Radio advertising increases daily web sessions by an average of 16%, according to new analysis from Radiocentre.
Radiocentre says the medium achieves this twice as cost-efficiently as other demand-generation media combined, based on its latest research report, Radio: The Performance Multiplier – The Amplified Edit.
Conducted with independent research agency Colourtext, the study uses regression analysis of 7.2 billion multimedia impressions and 195 million web sessions. The data comes from in-market campaigns for eight brands across five sectors.
The findings suggest conventional attribution models significantly understate radio’s impact. While many analyses measure activity in the 20 minutes after a spot airs, the modelling indicates the full effect is delivered over 21 hours. Only 8% of a radio spot’s total impact occurs within the typical 20-minute window, meaning 92% may be missed.
The research also finds radio amplifies digital channels. Analysis of referral sources shows increases in web sessions from paid search and paid social activity when radio is used alongside them.
Across the campaigns measured, 43% of the increase in direct website traffic was attributed to radio advertising. The report states this may help brands reduce reliance on AI-influenced search environments by driving more direct visits.
Planning Director Mark Barber said: “The dual short- and longer-term effects of radio advertising highlighted in this study demonstrate the powerful role the medium can play in helping brands break-through the Performance Plateau and amplify the overall results from their performance media investment.”
The full report is available from Radiocentre.