“Be greedy when others are fearful, and fearful when others are greedy”. 

It’s the most famous quote from the most famous investor alive, Warren Buffett. He was born in 1930, just as the Great Depression was underway. He lived through World War II, The Cold War, The Vietnam War , hyper-inflation and gas lines in the 1970s and 1980s, the dot-com bubble, September 11th, the Great Recession, COVID-19, and now, the inflation and pending recession we see in most walks of life every day.

Buffett is worth somewhere in the neighborhood of $81 billion. Now here’s the kicker - approximately 70 of those billions came after he was 65.

And it was because he was greedy when others were fearful in those eras listed above. He was playing the long game. And that's precisely what small business owners need to do as well in these times of financial distress.

Inflation Effects on Businesses

According to Goldman Sachs’ 10,000 Small Businesses Survey , 88% of respondents say ‘inflationary pressures on their business have worsened since January”. 73% of respondents say that “rising energy prices are impacting their business”. So if you’re financially bleeding everywhere you look, well, at least you’re far from alone.

This prompts many to feel they need to cut costs, and marketing dollars are a common sacrifice. But ask yourself, if you were Warren Buffett, and you owned your business, would it be wise to be fearful right now, or greedy?

Let’s dive into how radio advertising and audio marketing can be the saving grace against inflation, keeping your business afloat for now…but absolutely dominant in the long run.

Radio Advertising Costs

Radio advertising is a marketing budget’s best friend because compared to other mediums, it’s absurdly simple without sacrificing any effectiveness. You’re not paying for a bloated television crew with expensive cameras and microphones. You’re not paying the hefty Google or social platform fee to run an aimless campaign you can’t adequately track; its engagement is too difficult to (ethically) monitor.

Multiple factors dictate exactly how much your radio campaigns will cost. But even the most expensive route is still a marketing bargain for getting your business or operation heard by those who need to hear it - local consumers.

Make Your Marketing Efficient

The greatest campaign in the world is null and void if it lacks one post-production trait - reach. 

Nielsen studies have shown that there isn’t much competition to the longtime gold standard of it - AM/FM radio. Only enhancing this reach, is the likelihood of listeners to spend. Most of them have at least moderate income, and are passionate about supporting their local businesses.

A popular survey found that for every $1 spent on radio advertising, $12 was returned in purchase activity. If that doesn’t justify this blog’s title, I’m unsure what does! In high-cost, inflationary periods, you want every dollar you spend to go that much further. With radio, you’re not speaking to an ocean of people who aren’t even really listening to you, and who don’t want to spend. You’re speaking to earnest listeners, and earnest spenders.

Zig When Your Competitors Zag

It’s natural to want to protect your cards in hard times. But know why that’s penny-wise and pound-foolish? It’s what everyone else and their cousin is also wanting to do.

There are - and will likely be for some time - enormous vacancies in the advertising and marketing space. You filling them is striking while the iron is hot.

Savvy advertising is more than a great slogan or a catchy jingle - it’s any means of getting your name cemented in the minds of customers. And the less competing noise, the better.

This Isn’t the End…This is Your Chance

The Great Recession of 2008 and COVID were truly awful times we all remember. They were less awful for Warren Buffett because he leveraged it into an opportunity, and did three things - buy, buy, buy.

In five years, do you want to look back at this gloomy time and know it got the best of you? Or that you found a way to turn lemons into lemonade by outsmarting the other guys? 

At Iliad Media Group, frankly, all we do is find ways. Through COVID and inflation, we even had a client score an enormous deal with Mark Cuban on Shark Tank, after all five sharks made million-dollar offers. So if you or someone you know has a business that wants to turn inflation into an opportunity, Iliad Media Group wants to hear your story, so we can make sure the people hear it too! In fact, here’s why there’s no better time than this lovely spring season. Let’s talk!