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Attention Back-to-School Shoppers

Author: Annette Malave, SVP/Insights, RAB

Here we are – mid-July, lush gardens, warm weather, barbecues and picnics with friends and families.  The mid-point of summer and the year are now over.  This means only one thing – back-to-school shopping is in full swing!

While it may seem difficult to believe, go into any retailer of clothing, shoes or office supplies and the deals are just starting as the school shopping season runs from July through September.  These retailers, whether they have a national footprint or one location on Main Street, have the same goal – to reach potential shoppers, get them to their location and shop. Why? Because back-to-school shopping is the second biggest shopping season for retailers.  And according to the National Retail Federation, 2017 back-to-school (BTS) shopping was expected to reach $83.6 billion.

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Political Media Buying 2018:
Where Does Radio Fit?

Contributor: Leo Kivijarv, Ph.D., Executive Vice President & Director of Research, PQ Media

Last week’s post laid the groundwork for the current state of elections in 2018.  This post covers radio’s revenue opportunity for attracting political spending.

One of the biggest debates on political media buying is the potential shift from traditional media to digital and other alternative marketing platforms. There are two trains of thought.

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Where Does Radio Fit?”

2018 Political Landscape

Contributed by: Leo Kivijarv, Ph.D., Executive Vice President & Director of Research, PQ Media

There are many unanswered questions as the 2018 campaign begins in earnest.

      • First, experts disagree on whether federal and local candidates will emulate the unconventional media buying strategies employed by Donald Trump in 2016 by relying heavily on free “earned media” from tweets.
      • Second, there is still some disagreement as to how much fundraising will rise or fall compared to previous years, given the increase in political activism immediately after last year’s election.
      • Third, some believe analysis of early results of recent elections is a harbinger of the November elections in which Republican strongholds have elected a Democrat, such as Doug Jones in Alabama.

The elephant in the room is control of Congress. Can the growing discontent in the United States result in the Democrats regaining the majority in both the Senate and House? Will candidates and Super PACs raise more money than previously recorded as a result? Therein lies the major driver that will determine political spending during the year. Other drivers that will contribute to the final political media buying total include a high number of toss-up gubernatorial races, controversial ballot initiatives, and the rising interest in which party controls the various state legislatures.

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Radio on Main Street Podcast Featuring Fred Jacobs, President of Jacobs Media.

Understanding how radio listeners consume media and how technology affects their habits and behaviors as radio listeners is important information to know.  Since the early 2000’s Jacobs Media, whose focus is guiding media companies in this age of digital disruption, has been aggregating multiple radio station databases to generate and publish a national study entitled “Tech Survey.”

In this edition of Radio on Main Street, Erica Farber, President and CEO of the RAB speaks with Fred Jacobs, President of Jacobs Media.  Having recently released the 2018 survey results Fred shares some of the important learnings and strategic takeaways.

Memorial Day – A Day for Remembering

Author: Annette Malave, SVP/Insights, RAB

On Memorial Day, we remember and honor the many American soldiers who have fought and died for our country.  In fact, did you know that the National Moment of Remembrance Act, passed in 2000, encourages all Americans to pause for a moment of silence at 3 p.m. local time on Memorial Day?

Also on this day, radio stations across the country will remember and recognize those, and the families of those, who have served this country.  There will be dedications and acknowledgments from local radio station personalities and shout-outs from listeners.

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Consumer Engagement Is About
Feeling Special

Despite the technologies and platforms available today, many marketers do not believe that their consumer engagement is successful.  In fact, 50% of CMOs believe that their consumer engagement is not very good/terrible.  That is an astounding figure.  Even more surprising is that 75% of CMOs believe their jobs are on the line if their customer experience strategies are unsuccessful, according to a 2018 report from the CMO Council.

Based upon the report, one of the reasons contributing to low engagement levels is inconsistency in delivering personalized engagements across consumer touchpoints.  When it comes to consumer engagement, nothing is more personal or engaging than radio.

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Feeling Special”