Commercial Production

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Commercial Production

• Chapter 12

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The most important thing to commercial stations
is to make money. That is done through selling
airtime commercials. So, commercial production
is a very important topic when studying radio
production.
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Three Responsibilities as a Producer of Radio
Commercials

1. To produce commercials that stimulate sales
2. To produce commercials that please the client
3. To produce commercials that fit your stations
   sound

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The producer of a commercial must translate those
three goals into a radio production that will
capture the attention of an audience and be a
successful sales tool for the client.
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Putting together a commercial

• Writing the script or putting the concept
  together
• Narrating the commercial
• Doing the hand-on production work
• Convincing the client that your approach is the
  proper one

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What Makes a Commercial Effective
There are no defined rules for determining a
commercials effectiveness but generally they
must get the audiences attention.
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Elements of Effective Radio Advertising
In a radio commercial sound must compensate for
the lack of pictures.   Radio advertising can and
should be geared toward a targeted audience. A
great advantage of radio is that its audience is
clearly defined. For example, if you are selling
an acne medicine, you would probably advertise on
92Q and not WQSR.
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Advertising Appeals

• Appeal to Personal Fulfillment
• Appeal to Authority
• Appeal to the Bandwagon Effect
• Appeal to Fear of Rejection
• Appeal to Sexual Success

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Advertising Appeals

• Appeal to Reinforcement of Listeners Ego
• Appeal to Prestige
• Appeal to Value and Quality
• Appeals to Other Emotional Triggers (Nostalgia,
  Family Ties, Guilt, Loyalty, Tradition, etc)

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Music in Radio Commercials
Music is very effective in establishing a
commercials mood or an overall set of conditions.
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Voice in Radio Commercials
Voice is also an important element in
commercials, whether the spot is voiced by the
producer or air talent. Also, the announcer must
be believable. Someone portraying a senior
diplomat should not sound 21 years old.
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Three Approaches
Hard-Sellrequires an announcer with an
authoritative, strong voice. Soft-Sell (or
Sincere)requires an announcer with a casual or
sincere delivery (not the typical disc jockey
type of artificial delivery). Whimsicaloften
borders on the comedic requires an announcer
with a lot of flexibility and acting ability.
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Suggestions for Producing Effective Commercials
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• Avoid Gimmicksproduction elements like echoes
  and sfx should reinforce the message
• Summarize the Thrustyou should be able to
  summarize the thrust of the commercial in a few
  words
• Dont Blast the listenerLouder isnt always
  better
• Read the Spot to the Clientdont just give the
  client the script, read it aloud to them

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• Dont Force Humorif there is any doubt as to
  whether or not a spot is funny, chances are it
  isnt
• Achieve High Technical Quality
• Dont Overuse a Particular Piece of Music
• Keep the Message Simple

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Avoid the Following

1. Lack of Focusdont wander from idea to idea,
   keep it simple
2. Poor Technical Qualitylevels to high or low
3. Lack of Completenessshould have a beginning,
   middle and end
4. The Assembly Line Approachcan make all your
   productions sound the same
5. Fear of Experimentationtry a new approach,
   experiment with new ideas as long as time permits

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Production Applications for Station Promotion
Focuses on creating excitement among listeners
that helps attract them to the station and that
helps distinguish your station from others. The
producer should know as many kinds of audio
effects as possible as well as what is possible
with the equipment they have.