EndorsementRadio.com

I love John Hamm’s (Mad Men) endorsement of John Ham. Companies should come up with products that mirror star radio hosts names. Glenn “Beck” is an obvious one. How about: “Rush’s Rush Job Delivery” or “Jim Rome’s Italian Vacations”. Oh, oh, how about “Dennis Miller Time” or “Bill Handel’s Bill Handler”.

I love it when hosts do this.

Rush Limbaugh goes from an article about identity theft right into an ad for LifeLock. This is an advertiser’s dream.

You get no tune-out (the listener doesn’t know you’ve hit the ad pod yet), the copy is absolutely relevant, the product is a solution to an important problem, and you get what radio stations and networks are always promising: “we want to be your partner, not just a vendor”.

Awesome job, LifeLock. You came out of nowhere and now rule the identify theft world. I know you’ve got TV and event sponsorship in there, but you built this thing on the back of radio: congratulations.

MediaDailyNews had a nice little article about the following conundrum: millions of people listen to radio yet the revenue is shrinking. While ratings are holding relatively constant, despite satellite radio, Ipods and internet radio, somewhere around 90% of adults listen to at least some “terrestrial” radio every single week.

But the article also talks about something that I had heard before, but needed reminding: creatives don’t like working in radio because they don’t see a lot of payoff. TV, Print…likely even billboards seem sexier than radio to many copywriters. And so creatives don’t give the radio copy their best efforts. From there it’s a trickle down effect: the poorer the ads, the worse the results. The worse the results, the lower the spend. The lower the spend, the less you have for creative costs dedicated to radio. And so on…

And that’s why I love radio endorsements. You only need to create some key bullet points with your value propositions. The

hosts

then get to be the creative ones. And usually, on a national level, the hosts fees are wrapped into the unit costs.

So, in effect, you’re still capturing all of those millions of ears listening to talk radio with better than “produced” ads, without having to pay a dime to some “creatives” who would rather work on tv ads.

I think endorsement radio could put the “hospitality” in hospital. In my experience, hospitals are grim places. Death and pain lurk in every corner. You hear stories of massive infections, people dying in waiting rooms, insurance hell; not to mention terrible food and overpriced flowers.

I do hear some decent hospital ads. The problem is, they all do it. And there are some hospitals and health groups out there with the best ads but the worst reputations.

But better than any ad telling you what a great hospital they are and how many awards they’ve one, is a friend telling you the great care they received and the nice rooms they have…with decent meals and plasma screens.

Now, how about if that friend is the person you listen to every morning?

It’s like a good bedside manner reaching out through your radio. If any hospital takes my advice, please please please make sure that the promise of the endorsement actually happens in those corners: let’s keep death and pain at bay, if you don’t mind. And nurses, please try not to roll your eyes.

If there was any bank in dire need of endorsement radio, it would be WaMu. In September 2008, they are taking a beating –WaMu is one of the big banks that is sorely hurting from the whole mortgage crisis of 2007/2008.

A sexy ad campaign is not going to get me to give my money to Washington Mutual right now, but some well placed endorsements could.

Plus, I almost feel like WaMu deserves what it’s getting for it’s horrible “The bank that makes you go Woo Hoo” campaign. I want to gargle nails every time I hear it. This cutesy little saying that no man should say. It comes across at best as insincere and at worst…what’s the word? Whimpy, I guess. It’s especially painful when the traffic guy or news gal has to say the line. See, WaMu’s agency can

make

a station say the line, but they can’t coach personality and inflection, the only thing that would save a dumb line like Woo Hoo. I laughed today when I heard the money guy on NPR say “I never understood that campaign”.

I understand it. They paid some ad agency to create something new and different…something that people will remember…that will capture the way their die- hard customers truly feel about free checking. They likely paid a few million just on the creative concepting. They got Woo Hoo for their money.

I’m getting off track here. Oh yes, I was talking about endorsements. With the trouble WaMu has gone through financially and to make good on a horribly conceived campaign, someone like a Jim Rome saying “look, WaMu is stable, they still have their free checking, their interest rates on CDs are outstanding, and I’VE got a lot of money over there…you gotta see what WaMu has to offer. For you small businesses, WaMu doesn’t just promise service…they deliver. They’ve helped me figure out this, that and the other and their advice has been dead on every time”.

With an endorsement, you’ve also just broken out of the clutter of every bank saying the same thing. And people are hearing the ads from someone they trust.

Otherwise, it’s more boo hoo and less customers.

I’ve spent more time with Dan Patrick than with most friends or family members. ESPN used to be my must-see-tv every night until I got a wife and kids. And bringing the sports to me intelligently, sarcastically, wittily, and groundbreakingly was the fab duo of Patrick and Olbermann.

I’m sure it’s the same for millions of other guys out there. Dan Patrick meant sports – delivered in compelling ways. Dan Patrick also meant trust. If Dan’s saying it, you can believe it.

Now that he’s got his own national radio show, I believe that trust carries over. He seems to be the voice of reason and calm in a sports world gone crazy. And one recognizes the Dan Patrick voice in an instant. I had the fortune to have lunch with him at Morton’s in Burbank, CA and I heard him a few steps before I saw him and shook his hand.

And what a nice guy. I work with a bunch of sports nuts (the founders and CEO of the company) so I think we were all a little tentative about talking sports with a guy that talks sports for a job…but outside of some business, the lunch was spent talking about the Lakers, Celtics, Cubs, Tiger Woods, and some college ball. We couldn’t have wished for better conversation.

If you’re an advertiser with some bucks, and the demo is right, give the Dan Patrick endorsement a shot (if he’ll have you). Your Brand will be en fuego.

Here’s a pic with Brian Liu, Brian Lee, John Suh and me with Dan in Burbank.

Yesterday I heard an ad for JC Penny on the Dan Patrick Show (mother’s day focused). Today, if I’m not mistaken, I heard a station voiced ad for Rolaids. Endorsement radio spells relief.

Take a listen to this ad. Wow.

It’s from Astelin, which is a nasal spray and I’m assuming a pretty good one. But how the company is going to sell any spray through this endorsement is beyond me.

Let’s see how many rules of radio they violated:
Pack way too much information in the ad? Check
Put in terms that nobody uses? check
Use complex medical terms when they don’t need to? check
Make an ad that should take a minute and thirty to read only 60 seconds? check
Mention that you’re advertising somewhere else to seem bigger? check
Have a name that is hard to spell (and don’t spell it for people)? check
Let the lawyers take over the copy (“as little as fifteen to forty-five minutes” Um, I think you can just say “as little as fifteen minutes”)? check
Make the side effects sound worse than the symptoms that the product is trying to relieve? check
Ask the listener if they are part of their target as opposed to assuming they are? check
Use an endorser but not have them say they use the product? check
Have a URL that’s hard to spell? check
don’t have an offer? check

Wow, it’s like the perfect storm of bad ads!

If you can’t hear the ad, here is what my army of beautiful secretaries transcribed:
“…you got allergies? Then this message is for you. Your nasal congestion, sneezing, itchy or running nose and post-nasal drip could be due to a mix of both seasonal allergic rhinitis and something called non-allergic vasomotor rhinitis. Non-allergic vasomotor rhinitis. Now what’s that? It’s when you’re sensitive to stuff like cigar smoke, cold air, cologne, even cleaning products. As many as 50% of all seasonal allergy sufferers may have a mix of both seasonal allergic rhinitis and non-allergic vasomotor rhinitis. You could be one of them. Ask your doctor about Astelin Nasal Spray with Asal Astine Hydrocholoride. Prescription Astelin. It’s approved for the treatment of nasal symptoms from seasonal allergic rhinitis and non-allergic vasomotor rhinitis. With Astelin you can start to feel relief as early as fifteen to forty-five minutes. Astelin is for people 12 and over. Common side effects may include bitter taste, headache, nasal inflammation or burning, and drowsiness. Visit Astelin.com. Call 1-866-Number or find information in InTouch Magazine. Don’t delay. Ask your doctor for allergy relief with Astelin today.

Here’s what I would have written (Astelin can have this one for free):

“It’s springtime and you are miserable: you’ve got nasal congestion, you’re sneezy, you’ve got an itchy throat or constantly running nose. You can’t get rid of it no matter what you do. Let’s face it, this isn’t just seasonal anymore…cold air, cleaning products, pet hair, even cigar smoke can give you the same symptoms all year round. I’ve got to tell you about Astelin, A-S-T-E-L-I-N. Astelin treats both the seasonal and non-seasonal allergic symptoms that drive you nuts. I live by this stuff…Astelin has drastically improved my life, and it starts working in about 15 minutes. It’s been my best kept secret for a while now.

I can breath better, no more itchy throat or constantly wiping my nose. No more frequent sneezing in important meetings. Well, I’ve got to let you in on this secret.

You’ve

got to try Astelin. That’s Astelin. It’s a prescription so you’ve got to ask your doctor. Ask for Astelin Nasal Spray.

You’ll be glad you did. For more information, including any side affects, go to icanbreathe.com*.

Astelin. A-S-T-E-L-I-N. I just had to tell you about it because it’s made my life so much better. And if you go to icanbreathe.com right now, you can even download a free guide to common things in most peoples’ houses that drive their eyes, nose and throat crazy! So stop being miserable. Start breathing like a normal human being. Get your Astelin today.”

Ok, I’ve got to admit that I wrote that in about four minutes but it’s so much better than what they have. It needs to be cut down a bit and we could probably hit some specific points harder. But it would sell some Astelin for sure. Imagine if we had a half hour to write this.

Achoo.

I think I heard one of the best endorsements ever today. It was Bill Handel’s endorsement of Elmore Toyota in Southern California. Man was it great:

1. He used (bought) the product
2. He talks about why this Toyota dealership is different than all others (Toyota dealers and any other auto). The gist: they’re not looking to squeeze you for all you’re worth on one auto purchase…they want you for life, as well as your kids and their kids — so they’re going to provide excellent value each and every time.
3. He provides consequences if Elmore doesn’t live up to their end of the deal: he says “call me…and I’m going to give you the cellphone number of the president over there”.

Fantastic job. I never particularly cared for Toyotas…but that endorsement might send me down I-5 for a gander.

I love the new ad that Dan Patrick is doing for Snapper lawnmowers. Actually, Patrick is endorsing an endorser.

In the ad, he’s really talking about how Brett Favre loves the product. Brett, despite his riches and his ability to afford 7,000 gardners every day, loves to mow his own grass.

And he only mows that grass on a Snapper.

So not only does big sports broadcaster Dan Patrick love Snapper, one of the most famous QBs in history loves it, too.

It immediately raises Snapper above the competition in terms of ad messaging – especially for their demo.

I might have to get me one of them.