Best Practices Things to keep in mind (Evidence based best practices) 1

Radio Creative Best Practices Audio consistency Consistency of voice, music bed or audio logo is key across campaigns. (Corroborated by U.K. RAB) – Want the listener to immediately identify the commercial as yours and associate with your product’s attributes even if engaged for only a few seconds. Cuts down on misattribution- having your advertising benefitting your competition. Don’t want to start from “scratch”. 2

Radio Creative Best Practices Mention your name throughout Listener’s attention to commercials ebb and flows. 42% of all listening in-car: kid crying in back set, dog cuts in front, etc. Consider multiple voices Activates our “orienting” response- a new voice contributes “novelty” 3

Radio Creative Best Practices Avoid unnecessary words: Less really is more Be clear, concise and focused. In TV, they review a commercial frame-by-frame. Same discipline required with radio. Speak slowly Remember…people’s attention often split while listening. Limits to what we can process cognitively People’s focus often split between the radio and personal tasks 4

Radio Creative Best Practices Reveal ads are very difficult to pull off If not properly done, will result in little advertiser awareness. Vary pace and tone Don’t want commercial to turn into white noise. Monotone leads to habituation which leads to tune-out Write the way we talk Effective ads often feature broken sentences. Half sentences. Non-sequiturs. This is how we speak. Awkward wording and weird phrases capture attention. 5

Radio Creative Best Practices Recognize gender difference Men tend to respond to a rational approach, Women tend to relate to an emotional angle/messaging. Emotion, not facts engage Avoid voices made for radio They are easier to ignore- sound like all the other ads. Natural voices more effective. 6

Radio Creative Best Practices The power of effective silence –interstimulus interval- amount of time between two pieces of information Contrast with the constant sound on the radio Attention is driven by contrast. The deft use of silence compels an audience to listen more closely. Activates their reticular activator. Same with “whispering” which Target used effectively Crickets-Mind attempts to fill in the blanks when a cricket in the room. When their a hundreds it is soothing There's a reason why the saying is 'Silence is Golden’ Strive for a certain degree of edginess Otherwise can get lost in commercial pod. The old bromide, trying to please everyone, pleases no one applies. 7

Radio Creative Best Practices Humor Is not easy. If trying to be humorous makes sure it is really humorous. Humor can create word-of-mouth, but your target must find it funny. Start strong You have 3 seconds at the beginning of the commercial to grab their attention. End it strong. Strong finishes reinforce your messaging. 8

Radio Creative Best Practices Consider rotating more than one commercial but not more than several Not putting all of your eggs in one basket in case one commercial doesn’t resonate. IAG radio testing showed it is better to limit # of commercials in rotation. 9