Advertise In Fort Myers: Top 5 Articles From 2021

Based on projections from the National Retail Federation (NRF), Southwest Florida consumers are on track to spend $17.2-billion with retailers by the end of this year. This would be 13.5% higher than was spent in 2020.

To earn a significant share of these retail dollars, Fort Myers area business owners are expected to spend $621-million to advertise by year's end, according to Borrell Associates. This company tracks advertising expenditures in local markets across the U.S.

To ensure they are spending their advertising and marketing dollars wisely, many SWFL business owners research how to best target prospective customers by using local media. An exceptional resource for local business owners to investigate the media habits of localconsumers is on the advice section of AdvertiseInFortMyers.com.  

Here are the top five most-read articles on the site in 2021:

Advertise On Fort Myers Radio: Still Best Option For Small Business

Jul 9, 2021 12:17:37 PM / by Larry Julius

Retail spending in Southwest Florida is expected to reach $17.2 billion this year, a 13.5% increase versus 2020. These estimates are based on a revised forecast from the National Retail Federation (NRF).

Since 1940, when WFTM-AM signed on as the first station in Fort Myers, local business owners have depended on radio advertising to help market their goods and services to SWFL consumers.  But has the Coronavirus pandemic altered the medium's ability to deliver customers to ring up sales for local retailers?

Two critical marketing metrics indicate that advertising on Fort Myers radio remains the best way for a small business to advertise.

The first measurement is reach. This is the number of different consumers who are exposed to an advertising campaign.

The second measure is return-on-investment (ROI). This is the amount of sales a business can expect for every one dollar invested in advertising.

Based on these metrics, here is how advertising on Fort Myers radio measures up to other options available to local small business owners.

How To Fill Open Jobs In Fort Myers

Sep 11, 2021 11:33:15 AM / by Larry Julius

According to the US Census Bureau, there are 32,556 businesses in Southwest Florida. Some of these companies are small. Some are large. Some sell machine parts. Some sell software. Some provide legal services. Some provide eyecare.

Regardless of the size of the business or what it sells, all of these local companies have one thing in common: they are struggling to fill open jobs with qualified candidates. This is true in Fort Myers as well as Naples, Cape Coral, Marco Island, Punta Gorda, and every point in between.

Right now, across the country, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are 10.9 million open jobs. This is an all-time record.

To put this mammoth number of open jobs in perspective, the Federal Reserve says there are now five job openings per every four unemployed people.

Attempting to recruit SWFL workers from the ranks of the unemployed has proven fruitless for local companies. This is because many people who lost their jobs during the pandemic have no intention of returning to the workforce anytime soon.

There are several reasons so many Fort Myers area workers are not coming back.

First, older workers have opted to retire earlier than expected. Second, childcare issues are making it necessary for some parents to stay home. Third, other workers cite health safety issues for the reason why they chose not to work. Finally, some of the unemployed are choosing to live off the savings they amassed during the pandemic.

So rather than focusing recruitment efforts among former employees and the ranks of the unemployed, local business owners need to target the 421,026 passive job seekers in SWFL.

Advertising In Fort Myers: What's The Best Way To Reach Pet Owners?

May 13, 2021 8:49:49 AM / by Larry Julius

A surge in pet adoptions and sales during the pandemic has increased the number of pet owners in the Fort Myers-Naples-Cape Coral area to 461,323, according to Nielsen.

As a result, the amount of money that will be spent in Southwest Florida during 2021 on domestic dogs, cats, birds, ferrets, and other cuddly creatures will achieve a record-high $412 million. These figures are based on recent forecasts from The American Pet Products Association (APPA),

“We have reached a critical milestone in 2020, generating $103.6 billion in sales [in the U.S.],” said Steve King, President, and CEO of APPA. “We are bullish for the coming year, projecting growth of 5.8% - well above the historical average of 3 to 4%."

SWFL pet owners will be spending in four ways:

1. Food & Treats which includes everything from canned and bagged food to biscuits and chewies.
2. Veterinary Care and Product Sales which includes routine veterinary care, surgical procedures, and sales of pharmaceuticals and other products through veterinary clinics
3. Supplies, Live Animals, and Over-The-Counter Medications which, in addition to dogs and cats. includes fish, birds, small animals, and reptiles. This also includes cages, food and water bowls, as well as leashes and collars.  OTC includes medications for allergy relief, gastric distress, and oral hygiene.
4. Other includes services such as boarding, grooming, and pet sitting.

To capture a significant share of the local pet economy, local business owners who provide these four types of goods and services will need to advertise.  By almost any marketing metric, the best way to reach pet owners is by advertising on Fort Myers radio.

Wow!! Southwest Florida Millennials Turn 40 This YearApr 29, 2021

4:40:37 PM / by Larry Julius

There are 171,080 millennials in the Fort Myers-Naples area.  The oldest of them turn 40 this year. According to The Pew Research Center, millennials comprise the generation of Americans born between 1981 and 1996.

As a consumer group, millennials account for an outsized percentage of retail spending. This generation represents 17.7% of the Fort Myers area population but almost one-third of metro-area sales. 

All in, Southwest Florida millennials are expected to ring up more than $7.9 billion in purchases during 2021.  You name it, millennials are planning to buy it.

According to Nielsen, over the next 12 months, Fort Myers-Naples millennials will show up in huge numbers at auto dealerships, furniture stores, mattress stores, appliance stores, home improvement stores, and scores of other area retailers and service providers.

Does Anyone Listen To Fort Myers Radio At Night? 

Mar 10, 2021 10:07:56 AM / by Larry Julius

week, according to Nielsen, more than 894,000 adult consumers tune-in to a Fort Myers radio station. This is significantly more than watch local TV or cable. More than stream video channels like Netflix or Hulu. More than read local newspapers. More than use Facebook or Instagram. More than listen to online audio services like Pandora and Spotify.

But almost everyone knows (including many who advertise on Fort Myers radio) that consumers only listen to local radio stations during the day. Right? Wrong!

According to Nielsen, 41.6% of local consumers listen to Fort Myers radio stations each week between 7:00pm and 12:00am. This is a larger audience than Pandora, Spotify, and Instagram combined reach during an entire week.

For Southwest Florida small business owners, radio's immense nighttime audience offers a unique value proposition.

Television Advertising In Fort Myers: Where Are The Viewers?

Jul 1, 2021 4:47:18 PM / by Larry Julius

Broadcast television came to Fort Myers in 1954 when WINK-TV signed on for the first time. In those days, very few local households actually owned a set, a number that would grow to 50% by 1960.

At first, Fort Myers consumers needed rabbit-ears or outdoor antennas to receive signals from a small handful of Western Florida stations, including  WTVT and WFLA. The quality of reception varied day-to-day.

By the early 1960s, however, local cable systems began to bring higher-quality, reliable reception to households throughout the Fort Myers area. The number of programming options, though, remained limited to affiliates of ABC, NBC, and CBS.

In 1972, viewing options began to expand as local cable began offering Fort Myers area consumers the opportunity to purchase premium services, including HBO, Showtime, and Cinemax.  Five years later came an explosion of non-premium cable channels such as TBS and CNN.

In the early 1990s, Fort Myers viewers could not only receive their television programming over-the-air or by cable, but options expanded to include satellite delivery by DishTV and DirectTV.

The next TV innovation came in 2007 as Fort Myers consumers started turning to the internet to watch streaming channels like Netflix and Hulu.  These new services allowed viewers to watch TV on their phones, computers, and tablets as well as their living room LCD and Plasma screens.

Today, all of this video technology offers viewers the ultimate flexibility to choose how, when, and where to watch TV.  So, what are they watching?

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