Reach vs. Frequency
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From The Ephron Letter, 06/05, “Reach Trumps Frequency”:

• Radio is often ignored because it is considered a Frequency medium
• When Radio is planned differently – especially based on new Arbitron PPM data – it is an ideal Reach Medium
• Recency is the concept that ads are most effective when they remind people about brands they know, at the time they happen to need the product
• Recency is a “reminding” not a “remembering” model
• The difference is critical because “reminding” is a stimulus that can be controlled, while “remembering” is a response that can’t be controlled
• “Reminding” is a perfect job for Radio when used as a Reach  medium:
• Contact 3 consumers 1X rather than 1 consumer 3X times, because that one consumer is far less likely to need the product than any one of the 3 would be
• Given that someone in the market is usually more receptive to advertising for that product, fewer messages are needed:  Reach, not Frequency
• Buy Radio for moderate weekly Reach and more weeks of advertising: avoid concentrated, flighted schedules that build too much Frequency; reduce weight and add weeks of advertising to increase Reach