LeadsRx, iHeartMedia Release New Automotive Attribution Study

Marketing attribution software company LeadsRx and iHeartMedia have released the findings from their new marketing attribution study focused on automotive radio advertising. In 2018, the automotive industry accounted for $1.2 trillion in motor vehicle sales and parts sales in the U.S. The study upends common advertising misconceptions about the ways consumers shop online for cars and highlights radio’s key role in driving immediate and measurable results for automotive businesses.

The study found that radio reaches new potential customers; the majority of radio attributable web traffic is from new customers who had never previously visited the site; endorsements drive two times the response and produces optimal results because radio is a companion; and the top factors for successful radio marketing are reach and frequency. In addition, the study uncovered several best practices in how to plan an effective automotive radio campaign leveraging dayparts, days of week, ad length, and the number of radio stations included in the campaign.


As one of the largest studies ever conducted for automotive radio advertising, iHeartMedia and LeadsRx used advanced marketing attribution technology to analyze the impact of radio advertising over the course of 17 months, for more than 300 automotive advertisers, across nearly 2 million commercials and across all major automotive brands.

“The iHeartMedia/LeadsRx study provides a great deal of insight and helps automotive advertisers to get the quantifiable results they need to develop the most effective advertising strategy,” said John Karpinski, Executive Vice President of Automotive Business Development and Partnerships for iHeartMedia, Inc. “Importantly, the use of attribution upended several commonly held industry misconceptions as to what makes for a successful advertising campaign. We are now fully committed to marketing attribution to drive 100 percent of our automotive advertising business.”

There are several misconceptions about the most effective media, days, time, advertisement length and advertising budget in regards to automotive ads.

iHeartMedia/LeadsRx’s study uncovered five important takeaways:

• Radio drives immediate web traffic response for automotive advertisers. Automotive advertisers earned an average 17 percent lift in web traffic attributable to radio marketing. In addition, the web traffic response is immediate – within 10 minutes of hearing a commercial.
• For optimal results, advertisers should air ads seven days per week versus just on specific days. Those who advertise seven days a week saw +90 percent greater results than those who advertised three to four days per week. Automotive advertisers running only in the second half of the week are missing out on the opportunity to capture online shoppers in the early portion of the week.
• Car shopping aligns with radio listening because car shopping is primarily a daytime activity, which is also when radio has its largest audience. The study found web traffic response to advertising is two times greater from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. than in evenings or overnight.
• The study found that automotive advertisers who found the best results used multiple ads of varying lengths. Campaigns with multiple ad lengths outperformed campaigns with single ad lengths by over two times. Advertisers seeking to build additional reach and frequency with a limited budget may see improved results by adding :05s and :15s ads to existing schedules, when the message applies.
• Overall, the most important determinant for a successful market campaign is reach and frequency – that is, the number of people who hear your ad, and the number of times they hear it. Running 10 commercials per day using a mix of ad lengths, dayparts, stations and days of the week can lead to a two times greater web traffic response rate.