Miss a song title or the phone number of a business that just ran a spot on the radio and listeners no longer have to wait to hear it again. They can text the station’s call letters to SnipIT (764748) and automatically receive the info on their mobile phone. The new text message (SMS) service offers radio stations a new way to generate revenue by making every spot interactive.
System developer Hyran Media Service recently ran a two-phase test of SnipIT’s technology with a Seattle-area radio station. Spots running eight or nine times daily, Wednesday through Sunday for three consecutive weeks encouraged listeners to send a text to SnipIT for more info about the songs they heard on the radio. SnipIT added advertiser names to the lists in the second phase and the response was tremendous.
“Our test demonstrates that song information is in high demand from listeners,” says Peter Hartmaier, president of SnipIT developer Hyran Media Service. “More significantly, it shows that listeners will use SnipIT to request advertiser information at rates more than 20 times the typical banner ad.”
During the test’s first phase, SnipIT sent listeners lists of the most recent songs played. Selecting the letter corresponding to any one of the songs generated a second text from SnipIT that included the link to iTunes where they could purchase the song. SnipIT added the names of advertisers during the second phase, and selecting any one of them generates a message with more information about the advertiser (e.g., phone number, Web site, etc.).
SnipIT can also make radio interactive by sending listeners digital coupons, contests, promotions and more. Hear a spot for your favorite fast food chain and the system also has the potential to refer users to nearby locations using the GPS technology now standard in all mobile phones. Users may also register an e-mail address with SnipIT and receive all of its messages in .html. SnipIT is available to all 233 million subscribers of every wireless carrier in the United States.
Advertisers also benefit from the superior metrics SnipIt provides for radio campaigns. Mobile phone numbers track user interactions and cannot be deleted like website cookies. Most users also retain their mobile numbers when changing carriers. SnipIT offers a unique opportunity to profile users by tying together texting, mobile Web browsing and PC Web browsing habits. User identities remain private. Stations will get data SnipIT provides about listener preferences. Advertisers may similarly benefit by examining the overall response rate to ads as well as how response rates vary during different times of the day.
