Product category:
Media
News Release from: Auction Media/Bid4Spots | Subject: Reverse auction for radio
Edited by the Marketingservicestalk Editorial
Team on 08 June 2007
Bid4Spots launches UK radio reverse
auction
Bid4Spots is bringing its successful reverse auction marketplace for last-minute radio airtime to the UK, offering increased income for advertisers and radio stations.
Bid4Spots, a US-based company, built this marketplace at the request of commercial broadcasters here, who evaluated various electronic platforms and chose Bid4Spots for its innovative approach to selling inventory Bid4Spots officially launches in the UK with its first auction on 28 June, and the weekly auctions will continue each Thursday thereafter
Paul Mitchard, previously the Head of Commercial Scheduling for the UK's biggest radio group, has been appointed to manage operations.
Advertisers and radio stations can sign up online.
In the reverse auctions, radio stations compete for advertisers' pounds and bid the ad rates down.
Advertisers and agencies gain simple access to radio at competitive rates.
Broadcasters get an easy, flexible way to sell last-minute airtime, increase revenue and attract new advertisers.
"There's a huge need for a solution that improves the process of buying and selling last-minute radio airtime," said Dave Newmark, Bid4Spots CEO and advertising industry pioneer.
"On both sides of the Atlantic the needs are the same - advertisers want a better and more cost-effective way to reach potential customers, and broadcasters want to increase revenue.
"The reverse auction model does both, as its continued success in the US demonstrates.
"When I came to see the UK radio groups I realised they have the same issues as we have in the United States.
"We chose RadioWorks to advise us in the UK, because no other company understands the marketplace as they do".
The value of the UK radio market is estimated to be £700 million.
The relatively young industry - commercial radio began in 1973 - attracts about the same percentage of advertising budgets as radio does in the United States.
By creating a more effective way to connect buyers and sellers, Bid4Spots will help what is still a nascent market maintain its position and compete in a rapidly changing advertising landscape.
"We're bringing something entirely new to radio airtime sales," said Mitchard.
"Getting into any media at short notice in the UK has always been a challenge, but with Bid4Spots advertisers gain access to late availability airtime at potentially lower costs.
"Meanwhile, stations like the system because they maintain control over their inventory, even as they open it up for more revenue and new advertisers - many who've never considered radio in the past.
"I've read a lot about the Google and dMarc system, but Bid4Spots has a far greater chance of success in the UK because it lets radio stations maintain control over inventory and pricing and the trade remains confidential.
"I was blown away when I saw this marketplace in action for the first time - it's the best method I've ever seen for trading unsold airtime".
Bid4Spots' US marketplace for terrestrial radio is used by more than 2,300 radio stations nationwide, more than 1,300 advertisers and more than 260 ad agencies - effectively making it the largest radio advertising network in the country.
How the Reverse Auction Works.
Bid4Spots employs a reverse auction model to allow broadcasters to compete for advertisers' budgets.
Where a standard auction invites the buyers to do the bidding and the highest price wins, in Bid4Spots' reverse auctions, the sellers do the bidding and the lowest price wins.
In this case, advertisers are the buyers, radio stations are the sellers, and the "price" is the CPT - Cost per Thousand.
Participating in the reverse auction is easy.
Advertisers go to the website and announce their intention to buy airtime.
They fill out a brief online form to designate demographics and maximum budget, then they upload their ads and deposit their money.
Bid4Spots alerts all radio stations that fit the criteria, and the broadcasters can view the ads online and decide whether or not to participate in the auction.
The auctions will take place every Thursday from 10 am to noon, during which time the stations compete for each individual ad, placing and monitoring their bids in the online platform.
No long-term commitments or contracts are required from either side.
Stations' rates always remain confidential - masked by the system's ranking index.
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