Over the next 12 month, Tampa Bay consumers will spend $54 billion on retail products.

Small business owners who want to compete for a share of this cash will need to advertise. As Professor Jef Richards at Michigan State University points out, “Advertising is totally unnecessary…unless you want to make money.”

Bottom line: Tampa consumers will only buy from retailers they know about.

There are many ways small business owners to advertise. This includes local television, newspapers, or streaming media platforms like Pandora and Spotify.

But regardless of what product a retailer sells, advertising on Tampa radio the best option. Radio reaches significantly more consumers in every major retail category than all of the other media choices.

The number one job of a radio commercial is  not  to sell products for the sponsoring Tampa Bay small business owner. 

The number one job is not to build store traffic or to create top of mind of awareness.

The number one job of a radio commercial is not to build brand or deliver ROI.

The number one job of every commercial on Tampa radio is to be heard. Period. When a commercial is heard, then all the rest will follow. But being heard is not easy.

At the exact second a radio commercial begins, 11,000,000 other pieces of information are all wrestling for the listener's attention.  Sadly, a consumer's brain is only capable of dealing with about 50 bits of that information at a time.

If you are a local business owner who would like to secure a larger share of the $54.1 billion Tampa Bay radio listeners will spend this year, then what you say first in your commercial is crucial to winning the battle for a consumer's ear.

If you don't have time to read this entire article, then I will tell you right now. The best way for any Tampa Bay small business owner to advertise is on Tampa radio.

A key function of advertising is to build mental availability, which nudges a consumer toward the purchase of a product or service. It also serves to provide public notice that a product or service exists and is available for purchase.

Consumers in the Tampa Bay area are expected to spend at least $54 billion at retail this year. To claim a greater share of this giant pool of cash requires local business owners of every size to advertise their goods and services. As Professor Jef Richards at Michigan State University points out, “Advertising is totally unnecessary…unless you want to make money."

The bottom line: It is difficult for anyone in Tampa Bay to purchase a product or service from a local business owner if they aren’t aware of it.

There are many ways for local area small business owners to advertise. Options include local newspapers, local magazines, local television, and online. But to achieve the “3-Rs” of advertising success, Reach, Recall, and Return, no other medium delivers results as effectively and efficiently as advertising on Tampa Radio.

There are 252 Metro by T-Mobile stores in the Tampa Bay area. As Manager of Field Marketing for the wireless company, Audra Wolf is responsible for bringing customers into every single location.

"It's all about driving in-store foot traffic," says Ms. Wolf. "Every dime we spend is about getting people through the door and have them make a purchase. We have been very happy with the return-on-investment (ROI) we receive from our promotions on Tampa radio stations.

"We have a number of ways we track sales," she adds, "so we know our radio plan is working for us."

Of all the advertising options available to Tampa Bay small business owners, streaming audio services like Pandora and Spotify are the least effective.  Here's why.

According to Nielsen, after the content of a commercial is considered, the element of an advertising campaign that drives sales the most is reach. In other words, making sure the most people possible are exposed to the advertiser's message is crucial.

When it comes to achieving reach among consumers, Pandora and Spotify rank dead last.  Advertising on Tampa radio stations, actually, can reach 266% more consumers than these two streaming-audio platforms combined.

It's time to set some misguided Tampa Bay small business owners straight.  When we say everybody listens to Tampa radio stations, we mean everybody.  Generations X, Y, and Z. Baby boomers, and, yes, the millennial generation.

You know...millennials. Those are the "kids" who came of age at the turn of the millennium (which is, debatably, either 2000 or 2001).  This means 18-34 year olds. 

In the Tampa Bay metro area (Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, and Hernando counties), 904,100  millennials make-up 35.6% of the adult population and will deliver $16.7 billion to local cash registers.

But here's the thing about millennials that many Tampa Bay small business owners get wrong: millennials listen to the radio.  Almost all of them. 90.4% of them to be exact.

In May 2008, Susan and Jose Moreno opened Moreno's Bakery with three employees in a 2500 square foot storefront in Brandon.

"We were lucky to do $100 in sales per day back then," says Ms. Moreno. "Eleven years later, we now serve 600-1000 customer per day and have 50 employees."

Ms. Moreno cites her husbands baking skills and her advertising instincts for the success of their Tampa Bay small business. Ms. Moreno further credits a mix of cable TV advertising and commercials on Tampa radio stations with Moreno's Bakery's incredible growth trajectory.

You've done the research. You now know that by every measure, radio advertising is the most effective way for your Tampa Bay small business to market its goods and services.

You have learned, for instance, 2,193,604 consumers regularly tune-in to their favorite Tampa radio stations.  That's more than 90% of all adults.

You've also learned that, on average, adults spend almost two hours per day listening to Tampa radio.

If you dug deep enough, then you know radio advertising delivers, on average, a $10 lift in sales for every $1 invested. This is a remarkable ROI for any Tampa Bay small business owner.

What you may not have figured out, however, is what is the best time of day to advertise on Tampa radio?

"I didn't think radio advertising would work. I was not a believer," says David Perritt, Regional Operations Manager of Lakewood National Golf Club in Lakewood Ranch, Florida.

Mr. Perritt's opinion changed after he experimented with advertising on Tampa radio stations when the club first opened in January 2017.

"I have been extremely pleased with the results," he says. "The data shows just how successful radio has been working for us."

It's a fact. Unless a consumer remembers your business when it comes time to buy, then it is likely they will purchase from someone else. Staying top of mind, therefore, is critical for every Tampa small business owner who wants to grab a share of the area's $54-billion retail market.

Advertising on Tampa radio provides local business owners with the most affordable way to move to the top of customers' minds. But, before discussing how to get remembered, we must understand why consumers forget.

Every second, Tampa Bay consumers are exposed to 11,000,000 pieces of data. A consumer's brain, however, is only capable of dealing with about 50 pieces of this data at a time. So, if my calculus is correct, a consumer forgets approximately 10,999,950 things every second.