Metro Detroit 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 Southeast Michigan 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 Detroit radio.

Metro Detroit 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, 2.2 million Southeast Michigan adults use Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. This equates to 65% of consumers.  This reach is rather anemic compared to Detroit 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 Detroit 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. 

"Our franchisees love advertising on Detroit radio," says Katherine Villeneuve, Director of Marketing & Franchise Support for Auto-Lab. "They understand that radio reaches the masses, and can achieve the messaging frequency to be effective."

Auto-Lab started in 1989 as a single-independent store in Sturgis, Michigan. The company has expanded to include 21 franchises across the country. Nine of the stores are located in Metro Detroit, each operated by a local, small business owner.

Auto-Lab offers consumers the same diagnostic, maintenance, repairs, and parts as a car dealership's service department but, for what Ms. Villeneuve describes as a 'fair price'.

To drive traffic into one of Auto-Lab stores in Southeast Michigan, each franchisee contributes 3% of their gross sales to a cooperative marketing fund. Ms. Villeneuve then works with the owners to create persuasive, annual advertising campaigns.

"Each of the owners has input into how the money is spent," she says. "Afterall, because they are in the stores every day, they have the best sense who their customers are."

For the last four years, the Metro Detroit Auto-Lab owners have chosen advertising on Detroit radio as the primary way to reach new customers.

Retailers in Southeast Michigan rang-up $78,314,821,000 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 $3.2 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 Metro Detroit 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.”  

Advertising is critical to the success of every Southeast Michigan small business owner.  One of the most powerful elements of any advertising campaign is how many people it reaches.

Nielsen, the world's largest consumer insights company, found that advertising reach has a more significant effect on sales than branding, recency, and context.

There are many ways a local business owner can advertise. This includes traditional media like Detroit radio, local TV, and newspaper. It also includes online advertising options, such as Facebook, Instagram, and Pandora.

The type of customer an individual business needs to reach depends on the goods and services a company sells. For instance, a daycare operator might want to reach households with young children. On the other hand, a real estate agent could be looking for consumers in the market to purchase a new home.

It's time to set some misguided Southeast Michigan small business owners straight: When we say everybody listens to Detroit radio stations, we mean everybody.  Generations X, Y, and Z. Also, Boomers, and, yes, the millennial generation.

You know...millennials. Those are the "kids" who came of age at the turn of the millennium (which is, debatably, either 2000 or 2001).  This means 18-34 year olds. 

In Metro Detroit, 970,000 millennials make-up 29% of the adult population and will deliver $24.4 billion to local cash registers.

But here's the thing about millennials that many Michigan small business owners get wrong: millennials listen to the radio.  Almost all of them. 91.6% of them, to be exact.

As Valentine's Day becomes a sweet memory, that's when Metro Detroit small business owners start thinking about Mom.

Mother's Day, which happens on the second Sunday of May, is second only to Christmas in terms of holiday spending. Last year, Southeast Michigan consumers spent more than $345-million celebrating the women in their lives. That number is expected to grow again in 2020.

To claim a significant share of this Mother's Day cash, local retailers and restaurants will need to advertise.  By almost every key metric, advertising on Detroit radio is the best choice.