If there is one thing I learnt from the pandemic it is that we as radio gurus are much more innovative and creative than we thought. During the last couple of months, I have experienced so much creativity within our company that it makes me excited about what more we can offer our advertisers.
OFM has learnt that if you want to be the preferred advertising platform, you need to have the best advertising solutions, concepts and ideas.
The question we should ask is: “Is the normal 30 second commercial still enough?”
Advertisers want more. They want better ideas, more creative concepts and more exclusivity.
How do we provide that to our advertisers? How do we get them to be excited again about their own brands and campaigns?
The pandemic has forced us to create campaigns on air to drive better results. Advertisers were scared to advertise and to spend money during the pandemic. As a commercial radio station you depend on your advertisers to drive revenue. We had to think outside the box and come up with ideas that would sell and also deliver great results.
Non-traditional revenue (NTR) product offerings were by far our best solution. The OFM brand is a trusted brand amongst our listeners and people from Central South Africa still love to interact with our brand.
The first NTR concept that was created was OFM’s 35th birthday kick-starter campaign: Spot the Yellow Fleet. OFM sent their entire yellow fleet into our footprint and encouraged listeners to take selfies when they spotted the cars. This campaign had a competition element. This went hand-in-hand with a sales solution to local businesses, with a special outside broadcast offering. While encouraging listeners to spot the fleet, we also parked the fleet at the outside broadcasts – which guaranteed an easy way to spot the vehicles and gave the listeners a better opportunity to stand a chance to win. The result was phenomenal. It was a great way to get our listeners involved via radio advertising and on-the-ground activities. Our advertisers were very satisfied with the number of feet through their doors and the exposure they received was well executed.
Another innovative idea was to combine a classic concept of “braai day” with an on-the-ground activation and giveaway. Everybody wants to braai, and everybody wants to win! During September, OFM celebrated Heritage Month with a braai day campaign every Friday. As part of our 35th birthday celebrations, we decided to invest in a few special and limited edition braai sets – branded with our 35th birthday logo – to give away to listeners. The braai set was a complete braai kit. It included a kettle braai with cover, stainless steel braai set, apron, OFM’s Real Good Recipe book, LED braai light, casserole, wooden steak board, camp chair, cooler box and knife set – all worth R10 000! It was the ultimate gift for all braai lovers and OFM fans. Each Friday we had outside broadcasts at two venues – one from 09:00 to 12:00 and one from 12:00 to 15:00. Our team was extremely busy and the technical element to make this happen had to be of top standard. In total, we did eight outside broadcasts and gave away eight braai sets to listeners who supported the business that hosted the outside broadcast. All they had to do was to spend R350 at the business to be entered into the draw. This campaign was not only a great way to build brand love, but also increased sales at the participating businesses. It was the perfect retail campaign.
OFM plans many more of these type of combined campaigns. We have learnt that on-air advertising, on-the-ground activations and competitions go hand-in-hand. Creativity is limitless! Radio advertising is not just a 30 second commercial anymore. Listeners love to engage with the brand. And, when a radio station can manage to combine these elements successfully through innovation and creative ideas, you have a winning recipe!
Think out of the box. Use old concepts and give them a new twist. Your audience is waiting to be entertained and to get involved!