Every week, according to Nielsen, Tampa Bay radio reaches 2.2 million adult consumers. This is significantly more people than are reached by local TV, cable, social media, streaming video, streaming audio, or newspapers.

Because of its humongous reach, area small business owners advertise on Tampa Bay radio to successfully market the products and services they sell.

Many first-time advertisers on Tampa Bay radio will ask how many times a consumer needs to hear a commercial before they become a customer.  Often the business owner is told that to be effective, a consumer needs to be exposed to a message three times before they will buy.  Unfortunately, this prescription for a three-time frequency is more myth than substance.

A study by Nielsen provides some data-based insights about effective frequency, But first, here's the origin of the mythological rule of three.

Tampa Bay consumers will spend $54.1 billion on goods and services over the next year. To claim a significant portion of those expenditures, small business owners need to be at the top of customers' minds when it comes time to buy.

Since 1922, when WDAE became the first radio station in Tampa, thousands of business owners knew, intuitively, that advertising on the medium was a potent way to be remembered when a purchase was imminent. 

Now there is proof that radio advertising creates the brand awareness necessary to drive sales.

Everybody in Tampa Bay used to watch TV. Commercials and all. But, as media options proliferate, viewers are fleeing. This is not good news for television advertisers.

Last week, for instance, according to Nielsen, only 79% of Tampa Bay consumers watched broadcast television. To put this in perspective, 90% tuned-in to their favorite Tampa radio stations.

Compared to two years ago, according to Nielsen, the C3 rating for CBS, NBC, ABC, and Fox have plummeted by 27%, especially among 18-49 viewers.

The ten most memorable brands in America have something in common. They each advertise on Tampa radio stations.

According to the YouGov Brand Index, the brands whose commercials generate the highest awareness are Geico, McDonald's, Verizon, AT&T, Walmart, Subway, Direct TV, T-Mobile, Progressive, and Walgreen’s.

If you were one of the 2,193,604 people who tuned into a Tampa Bay radio station last week, then chances are you heard the ads for these brands. All ten are among the biggest users of radio advertising.

Here's what Tampa Bay business owners need to know about creating a memorable brand for their own companies using Tampa radio stations.

There are many ways for Tampa Bay 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.

"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. Choosing the right Tampa radio stations was crucial."

In 1922, WDAE in signed on as the first radio station in Tampa Bay. Since then, local business owners have depended on radio advertising to successfully market their goods and services.

Using any advertising metric, despite the inundation of new media options, radio remains the most potent way to fulfill the marketing objectives of Tampa Bay business owners of every size.

In the age of all things digital, is advertising on Tampa radio still effective? Meet 5 local small business owners who say, YES!

Jon Polizzi has owned Electric Today, LLC in Tampa with his dad and brother since 2004. The company provides residential electrical and air conditioning repairs to customers in Hillsborough, Pinellas, and Manatee counties.

In late 2017, Electric Today began advertising on Tampa Bay radio. The results have been spectacular.

"Last year," says Mr. Polizzi, "our business grew 67%.  The only thing we did differently was to add radio advertising into our marketing mix. I attribute most of our growth to what we have done on the radio."