• by Larry Dobrow , Featured Columnist, January 26, 2006

Scarborough Research recently found that fans of talk radio and news shows have higher levels of education and income than most of the population -- no shocker there. The study's other findings, however, could prove a salve for buyers and planners trying to lure traditionally cautious financial services brands for talk/news sponsorships.

The Scarborough study found that 14 percent of respondents' households had used a full-service stockbroker during the past 12 months, while 16 percent employed a financial planner. These listeners were also 47 percent more likely than typical consumers to live in a household owning mutual funds.

So will clients like Fidelity Investments and Bank of America finally tune in? Howard Goldberg, senior vice president of Scarborough's radio services, believes that radio buyers and planners can now make a more persuasive pitch.

"[Talk/news listeners] have the spending clout," Goldberg says. "What we've learned here is that this audience is...predisposed to be receptive [to financial-services advertisers]. What everybody has to do now is get out there and talk up that strong potential."