Radio's sense of urgency is the primary reason the medium is a key element of the media mix for the New York University School of Continuing and Professional Studies. "Our goal is to get the people to call in for inquiries or bulletins," says Jim DeBlasi, management supervisor at Blederman Kelly Krimstein, NYU's ad agency. "So during the initial registration period the radio campaign creates a sense of immediacy. Radio gets people to start to think about school and actually gets the phones ringing.

"Radio gets people to start to think about school and actually gets the phones ringing."

"And at the end of the registration period," he continues, "radio's immediacy works again because we say, 'It's not too late to register.' And that really gets people moving." To keep as flexible as possible, BKK produces 45-second commercials and combines them with a 15-second live tag for times, dates and locations. "Typically, towards the end of the campaign, the live reads will tell them you still have time to register and then tells them where to go."

Another benefit of radio for NYU is the medium's targeting ability. The school seeks to reach adults between 25-35, utilizes between six and eight stations. "We're trying to target adults who are going back for their degrees or career placement," DeBlasi explains, "and with radio, we can target these adult students by formats and type of music. We try different stations to expand reach, but NYU knows who its audience is, and we select the stations accordingly. Each radio station has a different phone extension, so we can track how well each station is performing."

"With radio... you're talking one-on-one."

Radio, DeBlasi says, works well with NYU's print advertising. "In print," he explains, "we can get more specific about the courses we offer, but, with radio, you create more of a sense of feeling and more of an emotional draw to the school. By using the sounds of New York, the feel of the spot is more personal. You're talking one-on-one."