It's a fact. Unless a consumer remembers your business when it comes time to buy, then it is likely they will purchase from someone else. Staying top of mind, therefore, is critical for every Fort Myers small business owner who wants to grab a share of the area's $7.1-billion retail market.

Advertising on Fort Myers radio provides local business owners with the most affordable way to move to the top of customers minds. But, before discussing how to get remembered, we must understand why consumers forget.

In 1940, WFTM in Fort Myers signed on as the first radio station in Southwest Florida. Since then, local business owners have depended on radio advertising to successfully market their goods and service. Using any advertising metric, despite the inundation of new media options, radio remains the most potent medium for fulfilling the marketing objectives of Fort Myers and Naples area business owners of every size.

Is radio advertising still effective in the 21st Century? Meet five small business owners throughout the Fort Myers and Naples are who say YES.

It is not a gimmick. Many Southwest Florida business owners qualify for free local advertising on Fort Myers radio. They pay nothing out-of-pocket.  Zero. Zilch. Zip. Bupkis. Free.

Henry Ford understood that the continual investment in advertising was necessary for a business to be successful. “Stopping advertising to save money," he said, "is like stopping your watch to save time.”

Sometimes, though, when daily expenses challenge their cash flow, Southwest Florida small business owners must prioritize spending. Many times, unfortunately, Mr. Ford’s advice is ignored and buying commercials on Fort Myers radio will move down the list behind making payroll, maintaining delivery vehicles, and replenishing stock. A lot of times advertising doesn’t make a list at all.

Some local business owners have discovered that their radio advertising doesn’t have to be sacrificed at all when belts need to be tightened. It turns out, there’s a deep pool of “free money” that can be dipped into for the singular purpose of advertising. These funds are called cooperative funds, or co-op for short.

Advance Solar & Energy (formerly Advance Solar & Spa) is the largest and oldest swimming pool heating company in South Florida. The business was founded in 1983 by cousins Brian Goldberg and Jim Fields. The company is still family owned and operated today.

"At the beginning, we were in the business of selling solar and heat pump systems for pools," says the company's Director of Operations Rick Vaske. "Over the years we have expanded into hot tubs and solar-water heaters for the home. And then, a few years ago, we moved into solar electric systems. That's now the fastest growing segment of our business."

"Five years ago, we did not have much competition for solar," says Mr. Vaske. "There were only 180 solar dealers in the entire state of Florida. But, as the price of panels fell and tax incentives have improved, just about anybody can now afford to power their homes with solar. Needless to say, we soon had more than 400 competitors. It was like a gold rush."

"During that time, however," Mr. Vaske continues, "we were able to stand apart from the competition and grow our company by 50%. Advertising on Fort Myers radio helped us do that."

Until October 2007, there was no Chevy Dealer in Estero, Florida. That was the year Patrick Denson and Charles Winston built Estero Bay Chevrolet from scratch.

"During our first full year of sales," says Mr. Denson, "we sold 600 cars, 100 more than General Motors expected from us. This year, we are on track to sell 2000 cars. Advertising on Fort Myers radio has been part of our growth since the very beginning."

Florida ranks second in the US for motorcycle ownership, just behind California.

At the end of 2017, there were 595,496 registered motorcycles in Florida, 27% more than in 2007. This growth is expected to continue. Over the next 12 months, in the Fort Myers-Naples area alone, 38,000 people plan to purchase a brand new motorcycle.

In May of 2018, to help fulfill Southwest Florida's insatiable appetite for bikes, Stu and Barbara Rosenberg opened Stu's Motorcycles in south Fort Myers.  "Sales have really taken off," says Alex Rodriguez, who helps spearhead the store's marketing efforts. "Advertising on Fort Myers radio has contributed greatly to our success."

Biggy's Place is a 164-seat restaurant serving breakfast and lunch in Fort Myers. Since new owners took over the location just over five years ago, sales have increased an astonishing 65%.

"We've grown every year since we started," says Bob Bigelow (aka Biggy) who now owns the restaurant along with his wife, Dawn. "Advertising on Fort Myers radio has been a large, large part of our growth."

Succeeding in the restaurant business in Southwest Florida is not easy.  At last count, besides Biggy's Place, there were 2472 other restaurants in Collier and Lee counties chasing almost a billion dollars in sales.  

Conditioned Air is a Naples-based heating, ventilation, and air conditioning company.  Theo Etzel joined the company in 1995 as President and CEO.  That was the same year the company began advertising on Fort Myers radio as part of an aggressive growth strategy.

"When my partners and I purchased the company 24 years ago, we had 25 employees and $2.5-million in annual sales," says Mr. Etzel. "Today we employ 375 people and generate north of $50-million a year in sales throughout Southwest Florida."

"To accelerate our growth at the beginning, we needed a strong platform to share the company's story," recalls Mr. Etzel. "So, we invested heavily in radio advertising."  To this day, Fort Myers radio is still Conditioned Air's predominant form of advertising.

If you were one of the 802,000 people who tuned-in to a Fort Myers-Naples radio station last week, odds are you heard a commercial for King Law. There's even a good chance you can sing their phone number, 888-SEAN-KING. These commercials help local attorney Sean King compete effectively against 2,525 other lawyers in Collier and Lee counties.

"Radio advertising works for me," says Mr. King. "My commercial has been on every day for the past seven years. Advertising on Fort Myers radio helps me reach clients from Marco Island to Venice. No other media has that kind of coverage."