How Radio Should Respond to the Digital Revenue Shift

Recently, Marketron released their 2025 Radio Revenue Outlook, showing a significant digital revenue shift where local digital advertising spending is projected to surpass traditional media, with digital ad spending reaching $89 billion compared to $82 billion for traditional media.

Key Findings from the Digital Revenue Research

Overall Growth in Local Advertising: A 5.5% increase is anticipated in local advertising spending, totaling $170.9 billion in 2025.

Radio Airtime Revenue: Spot ad revenue is expected to see a slight decline of 0.4%, amounting to $10 billion. Despite this, radio remains a vital medium, reaching consumers across all demographics.

Surge in Local Digital Ad Spending: Local digital advertising is set to grow by 4.2%, reaching $2.9 billion in 2025, excluding political advertising. This growth underscores the increasing importance of digital platforms in advertising strategies.

Rapid Expansion of CTV/OTT Advertising: Streaming advertising continues its upward trajectory, with local CTV/OTT projected to reach $2.8 billion—a 9.1% increase over 2024. This reflects the growing consumer shift towards streaming services.

How Should You Navigate the Digital Revenue Shift?

Given these trends, it’s crucial for radio stations to adapt and integrate digital strategies to remain competitive. Here are actionable steps stations can take:

Enhance Your Online Presence:

• Optimize Your Website: Ensure your website(s) have fresh engaging content such as blogs, news updates, and multimedia to attract and retain visitors.
• Start Podcasting: Launch podcasts to offer on-demand content, catering to audiences seeking flexible listening options. Start with turning your morning newscasts into sponsored podcasts.  News podcasts are very popular.
• Offer a Newsletter: Send weekly updates featuring exclusive content, contests, and promotions.
• Have a Robust Mobile App: News, contests, events, and push notifications for breaking news, etc.
• Use Video: Live stream sporting events and in-studio shows. Use YouTube/Facebook/TikTok for engaging clips.

Enhance Search Engine Optimization (SEO):

• Optimize Your Website: Ensure your site is search-friendly to attract organic traffic.  Include alt and title tags, use headings properly, etc.
• Local SEO Strategies: Focus on local keywords to capture audiences in your broadcast area, like “radio advertising near me.”
• Explore Search Engine Marketing (SEM): Enhance your station’s visibility through paid search campaigns.

Engage with Your Audience on Social Media:

• Regular Updates: Keep your listeners informed and engaged with consistent posts that link back to the station website.
• Interactive Content: Use polls, live videos, and Q&A sessions to foster community interaction.  For some websites, the comments people leave on news posts are more entertaining than the news and keep people coming back.

Utilize Data-Driven Strategies:

• Audience Analytics: Employ analytics tools to gain insights into audience behavior, enabling more personalized and compelling content and advertising strategies.
• Targeted Advertising: Use data to offer advertisers targeted ad placements, enhancing the effectiveness of their campaigns and increasing your station’s value proposition.

Leverage Advanced Advertising Platforms:

• CTV/OTT Advertising: Capitalize on the growth of streaming by incorporating CTV/OTT ads into your offerings, providing targeted and measurable advertising solutions.
• Combine On-Air and Digital Ads: Provide advertisers with bundled packages that include both traditional spots and digital placements, increasing the value proposition.

Invest in Digital Talent:

• Content Creators: Hire individuals skilled in producing compelling digital content tailored to your audience.
• Digital Marketing Specialists: Bring on board experts adept at promoting content across various online platforms to maximize reach and engagement.

Wrapping Up

The research is clear—2025 marks a turning point where digital ad revenue will surpass traditional media for the first time. With local digital advertising reaching $89 billion and traditional media at $82 billion, the shift is undeniable. However, radio remains a powerful force in local communities.  To stay competitive, though, stations must embrace digital strategies.

By investing in online content, podcasts, SEO, and possibly hiring digital talent, stations can bridge the gap between traditional and digital. Digital is not radio’s competition – it’s an opportunity to expand the influence we bring to the radio. The time to act is now. Stations that embrace these changes will not only survive this transition but thrive in it.