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As a radio advertising expert who teaches radio copywriting to people who want to learn how to create effective radio advertising, I’d like to share with you some important facts you need to know when creating your radio commercial campaign.

If you’re reading this, you p robably are either a copywriter working for a radio station, ad agency, or production house; a producer or production director; a salesperson who writes copy; a disc jockey who does production and/or writes copy; a station owner or manager who truly cares about providing the station’s clients with the most effective advertising possible; or a business owner or manager who understands the importance of effective advertising.

When we discuss production aspects of creating commercials, however, we won’t be focusing on production room tricks or the wide variety of audio processing equipment you might have access to. That’s the technical end of production; in this article, we’re concerned with a much more important element of production: the sales end.

One of radio’s best-known production experts is a former West Coast disc jockey named Bobby Ocean. Bobby likes to point out that a production room’s most valuable tool is…that thing you were born with: your imagination.

If you’re a producer, I’d like to invite you always to keep Bobby Ocean’s dictate in mind. Never use special production effects without having a specific reason for using them. What’s the point of using reverse echo on this commercial? Is there a reason to use lasers and whooshes?

As a friend of mine is fond of saying, “Unless you’re advertising STAR WARS, why would you use a laser sound in a commercial???”

Flashy tricks and techniques are wonderful whent hey actually add to the impact of the presentation; otherwise, they’re simply distractions; you’re just showing off for the sake of showing off.

So, let’s start at the beginning:

What is a good commercial? A good commercial is not necessary one that entertains. It’s not one that impressive other producers. It’s not one that wins awards. A good radio commercial…sells.

Here’s a question I’m often asked, in my role as a radio advertising expert who insists that effective radio advertising requires radio commercials that make money for the advertiser:

“But what about ‘institutional’ or ‘image’ advertising?”

Yes, there are some advertisers who are foolish enough to throw their money away on “image” advertising:  The local bank that has sponsored the 12 o’clock newscast for the past 50 years…running the same ad copy all that time. They don’t care about listener response.

There’s an oft-repeated story that I have seen attributed to at least three different 20th Century businessmen. The familiar quotation from that businessman is, “Half of my advertising is wasted. Unfortunately, I have no idea which half is the wasted half.”

For most businesses, that remains the standard: They have no idea which of their advertising works and which is a waste of money…And, shockingly, that doesn’t seem to bother them; they’re quite content to throw away half of the money they spend on advertising.

If they took the time to find out which half of their advertising works and which doesn’t, they could either eliminate the nonproductive half and save half of the ad budgets…Or they could replace the nonproductive half with productive advertising and double the return on their investment.

If you run a radio station that has a client like that local bank that sends you a check each month for unfocused, unproductive “image” advertising, a client that is happy to throw the company’s money away, it’s okay to take it. But most businesses don’t want to waste money. But most businesses want their advertising to be an investment, not a cost. Most businesses can afford to advertise only if the advertising ultimately makes money for them.

Here’s a question I’m often asked, in my role as a radio advertising expert who insists that effective radio advertising requires radio commercials that make money for the advertiser:

“But what about ‘institutional’ or ‘image’ advertising?”

Yes, there are some advertisers who are foolish enough to throw their money away on “image” advertising:  The local bank that has sponsored the 12 o’clock newscast for the past 50 years…running the same ad copy all that time. They don’t care about listener response.

There’s an oft-repeated story that I have seen attributed to at least three different 20th Century businessmen. The familiar quotation from that businessman is, “Half of my advertising is wasted. Unfortunately, I have no idea which half is the wasted half.”

For most businesses, that remains the standard: They have no idea which of their advertising works and which is a waste of money…And, shockingly, that doesn’t seem to bother them; they’re quite content to throw away half of the money they spend on advertising.

If they took the time to find out which half of their advertising works and which doesn’t, they could either eliminate the nonproductive half and save half of the ad budgets…Or they could replace the nonproductive half with productive advertising and double the return on their investment.

If you run a radio station that has a client like that local bank that sends you a check each month for unfocused, unproductive “image” advertising, a client that is happy to throw the company’s money away, it’s okay to take it. But most businesses don’t want to waste money. But most businesses want their advertising to be an investment, not a cost. Most businesses can afford to advertise only if the advertising ultimately makes money for them.

My job is quite unusual. I’m a radio advertising expert who teaches copywriters how to write radio commercials — the kind of effective radio advertising that produces profitable results for the radio advertiser.

The worst thing that ever happened to the radio advertising industry occurred sometime in the last century when some well-meaning person foolishly labelled the department in charge of crafting radio commercials as “Creative.”

As a result, being “creative” is the goal of most people who produce radio advertising. They have big award ceremonies to honor the most “creative” radio commercials.

And this is the first thing you must understand:

RADIO ADVERTISING IS NOT A CREATIVE EXCERCISE; IT’S MASS SALESMANSHIP.

The purpose of a radio commercial is not to be creative. The purpose is, simply, to sell.

“Creativity” is not what you should strive for. Creativity is a tool, to help you reach your goal.

People who make their livings by harnessing their creativity never wake up in the morning thinking, “I really want to be creative today!” Instead, they wake up with a problem they need to solve:

The novelist wants to make the middle chapters move more quickly.

The playwright realizes the second act is much too slow.

The architect is trying to find a way to create a building he can be proud of despite the severely limited budget.

So…Exactly what IS a commercial that “sells”? How do you know when you have a commercial that sells?

Is it one that keeps mentioning the advertiser’s name? That includes pricing information? That lists the benefits of the product or service? That gives the advertiser’s phone number over and over again?

No. A commercial that sells is a commercial that motivates the listener to act.

To go to the automobile showroom and take that test drive.

To call for the free information booklet.

To go the department store and take a test whiff of the perfume.

A selling radio commercial is on that motivates the the listener to act.

As a radio advertising expert who teaches radio copywriting to people who want to learn how to create effective radio advertising, I’d like to share with you some important facts you need to know when creating your radio commercial campaign.

If you’re reading this, you p robably are either a copywriter working for a radio station, ad agency, or production house; a producer or production director; a salesperson who writes copy; a disc jockey who does production and/or writes copy; a station owner or manager who truly cares about providing the station’s clients with the most effective advertising possible; or a business owner or manager who understands the importance of effective advertising.

When we discuss production aspects of creating commercials, however, we won’t be focusing on production room tricks or the wide variety of audio processing equipment you might have access to. That’s the technical end of production; in this article, we’re concerned with a much more important element of production: the sales end.

One of radio’s best-known production experts is a former West Coast disc jockey named Bobby Ocean. Bobby likes to point out that a production room’s most valuable tool is…that thing you were born with: your imagination.

If you’re a producer, I’d like to invite you always to keep Bobby Ocean’s dictate in mind. Never use special production effects without having a specific reason for using them. What’s the point of using reverse echo on this commercial? Is there a reason to use lasers and whooshes?

As a friend of mine is fond of saying, “Unless you’re advertising STAR WARS, why would you use a laser sound in a commercial???”

Flashy tricks and techniques are wonderful whent hey actually add to the impact of the presentation; otherwise, they’re simply distractions; you’re just showing off for the sake of showing off.

So, let’s start at the beginning:

What is a good commercial? A good commercial is not necessary one that entertains. It’s not one that impressive other producers. It’s not one that wins awards. A good radio commercial…sells.