Reviews
Part of A scoring method is what makes radio advertising reviews useful
The radio advertising selection checklist explained for England media buyers
How to build a radio advertising selection checklist: dated audience data, PECR consent records, agency scoring and due diligence before you book airtime.
What to take away
A radio advertising selection checklist is a short set of tests you apply to stations, agencies and data sources before you commit budget. The point is to make each decision rest on evidence rather than rapport.
- Date every audience figure to a published release before it enters a plan.
- Confirm who owns consent, opt-outs and records under the electronic marketing rules.
- Score agencies on documented planning practice, then check their references.
- Match the shape of the buy to the situation, using the table below.
- Agree exit terms and reporting duties before anyone signs.
A full shortlist still needs a wider method, and the guide to reviews and comparison methods for radio campaigns sets out how scoring works across a whole campaign.
Start with the data and the rules
Most selection failures happen before anyone mentions price. Two checks catch the majority: can you date the audience data, and can you show the legal basis for the contact and targeting around the buy?
Pre-booking data and rules checks
- Source and release date for every reach figure
- RAJAR release dates checked for currency
- Sample size behind niche audience claims
- Daypart split behind headline reach
- PECR consent and opt-out records named
- Data retention period written into schedule
Audience data you can date
Ask for the source and the release date of every reach figure in a proposal. RAJAR works to a published calendar, so checking RAJAR release dates shows whether the numbers you were handed are current or a quarter behind.
Where a station sells a niche audience, ask what sample sits behind the figure. A small base is not disqualifying, but it changes how much weight the plan can carry.
Ask for the daypart split behind the headline reach as well. A station that is strong at breakfast may be weak in the evening, and one average figure hides that difference until the campaign is live.
Consent, opt-outs and records
If the buy covers digital audio, podcast inserts or addressable spot, electronic marketing rules govern the data involved. The ICO guide to PECR sets out the consent and opt-out duties behind those formats, so the checklist should name who keeps the records.
Write the retention period into the schedule. A supplier who cannot say how long they hold listener data has not answered the question.
Name the lawful basis in the same document, along with the person who answers a subject access request. Buyers rarely run that process themselves, but they need to know who does.
How to score agency process
Agencies and sales houses differ far more in process than in rate card. Scoring the process gives you something to audit later.
Agency process scoring checklist
- Who plans the schedule
- How the audience is selected
- What reporting arrives each week
- Who approves creative
- What happens when a spot is missed
- Weights set before scoring begins
What an agency score should cover
Score five things: who plans the schedule, how the audience is selected, what reporting arrives each week, who approves creative, and what happens when a spot is missed. Public IPA knowledge centre guidance on planning and agency practice is a fair benchmark for the first two.
Set the weights before scoring, so the result reflects the brief rather than the last meeting. A five-point scale per item is enough, provided the evidence for each mark is written down.
Worked scorecard example
The table below is an illustrative scorecard for one agency. Weights are fixed before marks are given.
| Item | Weight | Mark (1-5) | Weighted score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who plans the schedule | 25 | 4 | 20 |
| How the audience is selected | 25 | 3 | 15 |
| What reporting arrives each week | 20 | 4 | 16 |
| Who approves creative | 15 | 5 | 15 |
| What happens when a spot is missed | 15 | 2 | 6 |
| Total | 100 | 72 |
Weighted score is weight multiplied by mark, divided by five. The same sheet works for the runner-up, so the two totals can be compared.
Signals that should pause the process
Stop when a supplier cannot name the person accountable for the plan. Stop as well when audience claims arrive without a source, or when the contract omits make-good terms. For how those signals are scored in an agency review, see our guide to radio advertising agency reviews in England.
Match the choice to the situation
Pick the route before you approach suppliers, because the route decides which questions matter. For national routes, example station groups and sales houses include Global (Heart, Capital, LBC), Bauer Media (Hits Radio, Magic, Absolute Radio) and Wireless (talkSPORT, Virgin Radio UK).
Decision table
Choose
- Local launch with a tight radius
- One station plus a presenter-read spot
- National reach in a short window
- Two or three complementary stations
- Digital audio test
- A small addressable buy with clean consent records
- Brand with strict compliance
- An agency with documented approval steps
Avoid
- Local launch with a tight radius
- A national schedule you cannot sustain
- National reach in a short window
- One station sold on reach alone
- Digital audio test
- Listener data you cannot source
- Brand with strict compliance
- Any supplier who will not put terms in writing
Budget note
- Local launch with a tight radius
- Rate set by station, spot length, daypart and volume; ask for the rate card
- National reach in a short window
- Priced on reach and frequency; ask for the rate card and volume discount
- Digital audio test
- Priced on impressions or completed listens, plus production
- Brand with strict compliance
- Agency fee plus media spend; approval steps add time
Running the checklist in order
Do the data and rules checks first, because either can end the process. Score the agency second. Cost comes last, once the shortlist is real, so price is compared against the same brief.
Keep the completed sheets for the winning supplier and the runners-up. If the campaign underperforms later, those notes show whether the plan changed or the audience did.
Common questions
How long should the checklist take?
A first pass on two or three suppliers usually fits inside a week when audience data and consent records are already available. Waiting on a supplier's own paperwork is the usual delay.
Do I need the checklist for a single station buy?
Yes. A one-station buy still needs written make-good terms and a named contact for the schedule. The list shrinks, it does not disappear.
Who signs off the final choice?
Name one accountable person before the shortlist is drawn. Otherwise the decision drifts back to whoever liked the pitch best.
