(By Marc Greenspan) Most veteran radio advertisers perceive weekends as a bonus. Even worse, they may consider weekends as a throw-in that helps to bring in the primetime cost per point. This creates the perception that weekends have no value, which is far from the truth.
At this point, you may be asking: “So how can I sell out my weekend inventory?” “Why are weekends so valuable to the advertiser?”
Keep reading! We have answers for you!
For many potential advertisers, weekends are their “make or break” time. It’s tough for a retailer if their cash register is not ringing or for a restaurant whose tables are empty on the weekend. Your advertisers need solid revenue on Saturdays and Sundays to be successful.
Here is where you and your radio station can get advertisers (current and prospective) to successfully use your station. Plus, you could get new dollars for a daypart that is often used as a bonus. Build a spot-heavy schedule using a Sat-Sun 6A-12Mid rotator. You may also want to consider including Friday 7P-12Mid in the rotation.
The advertiser will reach your radio station’s audience near the time they are going to make their purchase. By using a broad rotator for the entire time period, the spot load will be big enough to achieve an effective frequency to drive the advertiser’s message on your station.
The main objection to weekend buys that we often hear from potential advertisers is “nobody is listening on the weekends.” Stated bluntly, this is a myth. The reality is that about 40% to 50% of a radio station’s total week cume listens on the weekend. For many stations, advertisers can reach more people on the weekends than they can in morning drive.
It’s easy to determine how much of your total cume can be reached on the weekends. Simply divide your weekend audience by your total week audience.
Sat-Sun 6a-12m Cume
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Mon-Sun 6a-12m Cume
Few advertisers realize that close to half (and in some cases over half) of your total audience can be reached on the weekend!
The right schedule on the weekends can reach a significant portion of your audience with an effective frequency, close to the time that the potential advertiser needs new customers. Use the tips in this article to develop the weekend schedule your advertisers need to reach their customers … and see how quickly you can sell out your weekend inventory!
This essay is part of a series titled “Growing the Radio Pie.” To view past articles, visit The Ratings Experts at Research Director, Inc. online Here.
Marc Greenspan is CEO and a founding partner of Research Director, Inc. He can be reached at 410-295-6619 x11 or [email protected].
GEE-ZUZ. Is radio still talking this antiquated? Come on, folks. And, hey, judging by the 20 minutes of commercials I’m hearing every hour on the stations here in St. Louis, nobody is having any trouble giving away time that nobody listens to.