In uncertain times, it’s important to have a solid advertising plan in place going into 2014.  If you’re still trying to figure out where radio fits in, or how big of a role it should have, you’ll find this story very telling.

Alice Cooper was struggling early on in his band’s career in the early 70’s. In an interview from The Metal Evolution series, Cooper’s then-producer Bob Ezrin said, “The Alice Cooper Band owe their career to radio. It was actually Disc Jockey Rosalie Trombley at CKLW of the big eight, in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, on the other side of the river from Detroit, who first played them.”

According to Cooper himself, Trombley’s son played their song “I’m Eighteen” from their 1971 album “Love It to Death” on the air. The station had such a strong signal, that it covered Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Indiana, and Illinois in addition to southwestern Ontario.  Cooper soon found that if you had a hit on CKLW, you had a national hit on your hands.

By this one disc jockey’s decision to take a chance on an unknown band, the wheels were set in motion for one of rock music’s most tenured and successful careers.

Radio is an incredible powerful vehicle to help your message reach potential customers. Is it the only way to reach potential customers?  No. Is it an extremely valuable asset when utilized properly?  Most definitely.

A brand might be advertising on broadcast television, on all-new episodes of hit network shows.  This provides tremendous reach, but only up to a point.  Radio can expand that reach with its 92% nationwide market penetration overlapping and expanding TV’s universe.

This is just one of example of how to properly implement a radio advertising campaign. If you’re interested in making radio one of the cornerstones of your 2014 advertising plans, please contact us.

Greg McGlone is a Media Buyer at The Radio Agency. Please follow The Radio Agency’s Blog “Sounding Board” by subscribing to the email or RSS links above. Visit our website TheRadioAgency.com