Here’s the uncomfortable truth most digital-first marketers learn the hard way: putting an ad on a feed doesn’t mean anyone will tap it. Attention is earned somewhere else first — and increasingly, that “somewhere else” is the radio.
The behavior is clear in the data. According to the Radio Advertising Bureau, 55% of radio listeners say they’re more likely to click a social media ad after hearing the brand on-air, and listeners are roughly twice as likely to click a link for a product they’ve already heard advertised on the radio than one they haven’t.1 Among 25-to-44-year-olds — the people most marketers are chasing — that number jumps to 64%.1
It shows up downstream, too. A LeadsRx analysis of 17 AM/FM campaigns found radio drove an average +14% lift in website traffic, with measurable increases in branded search.2 Audacy’s analysis of Nielsen Commspoint 2025 data showed that adding audio to digital or video campaigns produced an 11% lift in conversions.3
The takeaway for any brand running social or paid search: radio isn’t a competing channel. It’s the warm-up act that primes the audience to actually engage when your digital impression shows up. Radio plants the name, builds the familiarity, and gives a reason to care. Then the click happens.
Run digital alone, and you’re paying for impressions that scroll past. Run radio first, and you’re paying for impressions that get tapped.
