2011 has indeed been a great year for South African advertising in general, especially where radio is concerned. Having said that though, I think we still have a long way to go as radio hasn’t moved forward in terms of innovation in the medium.

Before you haul out the machine guns, allow me to explain…

We’re still making radio ads the same way we have been for years. Conveniently forgetting that people are listeners first before they are consumers and that no one listens to radio so that they can hear our ads. We’re still producing 30”, 45” and 60” radio ads, live reads and competition promos and haven’t looked at other ways of using this great medium.

We’re boring the listener. It’s a shame and quite frankly, we’re making the radio a pain to listen to.

Think for a moment with me; When last did you see the medium used tactically to promote a product? Have you ever noticed any product placement in a radio drama and yes, radio dramas still exist and they’re big.

Think back to a time when we changed a show’s format for a day, just to make a point to the listener. Didn’t think so.

If the truth be told, there’s nothing fresh that’s coming out of the radio category. We keep awarding the same stuff.

Don’t get me wrong, the radio ads that win are great. I just think we’re all sleeping on this amazing medium and we’re all to blame.

The stations are too rigid, the clients aren’t brave enough and the advertising and media agencies are lazy.

I’m sure we all have different reasons for neglecting the glaringly obvious need for innovation when it comes to radio advertising, but I think it’s about time we pushed each other into new areas of radio, and there are a lot of them – other media channels have proven this.

Hoping next year we’ll see a fresh take on radio, and of course a focus on getting better results for our clients.

Neo Mashigo  Executive Creative Director  Draftfcb

Disclaimer; Contrary to popular belief, Neo Mashigo has not gone into a witness protection programme following his submission of this article. Tucked away in the leafy suburb of Sandton, he continues to safely peddle his trade as Executive Creative Director at Draftfcb Johannesburg.