*

* Sold in 10 second stages
* 30” 40” or 50” usually
* Core funding element of Commercial radio
* All about….
* Changing the behaviour of the audience
* Advertisements inform, persuade, remind, influence, change
opinions; they may even alter attitudes and feelings”
* (White, 2000, P42)
*

* Solving a business or social need
* Lack of business? Wrong sort of business?
Perception? Demand? Expansion or start-up?
* Building (or rebuilding) a brand
* Share of mind
* Establish the why…
* Before the “how”
Brands are like people at parties, they make
themselves look gorgeous because they want to
attract your attention. With radio, your brand
is addressing the blind guest at a party

*Radio is….
* Intimate
* Intrusive (it Invades Private Space)
* Imaginative
* Cost Effective
* Less avoidable
*
Remember how people listen to the radio.
Ask yourself, how do I get to LISTEN to the
ad rather than just HEAR it?

*
73%
65%
62%
37%
34%
31%
18% 18%
Banners Popups
% of ads by medium which are “hard avoided” by medium
Source: Clark Chapman Research

*
% of adults
viewing/listening
35
30
25
20 The Retail Day
15
10
5
0
6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 1 2 3 4 5
Commercial Radio Commercial TV
Source: RAB/BARB/RAJAR

*

*All good ads have a good brief!
*Who are we talking to…
*A person who…
*What do we want them to do…
*Make a clear point
*Why should they do it…
*The incentive!
*
Sometimes you need sell the ‘sizzle’
and not the sausage (Metro Radio
Creative)

*Don’t be too creative
*Don’t over-write
*Think about comedy carefully
*Make sure it sells
*Make sure it communicates (the right message)
Radio ads arrive un-announced… Radio listeners,
therefore, just gradually find themselves listening to
something that has taken their interest (Ingram and
Barber:2005: P97)

*THERE IS NO SET WAY TO MAKE A RADIO
COMMERCIAL…
*But you could use…
*A slice of life?
*Radio to animate objects
*Music
*Comedy
*A straight ‘read’
*Think RADIO!
*

*A good brief will help (A LOT!)
*“Pace and Lead”
* Find common experiences, pace them and lead
the listener to the sales message
*Emotion
* Powerful weapons!
*Anticipation and Comedy
* Can we look forward to the punchline?
*Use sound
* Do we jump to conclusions?
*

* McDonalds
* Recycle for London
* Natural Confectionary Company
* Road Safety
*

*The best ads are often very simple…
*Find the right voices for the commercials and
the audience
*Is it a campaign?
*Common themes, styles or “tag-line”
*Is it effective?
*Does it work? Might the audience
misinterpret the content?
*

*Failure to attract the listeners attention
*Failure to appeal to the listeners self-interest
*Failure to use words that paint pictures
*Being so ‘clever’ or ‘creative’ that you fail to sell
*Failure to give the listener a reason to act NOW
*Cliché-ridden copy
*Too much copy
*
From www.danoday.com

* 1. Understand the environment
* 2. Speak the listeners language
* 3. Engage and entertain the listener
* 4. Keep it simple
*read
5. Judge what you hear, not what you
* 6. Production values are important
* 7. Plan your production
* 8. Dare to be different
* 9. Take it seriously
*

*Listen for…
* The techniques
* How is the product being sold to you?
* Can you work out what the brief is?
* What is the call to action? Who is it targeting?
* Is it effective?
* How is it using the qualities of radio?
*

Listen out for how radio is used,
how the adverts connect with
shared experiences
*Radio Advertising
*Vodafone
*Ikea
*Nando’s
*Lexus
*Gun Amnesty
*Some More Ads…

*3 Commercials for the same real client
*Minimum 30 seconds long each
*Must be either 30” 40” 50” or 60” long
*Must be compliant
*Think about: brand values, incentives, USP’s,
etc
*What do you make?

• The 3 commercials as digital files
• Your brief
• Typed scripts
• Copyright and Cost details
–Permissions letters / Music Log
–Actors Costs
• Compliance notes
–RACC clearance request
• Research notes etc
*You need to hand in

*Grab a copy of the Metro Newspaper
*Pick an advert
*Turn it into a 30” radio commercial