Your Marketing Mix in 2025

Your Marketing Mix in 2025

by | Jun 2, 2025 | ScLoHo's Collective Wisdom, ScLoHo's Media, ScLoHo's Web World, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo, WOWO Fort Wayne Radio Advertising with Scott Howard

A couple of headlines came into my inbox last month:

How To Offset Diminishing Returns On Social Media and New Study Shows How Radio Exposure Drives Social Media Advertising.

So let’s take a few minutes and talk about the marketing mix for your business in 2025.

A couple weeks ago I shared information from my Sound Advice newsletter and a story of how one of my radio clients was spending gobs of money on social media and a fraction of that amount on the radio but digging deeper, he should have been doing the opposite when we analyzed the results.

When you do more than one form of marketing and advertising, or use more than one platform or station, this is what we refer to as your marketing mix.

In case you were unaware of my background, I’ve worked full time in both the traditional radio world and also the digital world where I was the “Social Media Magician” for a multi-million dollar e-commerce company and none of the tech stuff is foreign to me.

The issue is that if you rely on something bright and shiny and quit the older media, you risk losing the momentum that you had with what you were doing previously.  The reality is that you can do both, but you need to understand how they can work together. If done properly it’s not just an adding effect, but a multiplying effect.

First let’s look at the problem some social media marketers are having:

Almost 8 in 10 performance marketers experience diminishing returns on social media, meaning that their return on ad spend (ROAS) declines as they spend more, according to a survey [pdf] from Taboola.

For almost one-third of those, diminishing returns set in before they’ve reached even half of their social media advertising spend, per the results.

The main culprits behind diminishing returns from social media advertising are perceived to be saturation in the target audience (66%) and user fatigue (59%). Rising costs – a key driver of concerns over paid social ROI – are also seen as a reason for diminishing returns by a significant portion of the respondents.

While many of the respondents in the survey are trying new and different forms of digital marketing, they are missing out on adding a method that can actually enhance hat they are doing.  But don’t just take my word for it, here’s a quote from the other article I mentioned:

Results of a study conducted by Critical Mass Insights find that radio listeners show a greater likelihood to click on social media ads for products or services they’ve heard advertised on radio.

The survey, conducted during March 2025 among 1,000 U.S. consumers, shows more than half (55%) of listeners say they’re more likely to click if they’ve already heard a radio ad… Overall, CMI finds, average listeners are twice as likely to click a link for a product they heard advertised on radio vs. one they haven’t.

The study also finds that 72% of consumers are more likely to notice social media advertising for a product after they’ve heard about it on the radio, while 7 in 10 say they’re more likely to read a social media ad for a product — and two-thirds more likely to try a new product — after hearing about it on the radio.

Consumers are inundated with advertising every day, on every platform, and they’re increasingly navigating an environment that includes fake AI-generated content, so it’s no surprise that first hearing about a product in the trusted, familiar environment of broadcast radio increases the legitimacy of the advertiser and the product in their minds.

The power of radio goes beyond just consumers’ behavior when it comes to social media ads, as 8 in 10 respondents say they trust broadcast radio hosts to recommend products and services to them, 44% say they’re more likely to buy a product they see in the grocery store if they heard about it on the radio first, and 49% say they’re more likely to visit a fast-food restaurant after hearing it advertised on radio.

This research highlights how radio can help brands cut through today’s advertising clutter and make them more top-of-mind — not just in that moment when listeners hear an ad, but later, when they come across a product in a store, in a digital ad, or while driving down the highway. Hearing about a brand in a high-attention environment, like radio, changes how they respond to that brand in a more crowded environment..

Before you jump in by yourself to figure out how to expand your marketing mix, it’s important to understand the role each form of media has in taking consumers thru the journey from strangers to customers.  That’s where I can help.  Contact me.

 

Can You Pass the ScLoHo Sniff Test?

Can You Pass the ScLoHo Sniff Test?

by | Apr 21, 2025 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo, WOWO Fort Wayne Radio Advertising with Scott Howard

41 is the current number.  What does that mean?

41 is the current number of WOWO advertisers that I have spent money with in the dozen years I have been at WOWO radio or before at other stations I’ve worked at in Fort Wayne the past 23 years.

Close to 30 of those 41 businesses I work with personally.

I titled this article, Can You Pass The ScLoHo Sniff Test? because of a couple of things.

First off, like my radio station listeners, I’m an adult consumer who has needs and buys stuff to take care of those needs.

Like many of our listeners, I decided to check out the local businesses I heard on WOWO radio when I was looking to spend money.

Current products or services that we spend money on that are connected this way include my dentist, HVAC system, car purchase and repairs, carpet cleaning, nutritional products, bedding, bathroom remodeling, financial planning, funeral stuff, food, gas stations, and charity giving to name a few of the 40 plus.

Because of the way I go about the process of helping businesses become advertisers, I get to know what makes them tick and I gain insight into the behind the scenes stuff of their business.  I want to know their “Why” they do what they do, not just because I want them to spend money with me.

Actually that brings me to the second part.

Not all business people I meet pass my sniff test.  Every once in awhile I find businesses that are not as honest and ethical as I think they should be.  As a result, I don’t put them on the radio.

I only want to work with businesses that I feel good about doing business with and/or referring to family and friends. That’s the ScLoHo Sniff Test.

I’m planning on an ongoing, long term business relationship with the business people I work with and I want them to have similar values that I have, to be honest and trustworthy.

There have been a couple of times that I “fired” a client.  One was a mortgage company that I discovered was taking advantage of the no-doc rules that led to the 2008 banking crisis.  I overheard a conversation of one of his agents gathering information over the phone to process a loan and the agent said out loud, regarding the persons income, “we’re going to bump that up so you can qualify for a bigger loan.”  Red Flag.

I asked the owner of the mortgage company about what I heard and he said, “yes, that’s what everyone does.”.  His contract with my radio station was up at the end of the month and I did not renew him.

What about you and your business?  Do you think you can pass my test?  Let’s connect and find out.

 

Fast Class On Buying Advertising

Fast Class On Buying Advertising

by | Apr 14, 2025 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo, WOWO Fort Wayne Radio Advertising with Scott Howard

A few weeks ago I had 10 minutes to give a complete presentation to a couple dozen business leaders.

After about 3 minutes of sharing who I was and my background, I jumped into the subject of advertising.

Not to promote what I do, but just to give them a quick framework on what THEY should do when considering buying advertising.

Here’s what I shared:

First step is KNOW YOUR BUSINESS:

WHO are your ideal Customers and WHY?

WHAT Characteristics of YOUR Business makes your customers your FANS?

There’s also financial numbers that you should know about YOUR business.

You have to take the time to actually stop, think and write this stuff down.

Second step is KNOW THE AUDIENCE of the Advertising Medium that is offering to sell you advertising:

WHO are their readers/viewers/listeners?

WHAT Characteristics of their readers/viewers/listeners is a match for your organization’s ideal customers/clients?

I know that there are some people who will try and get you to buy advertising from them that just doesn’t make sense because you are not a good match for each other.

Third step is YOUR WHY:

  • WHY are you looking at spending money?
  • WHAT are the results you want to achieve?
  • WHEN… what’s the timeline for achieving those results?

It’s extremely important for both you and them to be in agreement of this.

Fourth step is a realistic plan involving:

Messaging

Matching expectations with budget

Fulfillment

Growth steps

I know, this is a lot more involved than creating an ad, but unless you really, really take the time to consider all of this you could blow a bunch of money.

And even though it might go without saying, I said it anyway in my presentation… The Trust factor:

TRUST is the key to all of this:

Think like a real person, a potential customer.

People will not buy from people or companies they DON’T Trust.

EVERYTHING You and Your People say, do and deliver has to be Honest and Truthful.

That includes your Advertising and Marketing Messages.

If you would like my help going through these steps with your business, contact me.

Make It Personal

Make It Personal

by | Mar 17, 2025 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, Really? The Personal ScLoHo, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo

One of the best marketing tips I can give you is the title of this article and podcast episode: Make it Personal.

Despite all the new tech and capabilities of AI generated stuff, it’s people you need to connect with.

This is my anniversary week. Kathy and I met 25 years ago and married on St. Pat’s Day a year later.

I’ve never had an ongoing daily relationship with anyone for 25 years.  Sure, my kids who are now 40 or close to it, I’ve know longer but they are all over this country with their own families and so it’s a bit different since they are under their own roofs, different from Kathy and I who share a roof and whole house for 2 and a half decades.

My challenge to you is to make sure your advertisements and marketing messaging is as one-on-one personal as your best human relationship connection.

Think about the characteristics that sustain that relationship.

How can you mimic that and avoid “ad-speak” in your marketing?

Earlier this month I touched on this as part of a presentation I made to local business people and I’ll share in more detail what I shared with them in an upcoming article and podcast episode.  In the meantime, take a fresh listen and look at how you and your business present themselves and make a list of both the good and bad as it pertains to Making It Personal.

 

The 2025 Fort Wayne Radio Rating Update

The 2025 Fort Wayne Radio Rating Update

by | Mar 3, 2025 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, ScLoHo's Media, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo, WOWO Fort Wayne Radio Advertising with Scott Howard

As a follow up on last weeks article and podcast episode, Today I’m going to share information regarding the last ratings data we have for the Fort Wayne, Indiana market pertaining to radio station listenership. This data was collected last Fall and is the most recent information we have until an update is released later this year.  Radio stations and ad agencies pay Nielsen for the data and I’m limited in what I can share publicly but my goal is to give you some insight that will either confirm your perceptions or blow them out of the water.

I have to bounce around a couple different survey data sets but all of this is specifically about radio listenership in Fort Wayne.

Using the Total Survey Area which includes 19 counties in Northeast Indiana and Northwest Ohio, I see there are a little over 900,000 people ages 12 and older living here. Over a third of them live in Allen County which includes Fort Wayne.  When I eliminate the 12 to 17 year olds, we have almost 570,000 adults in our area.

70% listen to a local radio station every week.

Less than 20% listen to satellite radio like Cirrus XM.

Only 61% are watching one of the traditional broadcast TV channels of ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox networks.

Less than 20% are subscribing to our local daily newspaper.

This tells us that local radio stations still have the largest overall audience of readers, viewers and listeners compared to other local media options.

Also the perception that everyone listens to satellite radio is far from true.

Which Fort Wayne radio stations have the most listeners?

In the last rating period , just one WMEE had over 100,000 weekly listeners age 12 and older.

WMEE is owned by Federated Media, where I work.  Other Federated Media stations were in the top ten in this classification include News Talk WOWO, Country Station K105, Rock Station 989 The Bear.  The other 6 stations with the most weekly listeners age 12 and older include WBCL, WAJI, WJFX, WLDE, WXKE and WBTU.

29 stations made the entire survey.

From a business perspective, using the broad age range of 12 years old and older doesn’t make sense because teenagers are not spending much money compared to adults.

And to really take an honest look at who spends money, we should also leave out the young adults in their 20’s maybe up to age 35 or 40.  It’s not that those age demographics don’t have money, but most of it is already spoken for with college debts, rent, car payments and credit card debt eating up most of those paychecks.

Realistically, it’s when we are in our 30’s that our families are growing both in number and expenses.  However by the time adults reach around 40 they begin to have some breathing room or at least figured out how to deal with their finances on a more grown-up level.

That’s why when I talk to business owners I use the term “grown-ups” as their customers.  These are people age 35 and older.  Sometimes business owners are targeting grown-ups age 45 and older because that’s who will spend money more freely instead of the younger folks.

I give you all of that just to set you up for what I’ve been doing for years when it comes to rating data for the purposes of advertising and that is to look at the age demographics of each radio station that matches who will buy what a business is selling.

That starts with age 35+.  My station, WOWO has the most weekly listeners in that age group.

Another important number that I look at from the ratings is how much time do listeners spend listening to their favorite stations?  It’s called Time Spent Listening, or TSL and again WOWO dominates over all the other local radio stations.

From a business perspective this means  there is an increased likelihood that a WOWO listener will hear your ad compared to listeners of any other radio station.

Nielsen has a cool tool in their dashboard where I can plug in a sample schedule on WOWO of let’s say 15 ads per week and it will tell me that on other stations I need  at least 30 ads up to 45 ads to reach the same number of people, the same number of times.

Talk to me about this specifically for your business and I can run reports for you too.

While all this is good news for the people I talk with about inviting WOWO listeners to become your customers, it’s just reassurance data.

Coming up in a couple of weeks, I’ll share my simple  formula on how to buy advertising that doesn’t involve ratings or anything other than common sense and show you how you can use it to be smarter than most advertising sales people.