Critical Mass Insights Releases New Study Demonstrating How Radio Advertising Improves Consumers’ Engagement With Social Media Advertising

New York NY (April 28, 2025) - Critical Mass Insights, a leading audio research firm, released findings today from a study designed to understand how consumers respond to media messages in today’s crowded media landscape. The study found that 55 percent of radio listeners are more likely to click a social media link advertising a product or service if they’ve heard it advertised on the radio -- with the average listener saying they’re twice as likely to click a link for a product they’ve heard advertised on the radio than for one they haven’t.

25-44 year olds -- those most likely to be in the full-time workforce, early parenthood, and early homeownership -- are even more likely to say that hearing about a product or service on the radio first makes them more likely to click on an ad for a product later, with 64 percent of this group saying they’re more likely to click on links for products they’ve been hearing about on-air.

“Consumers are inundated with advertising every day, on every platform, and they’re increasingly navigating an environment that includes fake AI-generated content, so it’s no surprise that first hearing about a product in the trusted, familiar environment of broadcast radio increases the legitimacy of the advertiser and the product in their minds,” CMI President Lainie Fertick explains. “This research confirms and builds on our research noting that 8 in 10 consumers trust broadcast radio hosts to recommend products and services to them, even as trust in other media is eroding.”

The research also demonstrates that:

1. 72 percent of consumers are more likely to notice social media advertising for a product after they’ve heard about it on the radio.
2. 7 in 10 consumers say they’re more likely to read a social media ad for a product they’ve heard about on the radio.
3. Two thirds of consumers say they’re more likely to try a new product after they’ve heard about it on the radio.

This consumer behavior is true across the country, across the political spectrum, and even across usage levels; 6 in 10 “lighter” listeners of radio say they’re more likely to engage with social media posts from brands they’ve heard about on the radio. It’s most notable among Black and Hispanic consumers, three quarters of whom say hearing about a product first on the radio makes them more likely to click on an ad later.

The research also showed that radio influences decisions about what to buy at the store and where to stop for lunch:

1. 44 percent say they’re more likely to buy a product they see in the grocery store if they heard about it on the radio first.
2. 49 percent of consumers say they’re more likely to visit a fast-food restaurant after hearing about it on the radio.

“This research highlights how radio can help brands cut through today’s advertising clutter and make them more top-of-mind -- not just in that moment when listeners hear an ad, but later, when they come across a product in a store, in a digital ad, or while driving down the highway. Hearing about a brand in a high-attention environment, like radio, changes how they respond to that brand in a more crowded environment. When we’re hearing a lot about a product or brand, it’s much more likely to be a part of our consideration set, and radio is how we hear about what’s going on in our communities. Consumers are confirming what the radio industry has always known: Audio improves the performance of other media,” said Fertick.

Consumer Methodology:
National survey of 1,000 consumers ages 18-64
Race, ethnicity, and geography matched to Census targets
Critical Mass Insights, March 25th-27th, 2025