{"id":42,"date":"2018-01-03T19:20:35","date_gmt":"2018-01-03T19:20:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/courses.dc.edu\/mediawritingonline\/?page_id=42"},"modified":"2024-10-08T12:15:13","modified_gmt":"2024-10-08T12:15:13","slug":"week7-3","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/courses.dc.edu\/mediawritingonline\/week7-3\/","title":{"rendered":"Week 7: Writing Radio and TV Copy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Writing Radio Copy<\/span><\/h2>\n

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Radio commercials connect to audiences on a personal level. But how do radio commercials grab our attention? By using the\u00a0 A.I.D.A formula: “Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action.”<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n
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A.I.D.A Formula<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

First we have the ‘Attention’<\/i> segment. Here is where you write with an attention grabbing opening. It could be serious, humorous, factual, playful, historical, or whatever.\u00a0 Don’t forget that the average person is barraged with around 3,000 messages per day from various sources, so your goal here is to create something that is unique and get them to listen.<\/span><\/p>\n

The next item on our list is ‘Interest.’<\/i> It should be organic – a natural, seamless, segue from Attention to Interest.\u00a0 At this particular point you’ll give some sort of payoff for following your Attention lead. Introduce the product or service here. Then, you’ll use your words to provide the benefits of ownership. Don’t forget to differentiate between features and benefits.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

Now comes the ‘Desire’<\/i> element of the AIDA formula. Now that you have the customer’s attention and interest, you now create an emotional element of desire. A sense of the customer saying, “I need to have this and have it now.” Here you’ll build upon the benefits you wrote about earlier or use a new benefit entirely. The Interest and Desire sections often complement each other. Be sure to remember, the focus of your writing is always about the customer’s desires, wants, and needs – not yours.<\/span><\/p>\n

Next we wrap up the business by using the ‘Action’<\/i> part of the formula. You want the customer to take some sort of action. Whether it’s calling a toll free number for more information, checking out a website, going to the store, these are all calls to action. Don’t lose out by not asking for the business.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Most prominently, we listen to the radio in our cars. Advertisers are able to target specific times the ad will air. <\/span><\/p>\n

Generally, the morning drive is 6am to 10am, and afternoon drive is 3pm to 7pm. (The other radio times are mid-day, 10am – 3pm and evenings 7pm to midnight). This will be a factor you will need to consider when creating your ad.
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Aside from just writing the spoken script, other aspects to consider when writing radio commercials are<\/span><\/p>\n