RadioGuruPdx

Strategic Planning 101: Big X. Little x.

Part 1 of 5

Sometimes it’s as simple as asking someone:

“What is it you’re trying to make happen?”

‘yada yada yada’

Beware the yada. Did they answer you clearly? After working with 400+ companies, I’m no longer surprised by how many lack a clear vision of what it is, specifically, they’re trying to do.

You really can’t proceed with planning until you’ve got a consensus answer to that first crucial question.

I often use a treasure map metaphor.

Draw out an island. Put a little ‘x’ and a big ‘x’ on there. The little ‘x’ is where they are today. The big ‘x’ is where they want to be.

Start by asking them to describe what the big ‘x’ looks and feels like. Then ask them to describe the little ‘x’ – where they are today.

Then draw a dotted line between the two and ask them how long it’s going to take us to get from one to the other.

Once they answer that question – ask them – “Why aren’t you there already? What’s in your way?”

Listen.

Then, after everything, ask them simply … “what do you think is the first step?”

You can guess what’s next.

Tim Miles, Wizard of Ads

 

MSNBC: Radio Is Alive!

Melissa Harris-Perry of MSNBC dives into the popularity of Radio and discusses with Brian Lehrer of WNYC, Allison Kilkenny of “Citizen Radio,” and Esther Armah of WBAI, how radio continues to dominate in hyper-local news coverage.

 

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

 

 

Radio’s Role in Brand Development

A brand entirely built on Radio is a rarity on a national advertising level but not locally. In fact, in the multi-media age it’s very rare for a brand to use only one medium. The key in choosing your preferred medium is identifying what you want to achieve and the best role that each medium can play to accomplish your goals. Below are feature examples from the UK RAB of the way brands have used radio in the mix to build their brands.

Download the case studies here

Auto Glass - Using Radio to drive business efficiency.

Comfort - Radio successfully multiplies the effects of a TV campaign.

Halifax - Harnessing Radio’s ability to connect with young audiences.

Intel C2D Processor - Driving excitement in new technology by association with music.

Maltesers - Reinvigorating a brand through listeners’ love of music.

Nando's - Building brand understanding to drive business.

Operaton Trident - Involving a resistant audience through the listener-DJ relationship.

Powerade - Creating stand out in a competitive market.

Royal Mail Special Delivery - Building brand credibility through beyond the spot activity.

Thomson Cruises - How radio mobilizes listener interest.

UPS - Re-positioning a global brand for a local SME audience.

Vodafone - Using radio programming to build a distinct brand advantage.

3 Mobile - Using listener response to demonstrate a complex product offering.

Transport for London - Connecting with an audience at the right time and the right place

Thanks to the RAB from the UK for these Case Studies.

Good Advertising Starts with Good Strategy

Tim Miles on Strategy

Tim Miles on Strategy from Tim Miles on Vimeo.

The Most Expensive Ads You Can Buy

Our guest blogger today is Phil Bernstein. After eleven years in professional baseball, working in marketing for the Portland Beavers and the New York Mets, Phil has spent the past 13 years in radio, designing campaigns to help Portland and Vancouver businesses tell their stories, find more customers, and make more sales. Currently, he works for Jim Doyle and Associates where Phil has a full spectrum perspective about Advertising on TV as well as Radio.

 

 

"The most expensive ads you can buy are the cheap ones that don't work." - Phil

 

A few weeks ago I met with three different business owners who were relatively new to broadcast advertising. All three (one was on radio, two were on television) had begun their very first advertising experience by signing up for a "rotator package."

 

Rotators are also known as "Run of Schedule," or ROS. They are commercials that are not guaranteed to run at any particular time -- they could air just about any time the station is on, from 5 in the morning until 12 midnight, seven days a week. In return for giving the station maximum flexibility to schedule the ads, the advertiser gets a significant discount on the price of each commercial.

  

"Your goal is to drive the nail through the board and then clench it on the other side. Messages that are clenched are remembered for a lifetime. Tap, tap goes the hammer. But during the night the claw pulls the nail back out of its little hole! The following day you find nothing more than a faint indentation in the board. The nail is no longer in it. Your message is forgotten.

Using the hole you started the previous day, you position the nail again. Tap, tap goes the hammer. But again falls the veil of darkness, eyes close, and the claw does its work once more. Day after day, this scene is repeated; but ever so slowly, the hole gets deeper." -Roy Williams

 

Rotators seem like a terrific way to put your toe in the water and try a medium out -- use the whole station, get a huge reach, and save money on the rate. But none of the three business owners was happy with the results they were getting.

 

Why not?

 

It goes back to Roy Williams and the hardwood. Let's say that at the same dollar amount, you have two options:

• You could buy ten commercials in the 5:00 p.m. news.
• Or you could buy twenty rotators, that could run any time Monday through Sunday, 5 a.m. until midnight.

In the first option, you whack the nail ten times into the same hole.

 

In the second option, you whack the nail twenty times, but in between each whack you take the nail out and move it somewhere else on the board.

 

The first option drives the nail in deeper. Much deeper. Even though each whack costs more money, the return on investment is much better.

  

"Concentration is the key to all economic success." -- Peter Drucker

 

 Whatever medium you choose, pick frequency over reach.

 

• Radio or television: concentrate your advertising on specific shows. Talk to the same audience over and over again. 
   
  
• Newspaper: you will get better results by placing your ad in the same section repeatedly, rather than moving it throughout the paper.
   
  
• Direct mail: three sales letters sent to the same 500 people will get you a stronger response than one letter sent to 1500 people.

 

By the way, the Roy Williams quotes above are from an essay entitled "Hardwood, Hammer, and Nail," that appears in his first Wizard of Ads book. The Wizard of Ads trilogy is one of the best resources on advertising ever written, and Roy (or someone close to him) has now made all three books available for a free download.

 

At the bottom of this newsletter, mixed among the usual cat videos and stupid human tricks, is a link for you to get your copy of each book.

 

You should do so, immediately.

To read all of Phil's recent Newletter Click Here

 

Sound Can Make Your Food Taste Better

The right sound can fiercely influence a listener when it comes to food. New research on the power of sound proves you can make a flavor better or worse by using “auditory bait.”

A properly done radio commercial with the right sound can send a consumer in a craving beeline to your restaurant or grocery store. The listening experience not only changes the way we perceive taste, it changes how much food and drink we purchase.

The majority of our food behavior is “heard” without our conscious minds knowing it. This new research anchors the idea that the food or beverage industry will want to use sound and radio as a way to increase sales and gain share of mind. We all know music can set the mood. Now it’s a verified fact that sound will affect the perception of flavor and the way a customer rates their food experience. It will also affect bar sales.

“Even without your knowing it, the music that a food retailer or restaurateur plays can influence what you buy. The tempo of the music that’s played in a store can influence your purchase decisions. Slow music makes grocery store shoppers slow down; that means they spend more time in the store, and this translates to more revenue per customer—a pretty awesome result....We are so sure we’re in charge all the time, but in fact we can be manipulated like puppets.”

Consider how powerful sound is when consumers are sitting in rush hour traffic. They are listening to the Radio thinking about their evening dinner or a night out on the town. In one fell swoop, you can change a listener’s destination by supplying them with tasty food sounds that hit their subconscious and get them to come straight to you.

Read the full article here.

What Does Your Brand Sound Like?

Express Music does an impressive job of singing the glory of sound marketing. Sonic identities stick in the mind and conjure emotions for your customers. Sound also enhances the potency of your visual brand.

 

Video: Tim Miles, Your Brain on Marketing

SOLD OUT!

Don't miss this free mind blowing seminar for small business owners. May 3, 2012, 8am-Noon.

 Go to: www.justonewins.com

Portland Area Radio Council - Tim Miles - May 2012 from Tim Miles on Vimeo.

Look to the left and see Tim Miles. This is where to find his series on Good Advertising is Good Strategy  for the next five weeks starting with:

Strategic Planning 101: Big X. Little x.

 

A Key Formula for Making Digital More Popular

In Kevin Allocca’s video, “Why Videos go Viral,” he explains that if you try to make a video viral, the odds of it sticking are small. Money spent on video for “viral-marking” is a waste of money unless you do four things that make it stand out and have the help of key influencers to bring it into the public awareness.

If your video is "worth talking about," this is where Radio can take it to the next level. Radio personalities can make a video more popular by talking about it and giving it feature placement on their Facebook page and on stations' websites. DJs can spur conversation, comments and interaction with listeners.  

 

Tim Miles Seminar: This is Your Brain in Marketing

Back in October, I came to Portland to deliver a free multimedia seminar called Advertising in America. It not only sold out in record time, there was a waiting list as long as the Willamette.

In early May I'm coming back. Now, given our earlier sell-out, I could sell out again, and do the same talk again, but I'm not. In fact, it’s 95% different material.

On Thursday, May 3, 2012, join me as we explore:

This is Your Brain on Marketing
How advertising and customer service work in our minds.

You’ll take away:

* How sound and sight work in the mind.

* How to use radio and make it work.

* How to understand personality types and sell customers their way.

* How to deliver real share-worthy service.

* What doesn’t work and why.

In fact, there only three things that remain from our sold-out October show which you'll hear again in May. And at the end of the show, I’ll answer all your specific questions.

My new lecture, just like last time, is absolutely free. (There’s a $99 deposit to reserve your spot, and we delete your info when you show up.) There will be no sales pitch. No one's going to try to sell you a thing. Just like last time, seriously.

How does that work on your mind?

You get the first chance to reserve your spot by emailing Melissa Kunde. We aren't making this public for five more days, so this is your chance to get in front and make sure your seat is secure. Melissa will give you all the details in advance.

SPECIAL BONUS: On Friday, May 4th, I’ll be conducting up to six private strategic planning and marketing sessions. These are free too, but you must apply and reserve your time with a $99 deposit (also to be returned on arrival). Six companies will receive specific strategies to grow. Email Melissa Kunde and she will send you the questionnaire.

Hope to see you in May. I know you'll love every minute.

Tim Miles
Head Custodian, The Imagination Advisory Group and Partner, Wizard of Ads