U. S. Radio (Jan-Dec 1961)

View from top: 2 client execs see . . . GEORGE W. CAMPBELL, ADVERTISING DIRECTOR "WHILE it's still too early to tell the effects this campaign will have on sales, initial public reaction has been highly favorable. We plan to make a complete evaluation when the program concludes this month and » determine whether to use this approach in future marketing efforts." Whal about number 10? (Outside voice:) I bought a helicopter, man! The coverage is broader, there's less to pay: That's why nine out of 10 come back again! Fast claim service is the Nationwide way: That's why nine out of 10 come back again! Nine out of 10 say it's common sense. Ride with Nationwide, ride with confidence! You'll find We're friendly and fair — no others compare To Nationwide car insurance. Nine out of 10 come back again — for Nationwide car insurance! The two alternate gag lines are: (Outside voice:) "My uncle went into the insurance business!" (Outside voice, as if being shot into space:) "I moved out of Nai ionwide tei ritoryl" The next major step involved exploring the strategy behind the plat ( incni ill s( hedules: (he mai kets, the number and type of stations, times of day, the frequencies, days of the week and length of the commercials. The In si consideration in setting up the schedules was to determine the best plan for distributing the budge) over the full scope of Nationwide's operating area. Nationwide agents cover 29 states, most of them east of the Mississippi. The company wanted to saturate the market in all areas where its agents operate, but also desired heavier concentration in the cities that housed the largest number of salesmen. "We had to keep in mind the number of agents and we wanted to make certain that we had excellent radio coverage in areas which had the most representatives," Pitts said. The result was a combination network and spot buy. Two stations, one for spot and one for the CBS network effort, were purchased in each of the 77 largest eastern cities, with one station used on a spot basis in each of 28 smaller markets. The CBS show was used in 48 other smaller markets. A detailed breakdown of the fourweek radio campaign reveals thatNationwide aired an average of 30 commercials per week in cities where it used two stations, 20 per week in cities where it bought one station, and 10 per week in localities where it bought only a CBS affiliate. Although Nationwide was on radio for four weeks, the radio campaign covered an eight-week period from July 24 to September 15. The flight opened for two weeks, played possum for two weeks, returned for one, vacationed for two, and concluded with one week. Pitts explained the thinking behind this type of scheduling: "We wanted a life span of two months, but the budget couldn't handle it. We figured that it wasn't necessary to be on every week. This type of schedule has carry-over value and the average consumer would not notice that we dropped out some ol ihe time." One of the biggest reasons Nationwide agreed to go into radio was the medium's ability to pinpoint commercials at the automobile owning audience. The company bought schedules during prime driving time — the morning rush hour, 7 to 9, and the evening equivalent, 4 to 6. Weekends were ruled out because, as Pitts explained it, "Salesmen normally don't work on Saturday afternoons or Sundays and we wanted a . . . more radio in Nationwide's future GEORGE H. HUNTER, ADVERTISING MANAGER "WE BELIEVE this mass testimonial from our policyholders is one of the strongest advertising themes we have ever developed. And the radio medium enables us to get this message to the public in an enjoyable, and memorable way, with impart frequency. We're certain that this campaign will help establish Nationwide Insurance as the 'satisfied drivers' company in the public's mind." 38 U. S. RADIO; September 1961