• Your loyal listeners may be an unrecognized source of profit for your station.
• Database marketing can help you capitalize on your pool of loyal listeners by giving advertisers access to them -- but be careful!
• The article lists several common objections your program director may raise, and offers suggestions to meet those objections.

Database Marketing
Concentrate On the "Haves" vs. the "Have-Nots"
Note: This article was contributed to Radio Sales Today by representatives of Revenue Results, Inc.

You’ve got a good thing going. Whether you know it or not, even if your ratings have slipped or you just received the third call that month from a client wanting to cancel, you’ve got something to be proud of. You have something no one else has -- your very own unique group of loyal Radio listeners.

These are folks who tune in day in and day out, put your bumper stickers on their cars, wear your T-shirts, attend your concerts, and sometimes call to complain that they "didn’t like what that last guy said." Still, these people all have something in common -- they listen to your station. That, in and of itself, is a very good thing. But to take a good thing and make it better, you need to capitalize on this group. The way you do that is database marketing.

What Exactly is Database Marketing?
Database marketing is defined as one-to-one communication with a select group of consumers already predisposed to use your product or service. A database is made up of a current customer base and includes information such as marital status, income bracket, number of people in the household, and more. Radio stations have been doing database marketing for several years to encourage loyal listeners, and to get those listeners to spend more time tuned in. However, these same stations have been missing the boat when it comes to understanding and then implementing this group of core listeners as a new profit center.

Advertisers Have Access to Prime Targets
These "loyal listener" groups are prime targets for stations to sell to their advertisers as highly motivated customers who will respond to a message from the station. There are many ways that database marketing can be presented to clients. For instance, database marketing is an excellent way to:

• combine direct marketing and broadcast campaigns
• create a highly qualified prospect list
• cut marketing costs by selling directly to the customer and eliminating middlemen
• communicate with customers
• build customer loyalty
• provide research and development for new products
• promote a specific vendor or retailer or dealer
• increase purchases

What If Your Program Director Says "No"?
Many program directors feel that database marketing is "selling out." Remind your PD that you are not selling the database. You are selling access to the database. Also, the PD will evaluate database sales opportunities based on their appropriateness with respect to your listeners.
Here are some of the most common objections:

• The offer is too cheap -- don’t insult your listener with something they won’t want.
• The offer is too complicated -- don’t make your listener work too hard for the perk.
• The offer doesn’t fit the lifestyle -- don’t sell car stereos to a predominantly 55+ audience.

Get Your Program Director to Say "Yes"
It becomes your job to demonstrate that you can act responsibly in providing new and exciting reasons through your client base to keep the loyal listeners even more loyal to your station.

Here are some rules you can follow to keep the PD happy:

• Everything you mail to the database comes from the station and must be perceived as a gift.
• Every gift must fit the lifestyle profile -- a welcomed gift.
• Show your PD the advertisers who already get a good response are those that fit your format.
• Create value out of the relationship by providing gifts that increase traffic through redemption.

Separate Yourself from the Competition

Database marketing, like retail-driven "vendor" business, offers great sales opportunities that don’t rely on cost-per-point issues. It’s an excellent way to separate yourself from your competition and also to generate trackable results for your clients.

Everyone Is a Winner!
Now is the time to be proactive and get involved in creating a profit center from your own loyal listeners and help advertisers understand the concept of one-to-one marketing that sells product and creates an inexpensive, loyal customer who keeps coming back.