In today's advertising landscape, people who are looking to promote something, be it a product or service, would think that social network platforms like Facebook, or Instagram are great places start with. However, people are overlooking advertising on the radio.
Radios are still a popular form of media, listening by many people, whether for news or music. And one does not have own a radio device because there are many internet radios found online or in applications such as Spotify.
If you are someone who is interested to advertise on radio channels, you would need to consider the cost of those ads on the radio. Here we will be examine and determine what is the cost of a radio ad and what factors that adds more to the cost.
The Radio Ad Cost Equation
To start with determining the cost of radio ads, we first have to look the cost themselves are calculated. Like many things in supply and demand, there is an equation formulated to determine the cost and it goes something like this:
Cost: Number of Listeners X Cost to Reach 1000 Listeners
This is to determine the cost per radio ad, otherwise known as "spot". If you want to determine the CPM, or cost-per-mille, which is the average cost of one thousand of your ads being listened to, the formula goes something like this; cost of the ads divided by the number of listeners, then times by 1000 dollars, which when convert to Malaysian Ringgit is more than RM 4000.
However, it is important to know that all of this is theoretical. Determining the cost of radio ads are not easy and clear-cut and several other factors needed to be considered that can affect the cost of ads.
Time Of The Day
When you are trying to put your ads on a radio stations, what you are actually trying is buying spots. These spots are essentially points in time during the day when the radio station will schedule your ads to be played.
The reason you need to consider the time of the day is because there are periods of time when there are more listeners and when there are less. For example, one radio station would had more listeners tuning in during the night than during the day, specifically late evenings around 9 p.m.
And because of this, radio stations would have different prices of each different spots. The aforementioned radio station would charge a higher price for spots during the night than during the day.
Different Radio Stations, Different Prices
Of course, not every radio stations would offer the same price. The price for spots from different radio stations depends on the price they set themselves.
Another factor when it comes to radio stations' prices is their audience size. Larger radio stations with a wide audience would usually set their spot prices higher than smaller ones.
When choosing which radio stations to air your ads, the price alone should not be the determining factor. You should also consider their audiences and what they are interested in and whether your ads can cater to them and get them interested.
Negotiating With Radio Stations
Like many businesses, if you are not satisfied with the prices set by the radio station you can always attempt to negotiate with them. You can negotiate for a discount for a particular spot or perhaps you would like the radio station to air your ads at the same spot for a whole year.
Negotiating requires skill and practice, so makes to be ready when trying to get a discount for your ads.
Price Of Your Ads
Finally, we cannot forget that trying to get your ads to air on radio is not the only cost your need to consider. You also have to factor in the cost of making the ads itself.
To make your ads, you can either make it yourself or seek out an ad agency to make it for you. Creating your own ads is not free and might even be costly depending on what kind of ad you want and the resources needed to make them.
If you do not have resources and skills to make one, you can commission an ad agency to make one for you according to your preferences. They will charge you for it and their price varies depending on the agency, what type of ad you want and its length.
Regardless of which option you choose, make sure your ads are appropriate and professional.
Now you have an idea of the cost of radio advertisement and the various factors included that could affect it. While it may seem like a risk, according to statistics, radio advertisement is a very good alternative to other forms of advertisement such as TV advertisement and shown to have a very high conversion rate as listeners seem to be very interested in what you are advertising, especially when the ads are well-made.
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