While telecom giants pour billions into TV ads, the customers actually ready to switch carriers are listening elsewhere. New data reveals AM/FM radio continues to quietly outperform its competitors at a fraction of the price.
A comprehensive new analysis from the Cumulus Media/Westwood One Audio Active Group shows that from January through July 2025, telecom brands invested $406.4 million in traditional radio advertising, ranking the medium fourth in category spending behind cable TV, network TV, and mobile web video. Despite its lower investment share, radio reaches more potential wireless switchers than those higher-cost channels.
Among adults 25–54, wireless providers’ primary churn segment, radio achieves 82% monthly reach. Among adults 18–34, that climbs to 86%, surpassing both live and time-shifted television at 73% and every major social or streaming platform. These younger audiences represent where provider switching concentrates most heavily, with 57% of consumers planning to change carriers in the next year falling under age 44.
Heavy AM/FM listeners exceed the market in switching likelihood by 10 percentage points above the US average, while heavy TV viewers show only a 2% lift. Those engaged audio users are significantly more likely to be full-time employed at 51% compared to just 29% among heavy TV viewers. They’re also more likely to live in households of three or more people at 55% versus 43%, and they report higher income tiers with a median of $84,000 compared to $68,000 for heavy TV audiences.
The demographic alignment extends to format preference. Among those planning to switch carriers, 23.2% listen to Urban radio, 22.0% listen to Hispanic formats, and 17.8% listen to CHR/Top 40, making these the three highest-indexing AM/FM formats for telecom prospects.
Results follow the audience composition. In a July 2025 Nielsen Media Impact model, Verizon’s existing plan of $26 million in TV and $4.1 million in over-the-air radio achieved 70.7% reach among adults 18–49. Shifting just 20% of TV dollars into radio raised that figure to 82.0%, representing an incremental gain of 16% without increasing total budget.
That improvement was most pronounced among younger demographics, with a 13% incremental reach boost among adults 18–24, a 12% increase among adults 25–34, and a 9% gain among adults 35–44. Telecom brands are also missing substantial pockets of light-TV viewers, with nearly 30% receiving little or no exposure to existing TV-heavy campaigns. Adding radio reduces that gap dramatically, with the model showing an additional 10% reach among light TV users.
Brand equity analysis further validates audio-first planning. In Harris Poll Brand Platform tracking for a leading national carrier, awareness holds similarly high across channels at 98–99%, but usage stands at 39.1% among heavy AM/FM listeners compared to 33.6% for heavy TV viewers. Recommendation intent measures 24.0% versus 20.2% respectively, and composite brand equity rises from 53.2 among heavy TV audiences to 56.9 among heavy audio listeners. These lifts occur despite far greater linear TV spending.
As carriers expand 5G coverage, introduce new pricing tiers, and confront higher churn driven by economic pressure and device upgrades, the performance gap carries weight. AM/FM radio connects with engaged consumers already evaluating their options, while capturing those less accessible via television.
