We test new creative on one or two good local stations, a few SiriusXM channels, or a mini-network of 200 to 300 streaming stations.  We measure early Response & Conversion rates and set a rollout CPM that will deliver your target Media Cost Per Sale.

Good creative will always drive in impulse calls and clicks. Poor in-bound telemarketing scripts or a cluttered corporate-style web site will invariably defeat conversion. If your site serves mostly current customers, use a separate Radio URL devoted entirely to making the first sale. 

My Free Planning for Profitable Radio Excel Workbook lets you set your own test market budgets & schedules.  Your out-of-pocket cost for a 3 to 10 day test - covering creative, production, media, and results analysis - should be about 3.0% of your Target Year I incremental revenue. 

Details & References below.

1. BREAK THROUGH.

Most radio commercials feature a Powerful Announcer reading Urgent Copy.  Unless you can afford massive media buys your creative must break through that Daily Drone.  If you imitate your competitors you cannot stand out in the hearts or minds of your Target Audience. 

I prefer testimonials.  Happy, enthusiastic customers are your best salesmen - if they are properly coaxed, recorded & edited.  Real People speak from heart in words and phrases that ring true in the listeners' brains.  Good testimonials cut through the clutter instantly and stick in the brains of all Prospects - even Tomorrow's Shoppers. 

The Radio Show
Complete Campaigns

Real People Radio

Production Costs
Jingle Production

"Fear & Ruin" Advertising

2. TEST STATIONS & CHANNELS.

We normally test on two or three local stations or satellite radio channels and then blend the results. Response & Conversion rates are more important than CPM or per-spot costs.

The Planning for ROI.xls asks you to define your Target Audience in terms of standard Radio Demographics, and gives you a list of the top 150 DMAS.  It's always a good idea to test in your strongest markets.

How We Select Stations
Target Demographics

3. TEST FOR 3 TO 10 DAYS.

If you're the only advertiser in your category on the air, you can gauge the natural Steam Heat market for your brand in as little as three days.  Competitive brands in cluttered categories usually deserve a 10-day test.

I track AIR (Absolute Incremental Response) and DRAG.  AIR predicts the Cume Quota of Steam Shoppers available from other stations.  DRAG suggests the rate at which those Cume Quotas  refresh themselves.

Local Tests &
Network Rollouts

AIR & DRAG

4. TRACK G & C.

Media Cost per Sale is always a function of three variables, whether you choose to measure them or not.  GM/C=X tracks all three simultaneously.

G = Gross Impressions (in 000's) per Inquiry.
M = Media Cost per Thousand.
C = Conversion Rate of Inquiry to Sale.
X = MCPS

In test markets we track Response & Conversion rates closely.  We buy fixed position spots and plot Gross Impressions by the hour and day; you record Calls or Clicks and Sales. 

Media Cost per Sale
GM/C=X
Conversion is King
Streaming Radio Conversion

5. SET OEF and Target CPM.

Your Optimum Effective Frequency Range opens at the frequency at which response begins to surge and closes at the frequency at which it begins to taper off.  OEF is normally from 1.5 to about 2.5. 

Effective Frequency is the number of times half or more of a station's weekly cume has heard a commercial.   [EF = (N / Δ ) x .911]

Once we have a handle on G, C, and X, we can easily set Target M for roll out in local ROS, satellite, or network.  In today's economy CPM is always negotiable.

Optimum Effective
Frequency

CX/G = Target CPM

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