Local radio came to Tampa Bay on May 31, 1922, when WDAE signed-on. The station was owned by three-time Tampa mayor and publisher of the Tampa Daily Times newspaper, D.B. McKay.
The station broadcast from the sixth floor of the Citrus Exchange Building at the corner of Zack and Tampa Street. The building would later become the downton location of the Maas Brothers department store.
Early programming on WDAE consisted of phonograph music as well as baseball scores. The station had also been licensed by The U.S. Department of Agriculture to broadcast weather reports and bulletins.
In remarks celebrating WDAE's inaugural broadcast, Tampa Mayor Charles H. Brown said radio was "the wonder of the age that the human voice can be sent throughout the country."
For almost 100 years, small business owners have depended on local radio stations to successfully market their goods and services through depressions, recessions, wars, and natural disasters. Even now, during a pandemic, advertising on Tampa radio remains a dependable way to make cash registers ring.
Here are five facts every Tampa Bay small business owner needs to know about local radio in 2020.
Each week, according to Nielsen, more local consumers tune-in to local radio than watch Tampa television, connect to cable-TV, read the newspaper, browse social media, or listen to streaming audio sites like Facebook and Instagram.
The millennial generation now accounts for over 30% of every retail dollar spent in Tampa Bay. This generation was the first to inject online and digital options into their daily media usage. Local radio still reaches more members of this age group than all other advertising options available to Tampa small business owners.
The onset of the Coronavirus pandemic has created significant changes in the media, work, mobility, commuting, shopping, and lifestyle habits of local consumers. Something that has not changed, though, is the length of time adults spend listening to Tampa radio every day.
There are 716,000 adults in the Tampa Bay area who have earned a four-year college or postgraduate degree, according to research from Nielsen. A study from the Federal Reserve indicates that these educated consumers have been least affected by the economic consequences of the pandemic, and they have money to spend now.
Tampa Bay shoppers are expected to spend a record $8.1 billion online in 2020, based on the most recent projections from eMarketer. This would represent year-over-year growth of 32.4%.
During the same period, according to eMarketer, receipts at brick-and-mortar stores have contracted by 3.2%. Overall, excluding gas and auto sales, e-commerce will account for 20.6% of all retail sales this year.
By any measure, the best way to reach local online consumers is by advertising on Tampa radio.
Last week, for instance, local radio reached significantly more online shoppers than all other local media including, Tampa TV, cable, newspaper, or social media.