An Overview of the Pros and Cons of Radio Advertising

Guglielmo Marconi invented the radio by trialling using radio waves and Morse code and then went on to form the Wireless Telegraph and Signal Co. Ltd in 1897. 

Still, in 2024, radio is a popular media form and there are hundreds of licensed radio stations in the UK.

There continues to be a loyal following of people in the UK who tune in to radio stations on BBC and commercial radio daily, including Capital FM, Heart, Smooth, and more. 

There is a wide variety of radio shows with different themes, from lifestyle to relationship advice, culture, travel, politics, sports, music, and arts. 

2022 data from RAJAR showed that 89% of the UK population listened to the radio 20.3 hours per week.

Keen radio listeners, whether using regular radios or tuning in on mobile devices, have a real ear for the radio and don’t miss a trick on it. 

So, does radio advertising work? Can you convince people to purchase your products with an effective radio ad? 

Here, we at Drovo, on-vehicle advertising specialists, have provided an overview of the pros and cons of radio advertising. 

Pros

High Reach Potential

89% of the UK population listening to the radio over 20 hours per week is equal to 49.5 million adults, and this means the reach potential for radio advertisement campaigns is fairly high indeed. 

Local Radio Advertising Enables You to Connect with Communities

In 2024, advertisers and brands are constantly thinking about ways they can reach local communities. 

One way to connect with local communities is through placing ads on the local radio stations they regularly tune into. 

DOOH is also a great way to connect with local communities. For instance, the Tesco Ramadan campaign in 2022 saw digital screen ads rolled out just before ‘Iftar’ – the evening meal that ends the daily fast in Bradford, Birmingham, and Brent in West London, all areas with high local Muslim populations.

Drovo’s stunning LED digital vehicle screens also have the ability to change according to your target audience, such as a specific local community. 

More Affordable Option

Radio advertising is considerably more affordable than running television ads, even for prime-time radio show ad slots. Got a tight budget? Radio advertising could work better.

Here at Drovo, our transit media campaigns offer competitive CPM (Cost Per Mille) ad prices, that’s because we’re constantly moving with audiences.

High Audience Engagement

Regular radio listeners tend to be loyal and highly engaged. This means they are inclined to believe in the credibility and trustworthiness of brands with ads on their favourite radio stations. 

Cons

Overly Generic Targeting

Want to adopt granular advertising methods to target a smaller audience? In that aspect, radio advertising will fall short since radio is a mass media format. 

Drovo’s on-vehicle screen format allows you to hyper target outdoor audiences at specific times of the day and days of the week by showing them contextually relevant ads that sync in with their immediate environment. For instance, showing breakfast meal coffee advertisements to commuters as they come into work on weekdays in central areas of London between 6 and 9 am.

Radio Advertising Doesn’t Physically Move with Your Audience

Yes, audio-wise, radio advertising travels with your audience. However, Out-of-Home transit media advertising allows you to physically move with your audience, reaching people in the places they visit throughout the week. This is where radio falls short.

There is No Visual Aspect to a Radio Campaign

Some people struggle to be convinced by a product they have not seen with their own eyes. Why should they dip into their pockets to purchase something they haven’t seen yet? 

Our taxi wraps and on-vehicle digital advertising screens are bold, bright, and unmissable to outdoor audiences.

Radio Is Not Always the Best Way to Advertise Your Product

There are many ways to showcase your product in 2024, including highly visual displays from a variety of angles on online platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and on-page website ads. OOH advertising also does an excellent job of exposing audiences to your product and increasing brand awareness. 

Radio is not always the best way to show your product to the world. The lack of visual imagery means radio advertising campaigns can be underwhelming.

You will now understand a fair deal more about the pros and cons of radio advertising in 2024.