most intimate radio, makes the messages win in persuasion. The radio acts in the psychology of the listener projecting his image in what he hears, and identifying himself in what he receives. It can thus project the psychological image we want the product to have in the environment of the consumer.

• Lead personally to the viewermaking you think you're part of that announcement.

Problems and current situation in Spain

In general, today radio is a medium that is dispensed with when the advertising budget is limited, or in which what is left over is invested. Investment figures remain unchanged, fourth place after TV, press and magazines. In audience it is second (only surpassed in key TV hours), and it is the one that has the least specialized advertising professionals. The lack of research is worrying, either the information collection methods are not perfected, or the few specific investigations carried out by some brands restrict the results. Compared to television, there are no studies on the effectiveness of advertisements on radio, on the positive effects. This lack causes a lack of creativity due to ignorance of the possibilities and effects of radio advertising. And this in turn results in a worse aesthetic and social consideration of radio advertisements.

The three fundamental parameters that determine the current situation of radio as an advertising medium are:

1. The radio audience: After the triumphal burst of television, the radio was recovering audience but passed from a massive to a very fragmented one, and the same recovery of saw in advertisers. The decisive role in the opening of the transition had much to do with this resurgence. Currently the audience, like that of the press, is younger and with more purchasing power and cultural level (high average class) than that of television (middle class). In addition, it is the medium most heard in the previous hour before making the purchase, and with which there is less time between the advertising message and the greatest purchase of the day. Housewives, heads of family and children. Three different time zones: (a) math programming with a lot of information; (b) late programming of more distended and human content; and (c) Night programming of more intimate tone. Radio is the most vivid reflection of the social chronicle in which it is located, it is a very affordable and close to the citizen. Society rejects the mass because it is considered pluralistic and fragmented as radio. The audience, in conclusion, is the sum of listeners who contact a particular time with an issue, but that listener is active, chooses what interests him, so the success of an issue depends on his ability to connect with him, so it is essential to know him well, to investigate.
2. The research of radio advertising: Radio studies are believed to be unsatisfactory, which causes less use of an audience research essential for advertising management. In Spain, the General Media Study broadcasts a multimedia study three times a year. The few analyses that are done outside of this come to confirm the same general data: the radio is heard more in the morning, at home and in the car, the men 25 to 34 years are the ones who hear the most and the average is in 3 hours a day, as secondary activity generally. As for advertising it is stated that the most occupied strip is the matinal, and that the wedge is the dominant format. These studies often distinguish between generalist radio (Ser, Onda Cero, COPE) and thematic radio (the so-called radio- Formula 40 or Kiss FM). In conclusion, it is revealed that in Spanish radio there is a tremendous gap between audience (18 million listeners) and advertising investment (4th media post), and this is because the advertiser does not trust the data of the studies on audiences. This investment problem should be solved by improving the analysis and measurement of data so that the advertiser minimizes the risk of their investments and measures the costs and results of them. There is a lack of qualitative research to analyze the audience's behavior regarding consumption, and above all to analyze the message, its perception, its elements and its effects. These studies are often very timely and their results are not shared.
3. Advertising investment in radio: Since 1977 and according to the annual studies of the agency J. Walter Thompson, the radio occupies the fourth place of investments of the advertisers in the main media, after television, the press and the magazines. Despite the low budget figure, the Spanish radio is the one with the highest rates compared to the other European countries. Some of the usual trends in investment studies reveal a growing trend in money invested by advertisers, a prominent position of the Ser group, and a greater investment in the final months of the year, as well as greater relevance in the sectors of culture, teaching and the media. It is invested more in general radio and the wedge is the most used format.

Table: Advertising investment in Radio

Global advertising investment, that is, in all media, clearly affects advertising investment in radio. Below is a table with the percentage of growth or decrease in advertising in the US, Spain, China, Australia and Morocco.

Situation in Venezuela

Radio advertising in Venezuela is the source of support for stations and announcers in practically all existing stations in Venezuela. Venezuelan radio has three formats to project radio advertising:

• 1.- Commercial stations in AM
• 2.- Commercial stations on FM
• 3.- Community stations

AM stations, as in all countries, were the pioneers of radio advertising until the arrival of FM, which overshadowed this category of stations to the point that it has not grown in Venezuela after the beginning of 1985. permitting process by the national government: Conatel, to authorize this form of radio broadcasting. Some AM stations not only declined in audience but also in programs, which is why the advertising pattern began to disappear. Consequently, some AM stations closed; Others managed to jump to the new format: FM, which was more attractive to listeners due to its clarity and sharpness. Finally, AM has managed to make its programming format tend towards participation, opinion, news or talk shows.

FM stations, once they appeared in the country, captured the attention of listeners. Caracas (the capital) was the first city to offer this modality followed by central cities such as: Valencia and Maracay. In the state of Táchira particularly, it was not until 1989 - August - when the megahertz spectrum began to be used with the test signal of the station: FM 102.1. Then, quickly, other commercial stations followed, sharing the advertising pie in this segment.

The Community stations arrived with the government of President Chávez after 2002. The objective of these stations, on paper, was interesting; However, many of these new radio stations have diverted their social and cultural purposes to become "unfair competition" or advantageous competition? Because enjoying great tax benefits, they have turned to selling radio advertising of all kinds at extremely low prices; However, some obvious disadvantages such as the coverage, which is very local, only covering part or some areas of the city where they broadcast their signal, having low sound quality and poor calibration of their transmitters, producing or generating interference to commercial FM stations. and the poor professional training of program producers and presenters, has made city and town merchants retrain so as not to completely abandon radio advertising on traditional commercial stations, causing the dominance of traditional commercial radio to continue to predominate over of the new community stations.