We have been part of internet radio promotion groups for about five years now. And we’ve seen firsthand how many station owners have generated exposure for their radio stations. The groups offer a sense of community and even serve as a hub for knowledge and learning. Today’s piece tackles the ins and outs of promoting your station on Facebook. We’ll spotlight some of the top groups to join, which groups allow promotions, and how to create your promotions. Let’s get started and hopefully, you’ll save a lot of time and copy strategies that work.
Best Facebook Groups for Online Radio Station Promotion Promoting your station on Facebook starts by selecting a good group. Here are some of the top groups to check:
1. Internet Radio Promotion
Population: 5.7K members
Status: Public
Group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/INTERNETRADIOPROMOTION
Open to all radio stations and DJs, the group is quite popular evidenced by the volume of daily posts. You’ll find announcements by individual hosts as well as radio stations. The idea post format is an engaging take on your show, why people should listen, and how to tune in.
2. Internet Radio Stations & Listeners
Status: Public
Members: 11.1K
Group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/irslofficial
A destination for online radio fans, this group gives you the chance to promote your songs, shows, and live shows. It’s quite busy with multiple posts per day. But some posts end up receiving interactions in the form of links and comments. So, it’s a top group to consider.
3. The Internet Radio Group
Status: Public
Members: 10.1K
Group Link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/447038275419382
With a decent following, The Internet Radio Groups ranks among the top groups on Facebook for self-promotion. It’s quite busy seeing tens of posts every day as many as five every hour. You’ll need to stand out by creating an engaging post, and that means using video as some of the group members.
4. Internet Radio Station Advertising
Status: Public
Members: 17.0K
Group Link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/447038275419382
You'll need to check out this group if you’re looking to cross-promote across several radio groups. It commands a decent following and features dozens of posts every day. As an exercise, be sure to check out posts with engagements to see what works.
Other top radio promotion groups
5. Internet Radio Stations
Status: Public
Members: 3.2K
Group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/radiolist.net
6. Internet Radio Worldwide
Status: Public
Members: 2.8k
Group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/internetradioworldwide
7. The Original Internet Radio Broadcasting Group
Status: Private
Members: 12.6K
Group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/547553441942159/members
How to promote your radio station on Facebook Groups: What works
To discover the best tips for promoting your radio station on Facebook groups, we took a step back to analyze some of the ads that have resonated with us over the years. Additionally, we’ve gone the extra step to analyze secrets used by shrewd broadcasters. So, here is a compilation of some of the best tips to use:
1. Get the format right
Facebook groups are a recent innovation. So, where there are no hard or fast rules about the format to use to create promotional posts, there is a format that has emerged over the thousands of posts we analyzed:
- Cover photo: For the majority of posts, creators will publish an original poster. It typically has overlaid text of the show's name and schedule. For instance, the ‘Number, Sunday 3 pm to 5 pm.’
Credits: www.mytravelradio.co.uk
- Show description: On average, it ranges from 20 words to 150 words. But some descriptions are much longer at over 300 words. The description will typically mention the show’s name, radio station’s name, and show schedule.
- Listen link: If the nature of the broadcast is online, then it’s customary for the post to include the listen link. It can be a link to the main website. But it’s preferable to include the actual stream link and page to make it more effortless for the listeners to find the stream.
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2. Cross-promote on multiple groups
The best radio station owners cross-promote on different groups. You can either copy and paste the same ad across groups like Internet Radio Station Advertising and The Internet Radio Group.
But it’s better to vary the promo on each ad, playing with the poster or description. Other elements should stay consistent like the stream link and the show schedule.
3. Include a clear value proposition - the why
You know that your show rocks. And that it’s quite entertaining. But too many ads miss the point. They are only focused on what will be happening on the show, “I will be playing, come and listen, we have five hours of jams, or please join me.” Stop and ask: Why would someone dedicate their time to listen to your show? That’s where the “why” comes in. Include the value proposition in your promo description.
Though good examples of value promotions are a bit rare, here are some of the best we found:
“Start your Super Sunday with Music and Memories!” “The station that gives you extra.” … just two from hundreds of posts. It literally goes to show that too many broadcasters are focused on themselves. Posts like, “Join our wonderful show hosted by Jeff and Proctor,” should be in the past.
Write something better like, “We’ll play Sunday jams to rejuvenate you for the coming week.”
Promise something.
Make it visual
4. Don’t skim on great visuals for your post.
But heck, it’s quite difficult to come up with a poster every time.
But no need to worry. The best advice is to come up with at least 3 posters that you can reuse every time with minimum edits. You can create them using Canva, Adobe, and other image editing tools.
What’s more, you can even post video or audit snippets from your last show. What sucks, is just including a screenshot of your Google Calendar showing your broadcasting schedule.
Based on the posts we analyzed, most visuals suck because they look old-fashioned, amateurish, and cluttered. Try to get someone to develop modern-looking templates you can reuse every week. A little professional help goes a long way.
Beyond Facebook - Promoting your radio station on other social media platforms
To recap, the great pillars of a great Facebook promo include:
Using attractive and clear visuals Writing a short & concise description Including a clear value proposition: the why Sharing the listen link and show schedule Infusing your great personality that resonates with the reader Beyond Facebook, you can still promote your radio station across other social media platforms. On Twitter, you can create a page and promote your show through retweets, threads, and comments. On Tiktok, you can take advantage of the short video format to share show snippets or even funny bloopers.
All in all, you should be constantly promoting your show. Make sure to do it on Facebook as it is a haven for promotional groups