Media All-Stars 2003: Radio - Irene Katsnelson

Her knowledge of how to use network radio has persuaded many advertisers to increase spending.Irene Katsnelson is not only this year's Media All-Star in network radio but also an American success story. Born in Belarus, Russia, Katsnelson immigrated with her family to America when she was 10. While in college, she entertained thoughts of going into computer programming. Lucky for network radio, the first job she landed out of school was in the ad business at Mediavest, where she fell in love with the medium. Today, Katsnelson is one of the reasons major national advertisers such as Johnson & Johnson and Kohl's are allocating more of their media dollars to network radio. "It's difficult to bring more brands to the medium. But she's able to bring them in and keep them in," says Peter Kosann, president of sales for Westwood One. Her reputation in a business that is gaining more respect among advertisers as a strong alternative to network TV is why Universal McCann lured her away from Mediavest last April to create the agency's first network radio division. In her new position of vp and director of network radio, Katsnelson is responsible for placing about $40 million annually for some of the nation's biggest national advertisers, including Johnson & Johnson, Kohl's, Nestle, Sony and the Coca-Cola Co., many of which used to see network radio as an afterthought.Making the move to McCann after 15 years at Mediavest was a tough decision for Katsnelson. But then, she's hardly one to shy away from a challenge, having worked her way up through the ranks at Mediavest from assistant in the national broadcast buying group to head up Mediavest's network radio division in charge of buying time for clients Procter & Gamble, NBC Television, Kraft/Nabisco and Mars. It was through Mediavest that she learned all the ins and outs of network radio, earning her a reputation as one of the medium's most effective users."I hadn't thought about leaving for another agency. But McCann was looking to create a stand-alone radio network group," says Katsnelson. "I was intrigued by the opportunity to create something from scratch. The chance to create, grow and put your own mark on a brand-new division is rare."Prior to Katsnelson's move to McCann, network radio was not a high priority at the agency. But as clients began to see network TV's share of audience going down while rates were going up, McCann had to offer clients better alternatives."One of my tasks was to get a network radio group up and running, and she was ideal," says Annette Cerbone, senior vp and director of national broadcast for Universal McCann, to whom Katsnelson reports. "Network radio used to be such a small percentage of what our clients were doing that our TV buyers handled it," Cerbone explains.Believing that network radio deserves more attention, Katsnelson over the years has become one of the industry's most ardent ambassadors. "Those of us in network radio have to be proponents," she asserts. "I don't think the industry does enough to promote itself. If television can promote itself and make it the primary medium of choice, network radio can do the same. Is it possible to grow this pie? Absolutely." At Mediavest, she convinced Procter & Gamble to increase the number of brands it advertises on network radio from a handful in 1999 to between 14 and 17 today. A few years ago, her influence over how NBC Television should use network radio to stimulate more viewer tune-ins started a ripple effect with the other TV and cable networks. Tune-ins are now one of the biggest categories for network radio. "She is responsible for modernizing how NBC used the medium, and other networks followed suit," says Kraig Kitchin, president of Premiere Radio Networks. "The proliferation of network and cable units has risen dramatically since NBC first discovered the medium's power to provoke tune-ins." Armed with her knowledge of radio, Katsnelson carefully crafts presentations and takes them directly to the brand managers of her clients. For Katsnelson, promoting the medium is practically a mission. "There was very little understanding of network radio among our brand managers before Irene [came aboard]," says Anne Zuckerman, media director of Johnson & Johnson, which advertises about 60 to 70 brands in any single quarter, about a dozen of which are currently using network radio. "There is an erosion in a lot of network TV and we see network radio as an opportunity to expand reach. Network radio allows us to extend our budgets," adds Zuckerman, who thinks J&J will up its spending in network radio in 2004. Not only an advocate, Katsnelson gets high marks from the radio networks and her clients for turning on-air schedules into marketing concepts by matching her clients' brands to radio brands. For example, J&J's Splenda brand, a sugar substitute, advertises on ABC Radio Networks' weekly female-skewing program The Satellite Sisters, whose hosts also do voiceovers for the product. She has paired up M&M Mars' Starburst candy with Premiere Radio Network's Carson Daly's Most Requested daily program, which airs on 150 Contemporary Hit Radio stations. "[MTV host] Carson Daly can tip public opinion among 18-to-34-year-olds. Starburst is the only product he endorses regularly through his radio program," notes Premiere's Kitchin, adding that the campaign has been renewed three years in a row and resulted in increased sales for the product. "She's quick to find out which radio personalities might have appeal for her clients. She asks radio companies to have personalities voice the commercials and she works that into her negotiations with us," Kitchin adds. A big believer in combining promotions, events or sampling with on-air campaigns, Katsnelson combined Radio Disney with promotions for various brands such as Nestle's Wonderball and Nesquick to target preschoolers, a tough consumer target for any advertiser. For Sony's year-end DVD release of the movie SWAT, she used ESPN to create the ESPN Ultimate Armchair Quarterback Sweepstakes, which contestants can enter to win a Sony home-theater system."These kind of promotions do huge numbers, and they are tangible," says Jennifer Purtan, senior vp of sales for ABC Radio Networks.Says Katsnelson, "I don't use network radio so clients can get their spots on the radio. I bring them opportunities that will make them stand out, high-scale events that my clients can own. That's what works best." Katy Bachman covers local media and research as a senior editor for Mediaweek.

Brand Marketing

Media All-Stars 2003: Radio - Irene Katsnelson

Katy Bachman

About

Subscriptions

Events

Publications

WORK SMARTER - LEARN, GROW AND BE INSPIRED.

Subscribe today!

Katy Bachman