• Get involved.
    We want your input!
    Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.

    After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
    If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.

    After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
    https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/

    Thanks in advance and have fun!
    RadioDiscussions Administrators

Personality Endorsements (Especially on WSB)

R

RoddyFreeman

Having spent my career in advertising, I've found endorsements by radio personalities to be very effective. But until fairly recently, stations limited their jocks to around 3 endorsements at a time to establish some credibility. And no more than 1 personality endorsed a specific product.

Those limitations seem to have gone out the door in recent years, especially on WSB. Several on WSB's air staff are endorsing Breda Pest Control. When I hear the spots, I don't perceive them as endorsements; they come across as the personalities reading copy they were given. That would not be my impression if only 1 personality were doing them.

The number of products a single personality is endorsing also makes it sound like they're reading commercials and not sincerely talking about their fondness for the brand. Scott Slade (even more so when he did a shift), Mark Arum and Chris Chandler seem to be endorsing everything in sight. And I respect all 3 of these gentlemen for their on-air talent and professionalism, and consider them to be 3 of the best. And let's add Dave Baker to that list.

I suppose this is a result of the decline in radio billings, and that stations justify it from that standpoint.

Does anyone have thoughts on this?
 
RoddyFreeman said:
Does anyone have thoughts on this?
Click to expand...

My view is a host read is not an endorsement. Unless the host says "I use this product" or "I recommend this product," it's just a standard host read. In our world, they are billed differently. It's really a question for the advertiser: Are they comfortable knowing they're buying something and paying extra for something that isn't exclusive?
 
TheBigA said:
My view is a host read is not an endorsement. Unless the host says "I use this product" or "I recommend this product," it's just a standard host read. In our world, they are billed differently. It's really a question for the advertiser: Are they comfortable knowing they're buying something and paying extra for something that isn't exclusive?
Click to expand...

I agree with you that a host read on its own is not an endorsement. But when the personality starts by saying, “This is (name),” then it is an endorsement.

And yes, it’s ultimately up to the advertiser. But the station sets the stage regarding the perceived trustworthiness and thus value of its endorsements.
 
WSB obviously has a big, long-time deal with Kroger. I've never heard another grocer advertise on the station.

The ads that drive me nuts are the life insurance agents masquerading as financial advisors so they can hawk pricey annuities with fat commissions. One of them has a brokered program on the weekends. Obviously Wisbee gets a lot of money from them. WDUN has a different one--same model with a brokered program.

The other one is the replacement-window ad with the jingle sung by a woman with bad vocal fry.
 
Neal Boortz was endorsing Vision Computers even after he left WSB--until he popped up on WFOM. Now Erick Erickson endorses them. They have a good product, albeit more expensive than what you get from Costco, but you do get what you pay for.

Both of them talk(ed) about how they use their products, as a full-throated endorsement.
 
RoddyFreeman said:
But the station sets the stage regarding the perceived trustworthiness and thus value of its endorsements.
Click to expand...

This is primarily a talk radio thing, though, isn't it? How many endorsements do you hear from Bert Weiss We know talk radio audiences are older and require more prodding to buy things. The produced spot with a generic happy voice won't have any impact on the listener. Seems to me there was a point when most of Limbaugh's ads were host endorsements.
 
TheBigA said:
This is primarily a talk radio thing, though, isn't it? How many endorsements do you hear from Bert Weiss We know talk radio audiences are older and require more prodding to buy things. The produced spot with a generic happy voice won't have any impact on the listener. Seems to me there was a point when most of Limbaugh's ads were host endorsements.
Click to expand...
You’re probably right that Talk radio airs more endorsements, but music stations carry their share of them. For example, on The Bull, Angie Ward, Otis, Kristen Gates and even (the syndicated) Bobby Bones do a good number of endorsements.
 


Back
Top Bottom