by Scott Howard | Jun 10, 2016 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, ScLoHo's Collective Wisdom, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo, WOWO Fort Wayne Radio Advertising with Scott Howard
A few years ago when I started on the WOWO radio advertising sales team and I was sharing information about the WOWO listeners, I kept running into women who would say, “I’m a little unusual because I listen to WOWO.”
I pointed out to them that they were in good company. Look at these numbers from our last rating survey:
Total Weekly WOWO Listeners age 12+: 107,000
Total Weekly WOWO Female Listeners age 12+: 44,000
Total Weekly Female Listeners age 45+: 34,000
That last number is important. Baby Boomer Women are the ones that have the buying power that most businesses want. Of all the radio stations in Fort Wayne, Indiana, WOWO has more than any other station by at least 10,000. 
Last month Mediapost shared an article, How To Connect With Baby Boomer Women and I’m sharing the highlights because these are the Women of WOWO that I can help you reach.
1. If she feels your authenticity, that you have really listened to her and you genuinely care, she will reward you.
2. They love products that make them feel more creative and helps them connect to their friends and family.
3. If you are looking for better-educated women with more discretionary income, you will find her online. She is not just a passive observer; she is quickly adopting the internet usage patterns of younger generations and posting content herself.
4. She is free to choose the “best of” from all stages of her life, as well as incorporating new products, services and behaviors.
5. Marketers in search of aspirational messaging are advised to look higher up Maslow’s pyramid toward new levels of simplicity and altruism and away from icons drawn from the assumption that she spends money only to gain the approval of others.
6. Boomer women are more than six times as likely to make purchase decisions based upon their personal values.
7. Perceptive marketers recognize that the Boomer woman knows she has entered and is transiting through a new lifestage and will reward them for recognizing her special needs and interests.
8. Market to her through women like her. Keep in mind that women want to know that the person offering advice or inspiration is someone from both the gender and lifestage that has personally advanced through the same lifestages and transitions.
9. She doesn’t aspire to be ignored. They don’t like ads that never feature women 50+.
10. Show her respect by providing her the facts. A product example is Olay anti-aging products. Olay used an abundance of useful information and straightforward facts about their products with extensive reviews and ratings from other women rather than clever imagery.
That’s just the first 10. Mediapost shared a follow up article this month that I’ll share the next time.
by Scott Howard | May 18, 2016 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, ScLoHo's Collective Wisdom, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo, WOWO Fort Wayne Radio Advertising with Scott Howard
I’m going to lay this out for you, Mr/Ms Business Owner in the Fort Wayne area:
WOWO’s Baby Boomer Audience Wants To Spend Money With You
A lot of attention is given to the under 50 crowd because, well, people over 50 are nearly dead, Or dead broke. Or drooling toothlessly in their soup, or…
I wonder what other myths you have about Baby Boomers? I found an article that addresses some of them. We’re going to look at them in a second. 
First the relationship between WOWO & Baby Boomers. WOWO radio was the radio station we listened to as school kids to find out if we had to go to school or if old man winter caused the school’s to close or delay. As a 6 year old when my family first moved here, we learned that Bob Siever’s was Mr. WOWO with all the answers in the 60’s and 70’s, (my youth).
Now in 2016 WOWO continues to have the largest audience in town of adults over 21 years old and the biggest chunk of those 100,000 weekly listeners are baby boomers.
Let’s break some Baby Boomer myths from the article:
Who’s got the money to spend? Boomers accounted for 70% of the disposable income in the United States in 2012, and they will continue to be the wealthiest generation in the country until at least 2030, when they’ll still have nearly 45% of the disposable income. 
Here’s 3 more from the article:
1. Baby boomers are not tech-savvy.
Both Steve Jobs and Bill Gates were born in the boomer years, and their generation was the first to experience the massive productivity increases that technology can drive.
Baby boomers are just as tech-oriented as are younger generations. Eighty-two percent of Boomers use Facebook, with 15.5% spending more than 11 hours per week on the site. Boomer women are also one of the fastest-growing categories on Pinterest. They also spend more time consuming and sharing content online than do other demographics.
2. Baby boomers are reluctant to spend money.
Adults 55-64 consistently outspending the average consumer in nearly every category.
In fact, if taken as their own economy, the 100 million Americans who are aged 50 and over would rank the third largest in the world behind the U.S. and China. When it does come to retirement, however, two-thirds plan to spend more time doing things like shopping, traveling and entertaining.
3. Baby boomers are old fashioned.
A recent study called Baby boomers “media-loving, eternally optimistic, self-indulgent consumers.” Now that they’re rid of burdens like college tuition, mortgages, and child care expenses, they’re looking to re-tool themselves and re-define their lives. Now rid of debts and obligations, they have the means to do it.
Want some examples of Boomers? Boomers are not your elderly grandparents. Prince was a baby boomer. So was David Bowie. Johnny Depp, Demi Moore, Madonna, Oprah … all baby boomers. Not a single, crotchety, old fogy among them.
Adding to the clear proof of Boomers’ immense consumer power, they drive almost 50% of all retail sales whereas Millennials represent a mere 10%.
Here’s the opportunity that you have with WOWO Radio. Want to see how it can work for your business? Contact me.
by Scott Howard | May 2, 2016 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, ScLoHo's Collective Wisdom, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo, WOWO Fort Wayne Radio Advertising with Scott Howard
WOWO Radio in Fort Wayne, Indiana is the most listened to radio station for adults in Northeast Indiana according to the rating survey data we get twice a year.
But why?
A piece of information arrived in my email last month that lists why people listen to the radio. I circled the ones that are applicable to WOWO. Now 91 years old, WOWO is a News/Talk formatted station with both local and national talk shows 7 days a week along with sports reports and sports play by play. Take a look:
Here’s the list that applies to WOWO:
- I like particular shows or hosts
- I want to be informed about what’s going on in the news
- I want to know what’s going on here in town
- I want to be informed if there’s an emergency of some kind
- I enjoy listening to talk shows
- Weather Information
- Traffic Information
- I like it when stations get involved with charitable and community events
- I’m interested in sports programming
This list only explains why people listen, which is not the same as talking about the effectiveness of the advertising.
I do have good news about that too that I’ll share another day.
by Scott Howard | Apr 25, 2016 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, ScLoHo's Collective Wisdom, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo
First, the words of Seth Godin, from his blog:
Marketing outreach (ads, PR, sponsorships, etc.) is not about one thing. It’s about three things.
Awareness is a simple ping: Oh, she’s running for President. Oh, they just opened one in our neighborhood. Oh, they’re having a sale.
Trust is far more complicated. Trust comes from experience, from word of mouth, from actions noted. Trust, amazingly, also seems to come from awareness. “As seen on TV” is a perverse way to claim trust, but in fact, when people are more aware of what you do, it often seeps into a sort of trust.
And action is what happens when someone actually goes and votes, or buys something, or shows up, or talks about it. And action is as complex as trust. Action requires overcoming the status quo, action means that someone has dealt with the many fears that come with change and felt that fear and still done something.
Many people reading this are aware that they can buy a new mattress, and might believe it’s worth the effort, but don’t take action.
Many people reading this are aware that they can buy a tool, get some treatment, visit a foreign land, listen to a new recording… but action is the difficult part.
Action is quite rare. For most people, the story of ‘later’ is seductive enough that it appears better to wait instead of leaping.
As a marketer, then, part of the challenge is figuring out which of the three elements you need the most help with, and then focus on that…
I recall when I entered the marketing and advertising world, we used to build campaigns that were multiple-step campaigns, similar to what Seth mentioned. We actually called the steps:
1. Image-Building
2. General Benefits
3. Specific Benefits
4. Re-creation Benefits
The concept was to take a number of weeks and draw our radio listeners through the process of introducing them to the new business, talking about what the business did overall, then do individual ads on specific reasons for customers to spend money with the business. The 4th step would apply if we were to discover a new way for the business to make money. Like the time we transformed a rental car agency into a nearly new car dealer.
Due to consumer media habits that have changed tremendously in the past dozen years, we need to apply these steps differently. Instead of taking a marketing or advertising campaign through the steps to the masses, we now need to figure out how to do it to the individual.
I may watch a TV series as it is delivered every Sunday night at 9pm. But I have friends who will wait until the season is over and then binge watch the whole season one week this summer.
And while it is important to have structure to your advertising campaign, don’t forget that there are people who need what you are selling right now, while others may not be in the market for another couple years.
How do you market with so many variables? I have fine tuned some of these systems and watched them work successfully in the past couple years. It really needs to be customized for each business and even though the elements are similar, the implementation needs to be tweaked for you.
It’s not as complicated as it sounds if you know what you’re doing, and that’s where I come in.
Want help? Reach out to me.
by Scott Howard | Apr 15, 2016 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, ScLoHo's Collective Wisdom, ScLoHo's Media, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo, WOWO Fort Wayne Radio Advertising with Scott Howard
Ever wonder what kind of people listen to News Talk Radio during political seasons? I’m talking about my station, WOWO Radio in Fort Wayne, Indiana and News Talk formatted radio stations all over the country.
Nielsen released a study this month that, “looked at listening and voting behavior of more than 70,000 panelists, aged 18 and older, in 45 major U.S. markets. Among all listeners, preference News/Talk format ranks first for six of the 10 voter segments, including Super Democrats, Conservative Democrats, On-the-Fence Liberals, Green Traditional, Mild Republicans and Ultra Conservatives. ”
Here’s the details of the favorite radio formats of the voter segments, with those whose 1st choice is News Talk circled:
While the political talk on WOWO Radio leans conservative, what I found surprising when I first saw this info, was how anyone who has an interest in political stuff, both liberal and conservative, listen.
Due to the nature of News Talk Radio, WOWO, being a station that has active listeners (versus passive listeners who are listening for background music) and the only station that consistently has over 100,000 grown ups listening every week, this is why so many advertisers have success with WOWO.
By the way, in Fort Wayne, there is an election 3 out of every 4 years.
Want to invite our listeners to spend their money with your business? Contact me and we’ll talk about how this works. Scott@WOWO.com 260-255-4357
by Scott Howard | Mar 30, 2016 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, ScLoHo's Collective Wisdom, WOWO Fort Wayne Radio Advertising with Scott Howard
The other day I shared with you The Power of WOWO Radio Live Endorsement Ads.
Today, an article from RAB.com that digs deeper: 
Personality makes a difference
Tammy Greenberg, RAB
Radio station personalities are arguably the single most important differentiator for radio.
These talented individuals introduce people to favorite and new music.
They share current, local and national news, play-by-play sports reporting and coverage, and updates about weather and traffic in the cities they live in.
They convey the information that their listeners seek (even if they don’t know they are seeking it) in a very personal and relevant way.
These are the people that make you laugh, make you cry and have the ability to evoke 6-8 emotions in less than 3 minutes.
They know their audiences. They REALLY know their audiences and they know how to have a dialogue with them.
Many of these individuals share their own lives and the listener is instantaneously connected – feeling like they are part of the conversation.
While all of these personalities connect with their listeners over the air, they continue to connect with them via other social media options – like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter – extending that dialogue and listener connection throughout the day. Some of these personalities have created blocks of original content through podcasts that their listeners and followers can turn to and turn on at their convenience.
Podcasting allows the personality to extend their audience connection beyond a specific time and, most importantly, enables listeners to lean back and enjoy original content and programming at their convenience.
Radio has earned its place as the original social medium due to the highly unique relationship that radio personalities have established and continue to forge with their listeners.
When comparing radio personalities to other media personalities, 6 out of 10 listeners say that radio hosts are “like a friend” whose opinions they trust.
According to a study conducted by iHeartRadio, with even more ways for consumers and on-air personalities to interact, 4 out of 10 listeners feel personalities make more of an effort to foster a personal connection, making the radio experience inherently more social, particularly when compared to TV or streaming playlist services.
They are able to accomplish this because they go way beyond the superficial, and in some cases have been known to even save lives. Here are just a few of the thousands of examples of how personalities make a difference in the lives of their loyal followers every day:
- Drew Garabo, the host of Drew Garabo Live on 102.5 The Bone in St. Petersburg, Florida, typically takes calls about hot topics being discussed on his daily program. But one of those calls took an unusual turn, which led to the discovery that the woman was being physically abused by her boyfriend. Drew kept the caller on the line, and directed her to a safe place where the authorities could take over.
- Whenever something big happens in the community, radio turns off the music and becomes the people’s station. This held true across the nation as radio DJs were comforting listeners in the wake of the Charleston Church deaths. Ebro Darden, the lead morning-show host and face of Hot 97 in New York, urged his listeners not to sweep what’s happening in America under a rug and deal with the real issues, before breaking down in tears. He had no plan that morning and no script, but made it his responsibility to connect with people so they didn’t feel alone. He altered his playlists, talked to callers, tweeted with listeners and was as vulnerable as his audience.
- Hal and Brian from WBAP Morning News in Fort Worth, Texas, were broadcasting remotely from North Hills Hospital and discussing stroke symptoms on their show. A patient walked into the North Hills Emergency Room the next day and told the doctor that based on what he heard Hal and Brian discussing, he thought he might be having a stroke. Fast action by the staff at the hospital saved his life.
- Jay Towers on Detroit’s 100.3 WNIC responded immediately to recent reports of lead contamination in Flint, Michigan’s water supply by hosting the Flint Water Drive with iHeartMedia Detroit and local partner Fox 2 News. Thanks to their efforts, in just 6 hours, over 240 tons of bottled water was donated to area residents.
Personalities make a difference for brands as well.
According to research, listeners equate an on-air personality endorsement to a friend’s recommendation, more so than they do sponsored Facebook posts, sponsored tweets or television commercials.
This is because it is really real. Radio DJs care about their listeners and it’s their responsibility to share truths with them. If they believe in the brand, they will sell it. To hear some successful endorsement campaigns, please visit the case study section on RAB.com.
In the end, it really is about the personality of the personality – the characteristics that make them likeable, relatable, worth listening to and more.
Personalities are just people who like to chat, entertain, or joke with people. They are passionate about their love for music, and love making people’s days better and generating conversation, as well as being a positive, uplifting force for them.
They are people that don’t mind being a bit “extreme.” They can be news, sports or political junkies, or just individuals who spend most of their time living, eating, playing and engaging with brands in the same community as their listeners.
They are all storytellers that everyone wants to listen to. They deliver something no one else can – personal, local, native advertising with the credibility that no other native advertising can claim. |
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