Sponsor (Jan-Mar 1962)

This is reported by Claude R. Miller of Miller-Morse agency in Fullerton, Calif., who says he and the client prefer minute announcements during traffic times adjacent to news and sports shows and a year-round basis. Douglas markets gasoline with 300 dealers in California, Nevada and Oregon, and considers its biggest current problem "the price of gasoline!" Bardahl International Oil. Co., Seattle, puts 15% of its ad money into radio — more than for newspapers, less than for tv and magazines, reports James W. Phillips, advertising and sales manager. Its additive oils are advertised in radio, as a back-stop to tv, in fiveand 15-minute news and sports shows and with minute announcements, usually in month-long saturations in peak-drive times. Bardahl's goal: to establish the concept of the "world's number one seller." Phillips lists radio's five "best jobs" done for his company: "Reminds radio listening motorists of the problem in their car; of Bardahl when they are in a position to buy; gives us the impact in major markets not available budget-wise in tv; inexpensively in lesser markets where .here is no tv; allows us to select our audience, motorists at traffic times and men with sports shows." He also has a list of the jobs radio should do and does not now do for oil companies and their products: "Slant more programing toward adults and particularly during driving times; screen commercials to eliminate shady or unreliable products; realize motorists in cars are the big audience and program to them with some educational features; stress believability and authenticity of products, not teen-age gimmick approaches via corn-ball disk jockeys." Sinclair Refining Co., through Geyer, Morey, Madden & Ballard, New York, puts 15% of its budget into radio, 70% to tv and 15% to miscellaneous. So reports James J. Delaney, advertising manager directing efforts on behalf of 25,000 dealers in 36 states. Radio is used to push gasoline, motor and fuel oil in a program of "continued maintenance of the basic umbrella of coverage to keep the company name before the public." Radio preferences are — in this order — national network, national spot and local radio with announcements of five to 20 seconds in length on a year-round basis. The things radio does best for Sinclair: "keeps the name alive; addresses drivers in their cars; gives wide coverage at low cost; offers low production cost for commercials; has multi-daily exposure." William L. Wernicke, agency v.p., is account supervisor. Frontier Refining Co., marketing in 21 states with 800 dealers for its gas, motor oil and diesel fuel, places 20% of its ad appropriation in radio, with newspaper getting 60%, tv, 10%, and direct mail, 10%. Richard Skinner, advertising manager, says "We are using more radio than before because we are marketing in a larger area." He prefers 30and 60-second announcements in what he terms "saturation crash campaigns." Radio's biggest advantages, in his view: coverage of sparse population areas, offers creation of good will, tells people where they can get the products and from whom they are going to buy. Jack McCrea is account executive at Tool & Armstrong in Denver. Classic in the radio annals of oil company usage is Mars Oil Co. of St. Louis, a 100% radio advertiser with the budget — about $60,000 annually— placed on a single local radio station, WIL St. Louis. Mars, a retail marketing subsidiary transportation company, sells its private brands throughout 75 companyowned and operated service stations, 13 in the St. Louis area. Concentrating its limited ad budget, Mars slots around-the-clock commercials seven days a week at the rate of about 20 announcements per day. Spot, a favorite with both the majors and minors in oil, has a popularity feature of special appeal: merchandising. Extending the sales power regionally and locally with merchandising is a plus which oils look for, reports Anne Owen, sales development manager of the Robert Eastman Co. station representatives. She points to KTHT Houston, which accompanied a Tenneco commercial schedule with merchandising and promotion tied in with the opening of the first Tenneco retail outlets in that market; and to another promotion at WORC Worcester where a contest encouraged dealer co-operation with Tidewater Oil. With many a crack in the oilmen's conservative facade, radio stands an improved chance to increase its share of oil's total ad dollars. Chances are good — if radio rustles and keeps on rustling. The new media thinking might produce some bizarre results — Shell's plunge into print, and the Megatane story developed by Bates for Mobil, have raised some eyebrows — but at least it's an assurance that oil is open to suggestion. And even Shell's print orgy could have some useful broadcast result. Jack Openshaw, who supervises Caltex ads in worldwide markets, comments that "Shell has done everyone a hell of a service by starting them thinking about whether it's such a good idea to spread your ads around in all media. Can Shell go into one top medium and hit it so hard it gives the impression of dominating the medium — and the market?" Shell and newspapers This would require hitting all media in turn. Shell hasn't yet finalized its plans for 1962; though it was shopping for tv availabilities at the end of last year, the company openly concedes the idea that "Shell will probably continue to be the largest oil-company user of newspapers." Mobil also rejected the "all over" theory, although not quite so spectacularly. The Bates agency, which made its own study of the petroleum industry before Mobil came its way, found most media programs were "cut up in bits and pieces." Bates' recommendation, as explained by account exec Herbert Drake: "Because Mobil had fewer ad dollars to spend we decided to pick the most efficient — newspapers and tv." (Tv gets 80% of the budget). This is an oversimplification since Mobil is able to use tv so extensively (31 participations last fall) only because of a favorable position in territory, and an absence of brand-name complications. Mobil is the third largest distributor in terms of states covered (45) . (Continued on page 40) SPONSOR U. S. RADIO SECTION 29 JANUARY 1962 33