Southern Cross Austereo (SCA) and Google have tied up in an Australian radio first, one that sees the network able to sell Google search results alongside its integrated campaigns.
The network has become a 'Premium Sales Partner' (PSP) of Google, as part of its Google AdWords Premier SMB Partner Program, in what SCA digital sales and operations director James Bayes is calling a “natural partnership'. The tie- up has been in trial stages in Melbourne and Hobart for the past six months, and is now being formally launched in all metro markets. Regional roll-outs are also anticipated.
Bayes said the partnership came about as the result of a campaign from Commercial Radio Australia, which talked about the strength of the relationship between radio and search activity. The research found that consumers are six times more likely to look for a specific brand online if they've heard it advertised on radio.
“If anyone has ever wondered if radio advertising works, the partnership actually came about because the Google guys heard the CRA campaign,” Bayes said.
“A Google team member was driving to work, heard the ad and thought: 'there is actually something in that'.”
Bayes said working with Google will give direct clients an end-to-end marketing solution, with radio driving awareness and search driving the “pointy end of the conversion cycle”.
“The Google AdWords Premier SMB Partner Program is all about partnering with small business and driving leads to that small business,” Bayes said.
“Google are very interested in leveraging the conversations we're having with small businesses right across Australia, but don't necessarily have the sales network to reach themselves,” he said.
“It gives them the opportunity to be having local conversations, with local businesses and driving local leads across those businesses through those sales teams.”
Bayes said partnerships with businesses are “absolutely” the network's digital strategy and that it has a number of other partnerships to announce in the next month.
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