Why buy radio space? Surely a picture says a thousand words? Surely every picture tells a story? Well those clichés are true but the auditory channel into the mind of your customers is one of three channels probably even more effective than the visual channel alone. Of course when you buy radio space your focusing on the auditory channel but words and music create pictures in the mind as well as evoking emotion (the third mind channel). Look at the following story and be aware that it is visually guided thinking but also hear your inner voice.

A young woman purchases her dream car, a new BMW convertible, and is having trouble tuning her radio to the station she wanted. She returned to the BMW dealership and confronted the salesman, complaining about the radio. “Miss,” the salesperson said, “this is a very sophisticated radio.
There is no requirement to use the buttons or dials. You merely give voice commands for whatever type of program you desire.”

So after she received her instructions, she headed out on the road. “Country Music,” she said, and instantly Garth Brooks was singing away on a country station. After a while she said, “Oldies,” and instantly she heard Fats Domino singing “Blueberry Hill.”

A few minutes later, a woman in a new Cadillac cut her off in traffic. “Stupid, inconsiderate bitch!” she yelled. The radio paused for a second, and then she heard, “Hello again and welcome back to the program. This is Sara Cox.”

The market for radio space is changing channels too. “Bid4Spots”, a competitor to Google Audio Ads, announced plans to launch an auction for advertisers to buy radio space as remnant radio adverts in the U.K. this autumn. The company, which has been selling radio adverts in the United States for two years, expanded into online radio adverts in November.

The company holds weekly auctions for media companies and even advertisers themselves to buy into unsold airtime slots on more than 2,300 radio stations across America. It uses a “reverse auction” format, where advertisers set a maximum CPM bid they are willing to pay, and the media owners compete for advertiser money, bidding down the price of available airtime stock until an advertiser accepts their bid.
A similar model will be used in the U.K. marketplace. The reverse auction model works for commercial radio stations, since any space not sold by the end of the week before it airs would otherwise go unsold. The stations can decrease the cost of advertising space at their own pace, and can end the auction at will, so regular advertisers are less tempted to bypass regular contracts to see if they can get a better deal on auctioned airtime. It also keeps the final terms of the remnant sale confidential. So now when you buy radio space advertisers are able to pick up radio spots at a discount, and not commit to long-term media buys. They can also maintain a level of control over audience quality. The channels they are a-changing.