Category Archives: On Radio

Information from BC Media on Radio Advertising.

Help Wanted The Sign For The Times

Help Wanted The Sign For The Times

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When people say “Those Were Good Times”, what do they really mean? Are they talking about themselves or as a nation or, bigger yet, the world! How can you or I know or recognize a sign of good times. I’m going to go out on a limb and proclaim Help Wanted The Sign For The Times. When you see a help wanted sign I believe you are looking at the product of “Good Times”.

I won’t bore you with the part you already know … business is good so more employees are needed … recruiters and candidates pour in … but what happens when you run out of qualified people for these new job positions? You advertise to the ones who aren’t necessarily looking for you.

Help Wanted The Sign For The Times

Think about how many Help Wanted signs have you seen lately. Just about everywhere, right? We are seeing it here at BC Media and Associates too. More and more companies are turning to us to advertise open job positions on the radio and daytime tv.

…weekly pay of $500 or more while you are training

But enough about us. Lets look at some other industries that are seeking to fill deficits in labor.

Transportation, Truck Drivers and Equipment Operators

Many agree the first industries to need increased employees are transportation, truck drivers and equipment operators. You could say they are the front line. These three industries are the horse to the spur of the economy. Increase in consumerism, increased need for products on shelves which leads to an increase in the need for Transportation professionals, truck drivers and equipment operators.

These are the men and women that get all the stuff you want to buy to all of the places you want to buy it from. In fact1 by 2045 the weight of goods moved by truck will increase to 2273 Million Tons or at a rate of 4% per year. According to the chart that equates to 8,185 Billion Dollars worth of cargo.

Chart Showing Domestic Mode of Exports and Imports by Tonnage and Value
The above chart shows the increase in transportation via truck between 2015 and 2045.

As A Result

As A Result trucking companies are looking for drivers. Many companies are even offering to pay for Truck Driver School AND employ you while you are going to school. Some well known companies are advertising weekly pay of $500 or more while you are training to be a truck driver. That’s not a bad salary to start.

It is clear to the trucking industry that they have a shortage of drivers and they are reacting. However that need extends to warehouse workers as well, forklift operators, order pickers, truck mechanics … the list goes on and on.
Are you starting to believe Help Wanted: The Sign For The Times yet?

The Medical Field Is An Oyster

If you have ever thought of a career in the medical field now is a great time. Earlier this year CNBC highlighted the top ten in demand jobs that don’t have enough applicants. Surprisingly, healthcare takes up a good portion of the list. Number 4, 6, 7, 8 and 9, all of which are higher on the list than a truck driver (Number 10). Respectively those medical jobs are Home Health Aide, Medical Service Manager, Nurse Practitioner, Personal Care Aide and Physical Therapist.

All great career options, some paying over 6 figures per year! For this reason you may be hearing advertisements on the radio for Nursing School and Nursing Assistants at all hours of the day. The reason is there is such an employment demand in the medical professions that the best way to reach potential nurses etc. is to advertise on the radio as well as offering employment bonuses.

Believe It Or Not … Call Center Employees

Believe It Or Not … Call Center Employees are in demand too. Especially phone sales positions and patient customer service reps. We have reports of call centers offering up to $20/hour and sign on bonuses for time on the job. Commonly known to as a “turn and burn” type of employment, even small call centers are stepping away from the old boiler room feeling and encouraging employees to grown with the company.

Again, we see the increase in business, coupled with an increase for skilled labor.

Skilled Construction Workers

An industry that has been labor starved for quite awhile are the skilled construction workers. Our inside sources say “It doesn’t matter what trade you choose, you’ll have more work than you can handle.” Over the past decades there has been a steady decline in skilled construction workers as computers and tech in general took over.

Luckily, with some help, trade schools and even high schools are reaching out to youngsters offering starting salaries upwards of $40,000 per year working in the construction industry. Apprenticeship and paid tuition are also included in some cases.

Some Key Components To Understand Hiring Advertising In 2019

hiring manager holding sign graphic
Primarily BC Media handles Radio and TV advertising on small, medium and mass scale. However, if you are a company or recruiter reading this, here are tips for success in advertising your hiring campaign.

1. Have a way for people to reach you online.
It’s 2018 now. Everyone has a smartphone and most likely they are going to want to use it or their computer to fill out preliminary information.
Granted this isn’t what most of the working world is accustomed to, but your potential employees are going to want to get some details before they get in their car to fill out an application.

2. Use your radio ad to direct traffic to your online application.
What if you, as a hiring manager, could pre-screen candidates using a simple online form containing a transparent pre-qualification information? Likewise, what if a candidate has the opportunity to quick information that makes them feel the job offer you have is not the right fit?

Think of the time that saves everyone. We make it easy to set up an online, mobile friendly, quick application when you choose to advertise you job opportunities with us.

3. Give every possible way for applicants to contact you.
When times are good some power shifts to the employee as it comes to the hiring process. People seeking employment from radio advertisements will be varied so offer any way for them to contact you that is convenient. Here’s the kicker to that … convenient for them.

Considering Help Wanted The Sign For The Times

As you know, the topic of using advertising mediums to recruit new employees is pretty vast so there is no way to cover it all here. However in subsequent blog posts we’ll revisit the topic. For now if you are a recruiter or hiring manager, let us know what is working to help you find quality candidates.

If you are seeking employment, let us know how you like to respond to employment opportunities.

Need Help Advertising For Job Openings?

BC Media and Associates can help lead applicants to your job openings using Radio, TV and Online methods. Use our in house web development team for landing pages and short application forms. Then use our radio and TV commercial time to drive your applicants to the landing pages. Contact us today, we’ll be happy to discuss details.

Resources:
Bureau Of Transportation Statistics Freight Facts & Figures

CNBC Article: 10 In Demand Jobs That Don’t Draw Enough Applicants

Which Is Better Radio Or Facebook For Small Business Advertising

Radio Or Facebook For Small Business Advertising?

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There is no doubt Facebook and social media in general has changed the way we live and do business. But lets take a realistic look at radio or Facebook for small business advertising. While Facebook advertising may seem less expensive, ROI might say otherwise. In this article we will take a common sense approach. Factors will be common small business owners trying to create Facebook ads themselves. On the flip side will be using a company, like BC Media and Associates, to create and run a radio ad.

Which Is Better Radio Or Facebook For Small Business Advertising?

Small Business in our definition is any business that generates $1 to $1 million per year. On the high side, some might consider that medium business. But for our purposes we’ll call that small.

Facebook First.

Why Facebook Isnt Best For Small Business AdvertisingThere are many aspects that are alluring when it comes to Facebook ads. You can start an advertising campaign for as little as $7! Wow! You can do it yourself which might “save the business money”. You can choose your target audience by their likes and dislikes. However when it comes down to brass tacks this is what most small business find out about Facebook. ———–>

Lack of real interaction is what they find. Maybe a few like your post. One or two like your page. But what most business owners are finding out is that Facebook advertising do not convert. Social Media advertising also take lots of work. Not only creating the ads themselves but monitoring and responding to them also. (That monitoring part is ALWAYS overlooked.) You see, the drawback is when you advertise on Social Media platforms people expect an immediate response. Most comments will “test you out” or “see if you would respond”. For small business owners this becomes a challenge. Often times resulting in dead conversation that just wastes time.

Now … about that $7 starting price tag. Lets explore that a bit more. For $7 on Facebook you will get seen by 500 – 700 people. That’s it. If you created an awesome ad you may get some engagement … but don’t expect much. Time for an monetary example. Given the numbers above lets say you want to reach 50,000 people.

So, 50,000 ÷ 700 = 71.42.

Then 71.42 x $7 = $499.94

From the math example it is clear. For about $500 you will be seen by approximately 50,000 people. BUT! That does not guarantee interaction or conversion.

What Do Others Say?

While we are discussing Radio or Facebook for Small Business Advertising, here are some interesting truths from around the web to back up this article. This article from chron.com states “Ispos and Reuters Newswire found that four in five Facebook users have never bought a product or service as a result of advertising on the site”. The article goes on to say “General Motors pulled its own ads … claiming advertising on the site [Facebook] was ineffective”.

Here is a nifty chart that from WordStream.com showing click through rate per industry via Facebook advertising. Lets take a look.

facebook ads average click through rate graphic

Depending on your industry you can see that using Facebook as a sole source of advertising will have a pretty low conversion rate overall. Additionally, the chart above has professional ads factored in. Ads that have gone through A/B testing to see which ones are more effective. Thus, keep in mind, “testing” Facebook ads is the same as running ads.

Are Radio Commercials Cheaper Than Facebook Ads?

As a small business owner one question that is 100% valid is “are radio commercials cheaper than Facebook ads?”. We think you might be surprised at the answer.

Low Maintenance

Radio ads aren’t just low maintenance … they are no maintenance. As the business owner, simply decide on a weekly budget and BC Media works within that budget to get you your desired listening times. However you do have options to participate in your radio ad. You can write the script. You can narrate the ad yourself. Or you can choose a “Do It For Me” approach and we will create the entire radio ad for you. Simple.

So now you know. With radio advertising you don’t have to monitor and respond, test and re-test like you do with Facebook. Small Business owners make a few key selections, approve the script and set the budget. BC Media will also provide tracking information on the calls or views to your landing pages. I’m sure you will agree, saving you time also saves you money, no doubt.

What About Cost Of Radio Advertising For Small Business?

Here is what will shock you. Small business owners asking “What about the cost of radio advertising for small business?”. “Is Radio Affordable?”. Or “I have a very limited budget, how can I afford radio advertising?”. As a basic response BC Media replies “$2 per 1000 listeners”.

So lets stack that figure for radio advertising against Facebook advertising.

Radio: $2 per 1000 impressions

Facebook: $14 per 1400 impressions (this is actually the writer being VERY generous. actuals are closer to 700-800 impressions depending on your ad.)

Given the information above, radio advertising has the potential to be far more effective. Radio is easier to implement than Facebook advertising and requires no maintenance or response monitoring like Facebook does. Dive deeper into the effectiveness with Radio Advertising in our article Facts on Radio Advertising Listener Base

The Focus Is Conversion

The focus is conversion with little effort on part of the small business owner. All aspect considered, Radio is by far the winner in this head to head battle. To quote Ron Popeil Radio has a “Set it and forget it” appeal that Social Media just can’t compete with. Radio advertising also pre-qualifies customers interested in your product or service. While on Social Media people can comment whatever they like, Radio requires them to honestly have a need. This pre-qualification eliminates wasted time on leads that are not truly ready for your product or service.

So What Is Your Take? Radio Or Facebook For Small Business Advertising?

Radio or Facebook for small business advertising? What will your choice be? While BC Media recommends you try both to gather your own results, resoundingly our findings are you will be happier with the ROI from Radio advertising. Contact us via email or phone for a free consultation on which option might be best for your business.