3 Steps to Creating Your Own Radio Ad

Creating a radio ad is getting simpler and simpler. There are 3 basic steps involved.

STEP 1: GET A SCRIPT First, you need to figure out what goes in the script. You need to figure out - what is the one message that you want customers to remember from your radio ad? Bear in mind that people listening to the radio ad are often driving or cleaning the house or doing something else while they're listening to the radio. It is not a captive audience. So you need something that someone can easily remember. Don't be tempted to put too many facts and benefits of your product into your radio script. The simpler the better. What is the ONE thing you want to say about your product? Is it that there's a half price sale on? Is it that you have great service? It can't be both.

Once you've figured out what that one thing is, you need to dramatise it in the most memorable and interesting way possible. Think of all the drivel you hear on the radio. Your ad will be nestled in between a bunch of those other ads. You need to make your ad stand out from the crowd.

It has to be punchy, entertaining and creative. Don't bother with the long phone numbers. If you have a web address you'd like people to go to, make it easy to remember and to spell.

If you'd like your ad to really stand out from the crowd, it's best to source a professional copywriter to write your script. You can do this buy googling "copywriter" or checking out Linked-In or Elance. Make sure when you brief them, to explain to them the ONE thing you want people to know about your product.

STEP 2: PRODUCE YOUR SCRIPT Once you've got your script finalised, there are a few options available to you. You can contact a sound studio directly to produce your script. Their rates tend to be between €150 and €250 per hour. A 30 second radio ad shouldn't take more than an hour to produce. They can advise you on which voiceovers to use, and they'll sort it all our for you. Voiceover rates are between €140 - €500 depending on which stations your ad is airing on.

If you like to be more hands-on, you can also manage the process yourself. You can source your own voiceovers online. Many voiceover sites will send you free samples of your script in advance, so you know what you're getting. Once you've chosen a voiceover, you can then approach a sound studio with your script and chosen voiceover/s. If you are on a very tight budget, some voiceovers have home studios, in which case they could produce the ad for you. However, the production values will not always be as good as the sound studios. Remember, they're trained voiceovers, not trained sound engineers.

Another option is to get the radio station that you are airing your ad on to produce it for you. They will often do this at a reasonable price, since they are making money off selling you ad space. It's still best to source your own voiceover, since the radio stations tend to use their own DJs or hire from the same pool of voiceovers... in other words, your ad won't stand out on air, it will sound like all the others.

STEP 3: GO TO AIR If you've already got media space booked, that's great. You or the sound studio can simply email the final mp3 file to the station.

If you haven't, you need to figure out what station to use. You don't always need to go for the big breakfast slot on the massive national radio station. Sometimes your money will go further on a selection of smaller radio stations. Each slot on the radio station has a different audience, so be careful where you book. For example, if you are targeting house wives, there's no need to buy the expensive "drive time" slots, because if you wait an hour or two, you can still reach the same housewives, but at cheaper rates. Ask the radio station to provide you with information regarding each of their shows and who listens to them. Then you're able to make a more informed decision.

Relatively speaking, the production of the radio ad is very cheap in comparison to the cost of the media space. That's why you need to stand out on air. What's the point in spending so much money on media space - and then nobody listens or cares about your ad?