Beyond the Buzz with David Stanley Marketing and Management Essentials To Grow Your Business

Nobody watches TV these days. Nobody listens to radio. Advertising doesn’t work any more. It’s all about social media and online connections.

If you spend any amount of time online today, you’ll run across these declarations over and over. But while the pundits have been prophesying, they’ve missed the reality of what people are actually doing.

The November 9, 2009 Research Brief from The Center for Media Research reports a Nielsen analysis of a media study conducted by the Council for Research Excellence. The study found that radio is the dominant audio device. Yes, the almost extinct radio is the most listened to audio device – even over the ever-popular iPod.

Here are some of the key findings reported in the blog post:

• 77% of adults are reached by broadcast radio on a daily basis, second only to television at 95%
• Web/Internet (excluding email) reached 64%, newspaper 35%, and magazines 27%

In deeper analysis of audio media titled “How U.S. Adults Use Radio and Other Forms of Audio” Nielsen found that:

• 90% of consumers listen to some form of audio media per day
• The 77% who listen to broadcast radio surpass the 37% who listen to CDs and tapes and the 12% who listen to portable audio devices.
• Almost 80% of those age 18 to 34 listening to broadcast radio in an average day
• Broadcast radio is the dominant form of audio media at home, work, and in the car (79.1% daily reach; 122 minutes daily among users)
• Audio media exposure has the highest reach among those with higher levels of education and income
• Broadcast radio reaches those aged 18-34 at rates equivalent to the general adult population

The emergence of portable audio devices like the iPod and other MP3 players has been considered a threat to traditional forms of audio. This study indicates that the new technology has had a positive effect on radio consumption. “Radio was found to have a higher reach (82%) among those who listen to portable audio devices, compared to the average reach for all audio consumers.”

Here are findings from the study for key “advertising-based” media platforms:

• Live television had the highest reach and daily usage among users (95.3%, 331 minutes)
• Broadcast radio (77.3% reach, 109 minutes)
• Web/Internet [excluding use of email] (63.7%, 77 minutes)
• Newspapers (34.6%, 41 minutes)
• Magazines (26.5%, 22 minutes)

Key takeaway: Turn on your buzz filter – pay attention to what people actually do, not what they say.

A web presence is important for almost every business. Social media is growing and will increasingly have a place in the marketing mix. For now though, social media has a lower ROI for most businesses due to the time constraints it takes to implement and maintain as well as limited audiences.

“Old media” is still a powerful medium to connect with customers. The key is making sure you’re brand message is relevant. Have the pundits distracted you, or have you been watching what people actually do?

Who would’ve believed it? Despite the growth of online sales and all the buzz over social media, the lowly catalog remains a key marketing tool for many businesses. Why? Because it still works.

Jeffrey Ball, The Wall Street Journal’s environment editor, wrote an article dealing with environmental issues involved in creating and mailing catalogs. What I found really interesting is the data presented in the article that indicates how effective catalogs continue to be.

Surprising facts?

The article presents some interesting facts from the latest survey by the Direct Marketing Association of its members.

Among retailers who rely mainly on direct sales, 62% say their biggest revenue generator is the paper catalog (from the latest survey by the Direct Marketing Association). Only a fifth of those retailers said they draw their biggest sales from their websites.

That is why virtually no one expects the mail-order catalog to go away – even though only 1.3% of those catalogs generated a sale, the survey found.

The “old” promotes the “new”

Of course the U.S. Postal Service is concerned about any efforts that would cause a decline in the catalog mailings because advertising mail helps pay for universal mail in America.

To protect its catalog revenue amid the recession, the post office recently hired a consultant to conduct a study that concluded that consumers who received catalogs from a retailer spent 28% more on that retailer’s Web site than those who didn’t get a catalog. “The more often you mail,” the study said, “the more sales you could see.”

Beware of hype – Study actual behavior

We’re paying the price for the recent real estate bubble – prices of real estate were never going down, “it’s a new world.” Prior to that, we dealt with the aftermath of the Internet bubble – “it’s a new economy.”

If you listen to the current buzz, you will only do business online and your marketing through social media. Beware of buzz. You’ve got to pay attention to what people actually do. People research online, yet still go to a bricks and mortar store to make purchases. People still like picking up catalogs and physically looking through them before going online to buy.

Advertising is not dead. “They” say radio is dead. I’ve got multiple clients growing their business in this recession with radio. The “old” media still works and helps drive the online experience. The key is understanding the strengths and weaknesses of each type of media and utilizing them correctly.

The Internet and social medial will continue to grow in their marketing role. I recommend having a website to every client I have. Just keep everything in perspective and don’t pour your dollars into the latest buzz.

Stay focused on making your brand relevant to your customer. Then you’ll find that “old” and “new” marketing both work just fine.