Car radios came to Charlotte in June of 1930. For just $120, about $1200 in present dollars, local drivers could install these early mobile devices into their Fords, Studebakers, Packards, and DeSotos, 

The first car radios were built by the Galvin Manufacturing Company of Chicago. They named their invention, and eventually their company, Motorola.

Today, more than 1.7 million car radios fill ears of area drivers with music, news, sports, and information. As a result, local radio reaches more consumers than all other media.

In a typical pre-COVID-19 week, according to Nielsen, 89% of adult consumers would tune-in to a Charlotte radio station. This is significantly more than were reached by local TV, cable, social media, newspaper, or streaming media sites Pandora and Spotify.

If you were one of the 1.8 million adults who tuned-in to a Charlotte radio station last week, then no doubt you heard multiple commercials that included phrases like 'troubling times', 'uncertain times', 'unprecedented times', 'new normal', and 'we're in this together'. 

In March, as the pandemic began to disrupt consumers' lives, using these phrases was a powerful way for North Carolina small business owners to acknowledge the severity of the crisis and to exhibit empathy. But 120 days later, these words have become cliche and have lost potency.

A cliche, says the Oxford Dictionary, is "a phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original thought." 

According to the Writing Center at The University of North Carolina, the dependence on cliches could create a harmful perception of a business that uses them. For instance, these overused phrases can make an advertiser's message seem boring. They can be perceived as vague. They can be interpreted to be a sign of laziness. They can also result in a lack of credibility. 

The words a Charlotte small business chooses for its advertising will have the most significant effect on sales. That's why eliminating cliches is critical.

This year, according to Nielsen, 2.1 million Charlotte area consumers will spend $1.2 billion on eco-friendly goods and services. Sales for sustainable products have grown 20% since 2014, a trend expected to continue into 2021.

Tensie Whelan and Randi Kronthal-Sacco of the New York University Stern Center for Sustainable Business write in the Harvard Business Review, "Consumers are voting with their dollars against unsustainable brands. The legacy companies that will thrive are those that accept this shift and are willing to pivot.” 

For Charlotte small business owners who are skeptical that sustainability affects purchase decisions, retail analyst Stacey Widlitz provided this advice, recently, in Forbes.

"Retailers only need to look to IBM's recent study, in association with the National Retail Federation, to understand just how fast consumer priorities are changing," says Ms. Widlitz. "Findings from the study revealed nearly 60% of consumers surveyed are willing to change their shopping habits to reduce environmental impact. For the nearly 80% of respondents who said sustainability is important to them over 70% would pay a premium of 35% on average."

To compete for a share of consumers' spending on green goods and services requires local small business owners to advertise.

Before the onset of COVID-19, more than 420,00 Charlotte area households were planning to spend $794 million on furniture, according to Nielsen. Unfortunately, many of those plans were put on pause as consumers sheltered in place to help slow the spread of the virus.

A recent study by Elevate | SmithGeiger suggests that the fortunes of home furnishing retailers, however, are about to improve.

According to the study, 32% of consumers who had been planning to buy furniture will do so within three months of the pandemic easing. Fifty percent will do so within six months. The numbers for mattress shoppers are even stronger.

To capture a significant share of the post-pandemic sales of furniture and mattress will require retailers to advertise. The most effective way to reach the customers who are ready to buy is on Charlotte radio.

There are more than 1.8 million registered voters in the Charlotte radio metro. Here is the number by county:

• Anson, NC: 16,119
• Cabarrus, NC: 141,766
• Cleveland, NC: 63,751
• Gaston, NC: 142,410
• Iredell, NC: 122,498
• Lincoln, NC: 58,579
• Mecklenburg, NC: 656,499
• Rowan, NC: 92,556
• Stanly, NC: 41,315
• Union, NC: 104,583
• Chester, SC: 20,500
• Lancaster, SC: 63,046
• York, SC: 182,926

According to Nielsen, Charlotte radio reaches significantly more of these registered voters than all other media, including local television pay-TV, newspaper, social media platforms, and streaming audio sites like Pandora or Spotify.

Following the lead of many national marketers, some Charlotte area small business owners are considering canceling or, at minimum, pausing their advertising schedules with social media network Facebook and its co-owned photo-sharing platform, Instagram.

According to the New York Times, "more than 400 companies, from Coca-Cola and Adidas to Ford and Lego, have vowed to halt advertising on the social network, in a growing protest over how it handles hate speech and other harmful content".

With the pandemic figured in, Charlotte small business owners were expected to spend $131 million on Facebook and Instagram advertising in 2020. This is according to Borrell Associates, a firm that specializes in the collection and analysis of local marketing expenditures in every city across the United States. But these expenditures could shrink if the protests become louder.

Every type of Charlotte business imaginable, including clothing stores, plumbers, HVAC repair, funeral homes, restaurants, dentists, and nonprofits, has come to realize how powerfully social media can contribute to their bottom lines.

Part of what makes Facebook and Instagram attractive to small business owners is the enormous reach these platforms have among consumers. Locally, the audience size for these two social media sites now rival Charlotte radio, TV, cable, and newspaper outlets.

For small business owners considering a hiatus from social media advertising, there is a viable way to redirect these dollars into a different medium without losing the marketing equity or momentum built-up on Facebook.

Based on statistics from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, before the COVID-19 crisis, Charlotte households were putting more than $6.5 billion in the bank every year. 

Since February, however, Charlotte area banks and credit unions noticed that customers' savings accounts were beginning to swell to record levels.

According to the Federal Reserve, for many years, the personal savings rate has hovered well below 10%.  The PSR is the percentage of personal disposable income that remains after taxes and all other spending.

In April of this year, the PSR hit an all-time high of 33%. The rate remained at stratospheric levels in May, as well. The previous record high was 17.3% in September of 1975 at the tail-end of a deep recession.

There are more than 2819 banks and credit unions in North Carolina that would love to earn a large share of this infusion of new savings. To compete, though, requires advertising.  By almost any metric, the best way to reach new depositors is by advertising on Charlotte radio.

From Davidson to Indian Trail (and every point in between), Charlotte area real estate agents see a robust, post-pandemic market shaping up. Home sales are being driven by record low-interest rates.

The average rate for a 30-year fixed rate in June is 3.17%, according to Freddie Mac. This is down from 3.99% June of last year. That difference could save a Charlotte area home buyer close to $30,000 over the term of a loan.

Data from the Federal Reserve indicates that one of the fast-growing segments of the current real estate market is starter homes. Sales in May for these modest price houses have risen above pre-COVID-19 levels and have hit a three year high.

Feuling the starter home market is demand from millennials. This generation now comprises 37% of all home buyers, says the National Association of Realtors Research Group.

To claim a large share of the market for starter homes, local real estate agents will need to advertise to attract these buyers.  By almost any metric, advertising on Charlotte radio is the best way to reach millennials planning to buy a house, condo, or co-op over the next year.

During lockdown, Charlotte consumers have been postponing the purchase of major appliances.  Despite the pause in buying, however, local shoppers are still expected to spend $146 million this year on ovens, stoves, refrigerators, freezers, washing machines, dryers, and dishwashers.

Here's how appliance sales in the Charlotte area will breakdown by category:

• Cooking: $39,000,000
• Refrigerator/Freezer: $36,000,000
• Laundry: $30,000,000
• Other: $39,000,000

Based on traditional buying patterns, at least 60% of all major appliance sales will occur between now and December.

To capture a larger share of all this spending will require local appliance dealers to advertise.

“Think you have a great product?” asks the U.S. Small Business Administration. “Unfortunately, no one’s going to know about it unless you advertise.”

The SBA goes on to say, “Advertising, if done correctly, can do wonders for your product sales, and you know what that means: more revenue and more success for your business”. 

By almost any measure, advertising on Charlotte radio is the best choice for local appliance store owners.

Despite the pandemic, Charlotte area consumers are expected to spend $139 million on fine jewelry this year. Based on projections from IBISWorld, here's what will be purchased:

• $58 million worth of diamonds
• $20 million worth of watches
• $13 million worth of gold
• $16 million worth of pearls and gemstones
• $29 million in other goods and services

Charlotte area business owners will now have an easier time capturing a bigger share of jewelry expenditures as a monster competitive force disappears.

This week, Signet, the largest jewelry retailer in the country, announced that by December, it would be closing over 380 stores.  Signet's brands familiar to North Carolina consumers include Kay, Jared, Zales, and Piercing Pagoda.

To successfully compete for the void created by fewer Signet stores, local retailers will need to advertise, especially between now and the end of the year. This is when 63% of all fine-jewelry sales traditionally occur.

By any metric, the best way to reach local jewelry buyers is by advertising on Charlotte radio.

At the dawn of 2020, Charlotte small business owners were expecting the area's retail economy to expand by 4.1%. This optimism was stoked by the National Retail Federation's chief economist who said, "Consumers remain upbeat and have the confidence to spend, and the steady wage growth that has come with the strong job market is fueling their spending. The state of the consumer is very healthy."

By February, however, the country entered into a COVID-19 induced recession. Then, to slow the spread of the pandemic, on March 30, the Governor of North Carolina locked the state down. This brought the Charlotte area's $54.1 billion retail economy to a standstill.

As stores, restaurants, and offices in the Charlotte area begin to re-open, consumers' appetite for spending is returning. According to Nielsen, loyal radio listeners are very likely to be first in line at the cash registers.

Charlotte small business owners are learning that 're-opening' may not be an appropriate word for the challenges they face as the Coronavirus crisis winds down.  A better term might be 're-introducing'.

Since the Governor of North Carolina shuttered the state on March 30, to slow the spread of COVID-19, Charlotte area consumers have discovered new ways to buy the goods and services they need.  It's now the burden of local business owners to lure these customers back. The first step is re-introduction.

On March 18, 1922, WBT signed-on as the first radio station serving Charlotte, North Carolina. Since then, local business owners have used radio advertising to introduce themselves successfully to new customers. Radio has also helped these businesses survive recessions, depressions, world wars, hurricanes, and floods. By any metric, advertising on Charlotte radio remains the most effective tactic a small business owner can use post-pandemic, as well.

More than 95% of Charlotte area households own at least one vehicle. 

Pre-pandemic, 86.5% of workers spent, on average, 58 minutes every weekday in these cars commuting to-and-from their jobs.  

On their way to work, many of these drivers would contribute to the Charlotte area's $49.6 billion retail economy by visiting the convenience stores, coffeehouses, auto repair centers, gas stations, daycares, grocery stores, or hundreds of other businesses they passed.

At lunchtime, these same cars would take their owners to restaurants, dentist appointments, nail appointments, barbershops, and on an infinite number of other errands.

On the weekends, these vehicles filled the parking lots of hardware stores, furniture stores, car dealers, appliance stores, bowling alleys, movie theatres, and nightclubs, 

Then on March 30, when the Governor of North Carolina shut down the state to slow the spread of COVID-19, traffic came to a standstill and so did the spending.

There are strong indications, though, that in the Charlotte area, roads are filling up again.

Charlotte small business owners may perceive the continuation of advertising as a luxury right now. This is especially so when compared to the necessity for covering the costs of utilities, inventory, payroll, and rent.

Before pulling the plug, though, business owners from Huntersville to Rock Hill must consider the consequences of 'going dark', a marketing term which means to stop advertising.

"According to our analysis, short-term decisions to go dark create significant risk for long-term revenue," says Ameneh Atai, Senior Vice President of Commercial Strategy at Nielsen. "This affects both incremental revenue and base sales."

"Our database of long-term effects models suggests that cutting ad spending for the rest of 2020 could lead up-to 11% revenue decrease in 2021," says Ms. Atai. "It could take three to five years of solid and consistent brand building to recover from an extended dark period of media."

"We have a ton of evidence in our historical analysis," adds Nielsen's Tsvetan Tsvetkov, Senior Vice President of Agency and Advertiser Solutions. "Companies that step away from advertising efforts for a period of time, whether it's a couple of quarters or a full year or longer lose the momentum they have built over time the minute they stop. To recover takes a long, long time."

To avoid the economic risks of going dark, local small business owners need to make sure every dollar spent on advertising produces solid returns.  By most marketing metrics, advertising on Charlotte radio could prove to be the best option.

Type "CHARLOTTE REAL ESTATE AGENTS" into Google. In slightly over a half-second, the search will deliver 350,0000,000 results. Similar searches for Matthews, Mount Holly, Huntersville, Indian Trail, Gastonia, or Rock Hill produce a proportional number of returns.

Despite the economic hardships imposed by the Coronavirus crisis on Charlotte area consumers, the demand for real estate is booming. 

The Wall Street Journal published a trend yesterday indicating that mortgage applications for purchase a home have achieved levels equal to last year.

According to redfin.com, home buying demand is 16.5% higher now than it was pre-COVID-19 on a seasonally adjusted basis.

Redfin attributes this explosive growth in real estate shoppers to two factors, including record-low mortgage rates. The other primary driver is a migration trend from expensive metropolitan areas as buyers hunt for more space at lower prices.

To capture a larger share of the robust market, local real estate agents need to stand apart from the millions of Google results.  Advertising on Charlotte radio will help accomplish this.  Here's why.

To slow the spread of COVID-19, the Governor of North Carolina shut down all but the most essential businesses in the state on March 30. This public safety measure inflicted a severe disruption to the Charlotte area's $54.1 billion retail economy.

As local small business owners prepare to reopen, each must concentrate on supercharging their cash flows to compensate for weeks of consumer abstinence. Turning the lights back on and hanging out a welcome sign might not be enough, though, to bring even the most loyal customers back.

Some customers may not return because of personal safety concerns. Other customers may have discovered alternative sources to purchase goods and services.

But, there is one thing every Charlotte small business owner can be assured of. Consumers will not return if they aren't aware that a business has reopened.

Advertising is a potent tactic for any North Carolina small business that needs to reintroduce itself to local consumers.

“Think you have a great product?” asks the U.S. Small Business Administration. “Unfortunately, no one’s going to know about it unless you advertise.”

COVID-19 has had a profound effect on cash register receipts in the Charlotte area. Every day small business owners from Ballantyne to Davidson are being challenged by the pandemic induced recession.

Just yesterday, for instance, the US Commerce Department announced that April retail sales were down by 20% vs. the same month last year. This is sure to take a massive bite out of the $49.6 billion in annual consumer spending Charlotte area businesses had been expecting in 2020.

“April was the cruelest month,” Craig Johnson, president of Customer Growth Partners, told the Wall Street Journal. "Retail spending likely bottomed out in the first week of May with spending picking up due to Mother’s Day and gradual state reopenings.

“It’s going to be less worse with each month,” said Mr. Johnson, “as people slowly come out of the foxhole and enter the mainstream of American consumerism.”

The ability of a Charlotte area small business to survive past the lockdowns will depend on the steps it takes now.

WARC, a company that collaborates with more than 50 respected marketing organizations, including the Advertising Research Foundation and the Association of National Advertisers, has identified ten tactics that businesses should implement immediately. The #2 step on this list: Keep advertising if you can.

Pay-TV is struggling to survive COVID-19.

Before the onset of the pandemic, Nielsen reported that 61.4% of Charlotte area households received their television programs from cable systems, telephone companies, or satellite operators.  That number, however, is plummeting.

Pay-TV providers in the Charlotte area include AT&T TV, Dish, Spectrum, Google Fiber, and DirecTV.

"Cord-cutting, people dropping their cable and satellite TV subscriptions, pre-dates the onset of Covid-19. But the pandemic is exaggerating the trend, creating deeper issuers for programming that relies on those services for distribution," Eric Savitz wrote last week in Barron's.  This includes non-premium services like ESPN, TBS, TNT, USA, CNN, and Discovery.

"LightShed Partners analyst Richard Greenfield counts a loss of 1.96 million subscribers to cable, satellite TV, and virtual cable services combined in the first quarter," Savitz continued. "This is the worst combined quarterly drop ever, down 6% from a year ago."

Greenfield said in an interview with Barron’s that what is especially sobering is that most of the first quarter activity pre-dated the virus. The numbers are likely to get considerably worse in the second quarter.

In January, Charlotte small business owners were in a panic. The unemployment rate was at a record low 3.2%, and there were not enough workers to fill their open jobs. 

As of today, though, North Carolina is reporting that at least one-in-five of the state's workforce have lost their jobs for COVID-19 related reasons. Yet, many small business owners are still struggling to find employees.

According to The Wall Street Journal, "For some workers, unemployment benefits are now paying more than their old jobs did. For others, safety concerns or a lack of child care, as most schools and day-care centers remain closed, are making them hesitant to go back."

“That’s going to get in the way of any real recovery,” Douglas Holtz-Eakin, president of American Action Forum and former director of the Congressional Budget Office, told WSJ.

The struggle to hire employees creates an additional threat for those Charlotte small business owners who received loans under the SBA's Paycheck Protection Program.  

To qualify for the loan forgiveness provision of the PPP, business owners must restore its workforce to pre-Coronavirus levels. This must be accomplished within eight weeks of receiving the monies.

So, just like in January, local small business owners are under pressure to fill open jobs. Advertising on Charlotte radio is a potent way to attract and hire the needed employees.

Facebook usage has swelled since the onset of the Covid-19. 

According to Nielsen, before the current chaos, 75% of Charlotte area adults used Facebook each month. This was significantly fewer than were reached by local radio each week.

According to the New York Times, however, since the start of the Coronavirus, daily Facebook traffic has increased by 27%. This compares to 33% growth in the amount of time consumers spend listening to local radio during a similar period.

Based on the surge in Facebook consumption, Charlotte small business owners might be tempted to purchase advertising on the social media platform to augment their regular, free postings. Here are are few facts these businesses should consider before investing.

Business was booming in Charlotte. Then it was not.

Before the chaos brought on by Coronavirus, it had been predicted, based on estimates from the National Retail Federation, Charlotte area consumers would spend 4.1% more in 2020 than they did in 2019. On March 30, however, when North Carolina's Governor shut down the state, the expectations of growth for many small business owners were replaced with fights for survival.

As the state prepares to reopen, Charlotte area small businesses will learn that turning the lights back on and hanging out the welcome sign might not be enough to bring even the most loyal customers back.

Some customers will not return because of personal safety concerns. Other customers may have discovered alternative sources to purchase goods and services.

More likely, though, customers will not come back because a business has lost a valued parcel of real estate: the position at the top of a customer's mind. This is the place where purchase decisions are made.

There is a way to regain top-of-mind status. First, though, it's important to understand why a business can be forgotten so quickly. 

For Charlotte small business owners, marketing and advertising are crucial to surviving any crisis, including Coronavirus. The business literature has an abundance of case studies from depressions, recessions, natural disasters, and, yes, pandemics that affirm this existential conclusion.

Advertising, however, may seem extravagant right now to North Carolina businesses that are struggling to make rent, purchase inventory, and meet payroll. Henry Ford, though, is often quoted as saying, "Stopping advertising to save money is like stopping a clock to save time."

Therefore, as business owners from Rock Hill to Davidson (and every point in between) are cinching their belts tighter-than-ever to stay alive, the dollars invested in advertising must be spent in the most effective manner possible.

During periods of uncertainty, advertising works the hardest when placed in within media that consumers trust.  During the time of COVID-19, advertising on Charlotte radio has earned that trust among local consumers.

Since the onset of the Coronavirus crisis, consumers are not flocking into the showrooms, storefronts, offices, or dining rooms of Charlotte small business owners. It turns out, though, social distancing has not proven to be an impediment to shopping.

North Carolina consumers are still spending money despite the chaos imposed by the pandemic, according to Gordon Borrell, CEO of Borrell & Associates. His company specializes in the collection of marketing data from business owners across the country.

"During depressions, recessions, floods, hurricane, earthquakes, fires, and, now, pandemics, commerce goes on," Mr. Borell told members of Charlotte's small business community during a recent teleconference.

To prove his point, he shared research from IBISworld  which, indicates spending continues despite a plunge in consumer confidence.

Every week, 1,827,300 adult consumers tune-in to a Charlotte radio station. That is way more than are reached by other media, including local television, newspaper, social media, or streaming audio sites like Pandora and Spotify.

A more significant number for thousands of North Carolina small business owners who advertise on Charlotte radio is how many of these listeners stick around when their commercials come on.

A 2011 Nielsen study discovered that, on average, 93% of listeners stayed with the radio station they are tuned-to when the commercials come on. That number amazed many advertisers at the time who believed that audiences were far more likely to defect when the music stopped.

A lot has changed since 2011. Charlotte area consumers have many more media options and can instantly connect to each  with a button-push, mouse-click, screen-tap, or voice command. With all of these choices, do radio audiences still stay tuned during commercial breaks?

The chaos created in North Carolina by the onset of Coronavirus has been a disruptive force among consumers. 

Work routines, buying habits, family life, and media consumption have all been palpably affected. These are all factors that need to be considered by small business owners who continue to advertise their goods and services during the crisis.

Before the current chaos, advertising on Charlotte radio, by any metric, was the best way a local small business could advertise.

For instance, pre-Coronavirus, 1.8 million adult consumers tuned-in to a Charlotte radio station every week. This is significantly more than watched local TV, read a newspaper, accessed social media, or streamed audio from sites like Pandora and Spotify.

New research released from Nielsen indicates that amidst the current crisis, listening to local radio remains little changed. This is great news for those Charlotte small business owners who are depending on advertising for their long-term survival.

Suppose a Charlotte small business owner woke up one morning and found a 100-year-old machine in the basement of her store. She soon discovered that every time a dime was put into the machine, one dollar came out.  Imagine, now, how profitable that business would become.

Good news: such a contraption exists,  and every business owner probably has one in their car, in their store, in their home, even on their phone. It's called Charlotte radio.

Over the past few years, Nielsen has conducted more than 20 studies to determine what type of return-on-investment (ROI) a business owner  can expect from radio advertising.  Although the results varied by industry, the average company generated $100 in sales for every $10 invested. Turning dimes into dollars.

In 'normal' times, Charlotte consumers would be expected to rack up $49.6 billion in annual retail sales. Of course, since the onset of the Coronavirus crisis, nothing has been normal.

But as Gordon Borrell, CEO of Borrell Associates, explained to members of the Charlotte area small business community via teleconference, consumers are still spending. This, it turns out, is normal.

Mr. Borrell shared research from Ibis that demonstrates during every type of crisis, including depressions, recessions, floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, fires, and, now, pandemics, consumers still spend.

The business literature contains an abundance of examples of how continuing to market and advertise during an economic crisis can help a company survive and emerge from the episode even stronger than before.

Charlotte small business owners who do continue to advertise and market, however, should consider modifying their pre-crisis strategy.

In a typical week, 1.8 million adult consumers tune-in to Charlotte radio stations.  But, since the onset of the Coronavirus, the weeks have not been typical.

Before social-distancing and work-from-home orders, 1.2 million Charlotte-area consumers would drive to-and-from work each day. More than 90% of these commuters could be reached by radio.  

Charlotte small business owners who depend on radio advertising to market their goods and services, therefore, might be concerned that the disruption in commuting patterns could depress the amount of time consumers spend with local radio.

According to market research, however, radio listening remains an important part of the daily life of consumers. Even amid the current chaos.

Charlotte small business owners are fighting the coronavirus battles on multiple fronts.  Their first objective is to keep their families and employees safe. Then, of course, there are the concerns of keeping their businesses healthy enough to survive current disruptions.

The business literature has an abundance of case studies showing how survival is often connected to a thoughtful communications and marketing strategy during challenging times.  

Business owners need to let North Carolina consumers know if they are still open. If their hours have changed. Or if they are providing alternative shopping methods (e.g., delivery, curbside pick-up).

Most importantly, it is imperative consumers know that a business will still be there for them when the crisis is over.

For those owners who are depending on communication to preserve their business, the best option may be to advertise on Charlotte radio.

Charlotte retailers spend a considerable amount of time and money marketing their small businesses on social media.  Is this effort paying off?

Each month, according to Nielsen, 1.5 million Charlotte area adults use Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. This equates to 72% of consumers.  This reach is rather anemic compared to Charlotte radio and TV, which attracts considerably more users in a single week than these social media platforms do over 30 days.

Among local millennials, the monthly reach of Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter is eclipsed by the weekly reach of Charlotte radio.

The number of consumers reached by an advertising campaign, according to Nielsen, is the media consideration that has the most significant effect on increasing sales. 

The top concern of every Charlotte small business owner is the health and safety of their families and employees.  Local information and breaking news regarding the Coronavirus is available by clicking here.

Of course, a secondary concern is tending to the health of their business amid an overabundance of social and financial disruptions. 

There is one prescription that helped many Charlotte area businesses survive the Great Depression of 1929, the economic crash of 2009, and every recession in between.  The Rx for keeping a business healthy during chaotic times is to continue advertising.

The best example of how advertising can fend off tough times was shared by The New Yorker magazine financial columnist James Surowiecki.

"As a non-profit, we have to be very thoughtful about how we spend our marketing funds," says Emily Cook, Marketing and Communications Director at The Humane Society of Charlotte.

"That's why we invest the biggest chunk of our budget in advertising on Charlotte radio. I have the data that proves it works."

Founded in 1978, The Humane Society of Charlotte, HSC for short, is a no-kill animal shelter that takes in more than 3000 homeless cats and dogs each year. "We are able to place nearly every pet taken in into a loving and caring family," says Ms. Cook.

"In addition to pet adoptions, we also have a huge commitment to community outreach," she says. "This includes having three full-time vets on staff who perform more than 12,000 low-cost spay and neuter surgeries per year. This really helps reduce the population of the  homeless animals in the area."

HSC also works with members of the community who are temporarily unable to care for their dogs and cats, primarily due to financial hardship. This includes stocking a pet food bank.

"Our goal is to keep these loved animals out of the shelter and in their homes with their families," says Ms. Cook.

It costs HSC more than $4 million each year to fulfill its mission of delivering effective, innovative services that strengthen the human-animal bond and improve the lives of companion animals and the people who care about them.

Seven years ago, the first Bisonte Pizza Co. location fired-up its ovens.

"Advertising on Charlotte radio really accelerated our growth," says Jim DaPolito. He and his older brother Steven are the owners and co-founders of the small business.

"Injust three years, with the help of our radio commercials, we had already achieved our year five sales goals."

The brothers were convinced to move to North Carolina from their native Buffalo, New York, by Steven's son, who had moved to Charlotte in 2007.

My son believed that someone could do very well down here serving up Buffalo-style pizza and wings," says Steven. "So, when he told me my first grandchild was on the way, I decided to quit my job in the automotive business in New York and move to Charlotte to open a restaurant."

Fortunately, Jim, who had 38 years in the food business, including running the largest pizza restaurant in the country, decided to make the move with his brother.

There are 1.3 million consumers in Charlotte who own their own home. 

According to Zillow, more than 60% of homeowners carry a mortgage. A record number of owners are considering refinancing  now, which means millions of dollars in fees for local lenders and brokers are up for grabs.

Why the sudden urgency for Charlotte homeowners to refinance their mortgages?

According to The Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (aka, Freddie Mac), "The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage hit a record 3.29% this week, the lowest level in its nearly 50-year history."

"Meanwhile, mortgage applications increased 10 percent last week from one year ago and show no signs of slowing down. Given these strong indicators in rates and sales, as well as recent increases in new construction, it’s clear the housing market continues to be a positive force for the broader economy."

If a consumer Googles 'refinance my mortgage in Charlotte', more than 8.1 million results come back, So, to set themselves apart, lenders and brokers will need to advertise.  By, any key metric, advertising on local radio is the best way to reach area homeowners.

Charlotte consumers spent more than $49 billion with retailers last year. The National Retail Federation forecasts 4.1% more will be spent this year.

Who are the shoppers that will be spending all this money?

According to Nielsen, 47.8% of retail dollars are spent by Charlotte area consumers over the age of 50. This may surprise many small business owners because older consumers comprise only 36.6% of the area's adult population.

These older consumers account for the largest share of spending in almost every retail category. This includes furniture, cars, pet supplies, fast food, and electronics.

To earn a share of these massive dollars spent by these older consumers requires Charlotte small business owners to advertise.

Retailers in the Charlotte area rang-up $49,607,009,000 in retail sales last year, according to Nielsen. But wait. It's about to get better.

The National Retail Federation forecasts that in 2020, sales will increase by as much as 4.1%. This will create another $2.1 billion for local small business owners.  

“The economy is growing at a more modest pace, but the underlying economic fundamentals remain in place and are positive,” stated NRF chief economist Jack Kleinhenz. “Consumers remain upbeat and have the confidence to spend, and the steady wage growth that has come with the strong job market is fueling their spending. The state of the consumer is very healthy.

To claim a fair share of this enlarged pool of spending will require Charlotte small business owners to advertise.

“Think you have a great product?” asks the U.S. Small Business Administration. “Unfortunately, no one’s going to know about it unless you advertise.”  

There is alarming news for small business owners who advertise on Charlotte television stations: broadcast TV viewers are disappearing at a rapid pace.

Nielsen reports that halfway through the first quarter of this year, the number of people using television has dropped 7.5%. This compares to -6.3% in the fourth quarter of 2019, and -7.0% a year ago,

"If the trend holds, it would represent the largest quarterly decline for TV viewership in our data set," explains UBS analyst John C. Hodulikadding. "Trends have worsened across most age demos with persons 25-34 now falling -17% vs. low double-digit declines throughout 2019. The persons 55+ demo continues to trend down -2%, similar to 2019 (the first year of declining ratings for the demo)."

Radio listenership, on the other hand, has remained quite stable, according to Nielsen. Since 1970, the medium has reached more than 9-in-10 consumers every week.

How quickly the millennials have grown up.

According to Nielsen, 51% of all Charlotte area parents with children under the age of 18 are millennials.  

From the time their kids are born until they reach they are 17, these young parents will spend, on average, $233,000 per child. This does not include the cost of college.

Currently, there are 566,078 children under the age of 18 living in the Charlotte metro area. That makes the local parenting economy worth upwards of $131 billion. These dollars are being spent, among other things, on diapers, daycare, transportation, toys, education, electronics, clothing, and health care.

For North Carolina small business owners interested in competing for a substantial portion of this multi-billion dollar pool of parental cash, they must advertise to millennial moms and dads. By almost any measurement, advertising on Charlotte radio is the best way to reach this audience.

"In the 24 years I have owned my business, I never advertised," says Andy Huneycutt, founder of Indian Trail based Huneycutt Mechanical Services. "But last year I realized my company was standing still. So, we started advertising on Charlotte radio."

"I did a lot of research," he says, "and I found out that the most successful local companies were investing 8-10% of their gross sales back into advertising. They would do this consistently every year. The more money they made, the more they would advertise."

"As I was growing closer to retirement, I had to ask myself if I could really afford to invest that kind of money into advertising," he says.  "Then, I looked at the commitment my son made to take over the business in a few years and realized I couldn't afford not to advertise."

March is the biggest single month for used car sales in the Charlotte area. During these 31 days alone, local pre-owned vehicle dealers are expected to bring in $101 million in sales. This will represent 10% of their annual revenue.

By the end of May, these dealers owners will sell more than $282 million worth of pre-owned cars and trucks. This, undoubtedly, makes March-May 'used car season' in Charlotte.

Although most Charlotte used car dealers are small business owners, they do really big business. In all, over the next 12 months, more than 349,000 pre-owned vehicles will be driven off their lots.

To capture a larger share of the area's $1.1 billion used car market requires pre-owned vehicle dealers to advertise. By any measure, the best way for these business owners to advertise is on Charlotte radio.