Radio advertising rates in South Africa

Byline: Unathi Nkanjeni

Radio advertising might be seen as old-fashioned especially with the rise of the Internet and other types of media and that their audience has decreased.

However, used right, as with cinema advertising, radio advertising can reach a captive audience with a targeted communication - and in South Africa, it's an excellent choice of medium as the number of people in our country depend on it for their news and entertainment.

Whilst not cheap (unless you intend advertising on community radio stations), radio has long been a favoured advertising medium in our country. The challenge facing advertisers is not so much whether to use radio or not, but rather which radio stations.

With endless stations to choose from - ranging from the more well-known and established stations to the lesser known stations - the inexperienced marketer can have a tough time deciding.

The more well-known and established stations includes the likes of Kaya FM, 5FM, Metro FM, 702, Cape Talk, Ukhozi FM, YFM, Classic FM, Radio2000, SAFM, East Coast Radio, Jacaranda FM.

These above-mentioned stations give you better radio advertising options within your industry to help you reach your targeted audience, and you are guaranteed to reach your intended target market.

Fortunately, there are independent media agencies out there who are able to scrutinize advertising rates and packages and recommend those best suited to your needs.

By appointing an on-the-ball advertising agency or media planning and buying a facility to handle your radio advertising campaign, you can achieve great things, and their services don’t have to cost you a cent extra. 

In fact, if you’ve never advertised on radio before, they could negotiate you a first time radio advertising discount. Food for thought, especially for small or medium-sized businesses who have never advertised on television before and are perhaps frightened by the costs of doing so.

Then, how to advertise on radio? Options are endless and include buying of 15, 20 or 30-second spots as sponsorships, through which you could sponsor a traffic report or news bulletin.

For example, sponsor a popular radio show or negotiate to have your product or service weaved into the storyline of a locally-produced show like The Bridge (Metro FM).

“Live reads” where your radio script is read out. One of the upsides of a live read is that you save on the costs of producing a radio commercial whilst another is that the commercial comes across as being endorsed by the radio station. The downside? Live reads cost more than produced spots.

How much is it to advertise on radio? – Advertising rates differ. Without given more clarity, it’s a difficult question to answer – and is dependent on a number of factors, such as the duration of the commercial, the channel it needs to be placed on, the desired time slot etc.

For example, a  30-second radio advert during morning drive time (06h00-09h00) can cost nothing less as than R17 300 excluding VAT on a well-known radio station with a large audience such as 702 (89 thousand).

If the majority of a radio station’s audience falls outside the 25-42 age range, you can expect the cost per thousand (CPM) rate to be on the lower side. Talk radio and old music formats tend to attract an older audience in general. However, if a station has a predominantly male audience between 18-35, you should expect rates to be higher.

If a station attracts a wealthy audience or well-educated and economically active audience, a jazz or classical station, for example, you should also expect to pay a higher CPM rate. 

Factors that affect radio ad cost

Many different factors come into play when stations are deciding how much to charge for their ad spots. The major influences on radio advertising costs are:

How many people will be listening – The more people that tune into the station and will hear your commercial, the more you can expect to pay.

The demographics of the station’s listeners – Some target groups are more popular among advertisers than others. For example, expect to pay more for adults ages 25-54.

How much competition there is from other advertisers – If a lot of different businesses are looking to run ads at the same time, the station can drive up prices. This could occur, for example, during the holiday season when many retail stores are advertising sales.

How well you negotiate – The station will send you over a pricing proposal, but this is not necessarily the final price. You should be able to negotiate down 20-40% depending on your negotiation skills and the terms of your contract.

Radio stations can boot your advertisement if a higher bidder comes along. Therefore, if there’s a popular event happening in town, like a highly contested political election, price for an ad spot will jump. You will have to match these new rates or else your spot will be given up to someone who is willing to pay more than you.     

     

A similar situation can occur during the holiday season when major retail stores are competing to advertise their holiday sale on the radio.