Improve Your Brand Stature And Barriers Against Rivals.

On September 1st, Rob Klemm joined Point-To-Point Marketing as VP. The expansion of PTP’s strategic team presents an opportunity to learn more about direct marketing’s role in this new economic environment and new ratings measurement. Tim Bronsil, PTP’s President, and Rob Klemm recently sat down with Inside Radio to discuss these items.

“Isn’t marketing one of the first things to go in a tough economic environment?”

Tim Bronsil: The attrition a station experiences when they stop marketing can be devastating to the brand. A 20% AQH loss is far more expensive than the minimal savings recognized by cutting the marketing. The best brands continue to engage their audience through direct marketing. One GM said to me: “How can we stop advertising when it’s EXACTLY what we tell OUR clients not to do?”

Rob Klemm: Many stations did cut back and have witnessed listener erosion. Most of the top performing stations/clusters have continued to invest in their brand.


“How are stations spending their marketing dollars more effectively?”

RK: They are communicating more frequently with a smaller group of listeners…those that are willing to be engaged. And, tailoring the message to real interests of their listeners. The best programs support reasons to increase usage to the stations. Don’t waste resources on people that have no chance to move the ratings needle.

TB: Only meter keepers or diary keepers move the ratings needle. By utilizing the tools available through the ratings services, PTP can identify the households which will deliver the greatest return on investment. If a fraction of the market participates in the ratings process, why use a mass media like TV or boards? Focus the target to maximize the results.

“What are the best case studies of when direct marketing has been effective?”

TB: Here’s one: We built a database for a client hat contains tens of thousands of households. Each member is categorized by P1-P5 status, demo, daypart usage, time with radio, etc. Over the period of ten weeks, 25-54 P1s to the primary competitor who use radio more than an hour a day received four personal letters from our client’s morning show. With a cash contest outlined in each letter, we were able to grab quite a few QHRs of listening throughout the rating period with a minimal investment.

RK: Stations that build and communicate with their database perform very well and are able to do so over the long haul. Survey-friendly listeners are “information seekers.” Focus on survey-friendly households and give them something with which they can spend time, satisfying their interest for information. Reinforce the reasons your primary users listen to you.

“What’s different now than when you first started direct marketing for radio stations?”

TB: Gone are the days of “spiking” the ratings. Now, we’re working on plans to maximize the impact of the marketing dollars by improving the affinity for a station on behalf of the compatible audience and therefore growing real usage. Especially with PPM, the process is ongoing, so we usually develop programs for all stations within the cluster (not just one), and impact every month of the year.

RK: Stations are now looking for their marketing to do more than just reach listeners. They are focused on getting a return on their investment…and for the investment to last longer than a “book.” Ongoing marketing provides you the brand substance needed to benefit from changes in the landscape and continually reinforce values.

Contact:
Tim Bronsil, President:
Tim@ptpmarketing.com, 513-231-0344
or Rob Klemm, Vice President:
Rob@ptpmarketing.com, 815-369-2121
www.PTPMarketing.com