• Ad Age, Tuesday, June 13, 2006 12 PM

Radio giant Clear Channel is developing a new form of advertising that goes by so fast that if you blink, you might miss it. The format is a one-second radio spot called, appropriately, Blinks. Although the company has yet to sign any deals with advertisers, it has created some demonstration spots to show how the concept could be executed. For example, a Blink created for BMW's Mini Cooper features a horn honking and man's voice saying "Mini," that plays before miniaturized news report. Other audio mnemonics that could use Blinks are the Intel chime and the NBC bells. Clear Channel insists that Blinks are legitimate marketing tools and not just a gimmick designed to generate publicity. "It really is to find new uses of radio for advertisers who are continually asking us to demonstrate that our medium can successfully extend brands, can successfully reach the consumer with touch points that are new and surprising" said Jim Cook, senior vice president-creative for Clear Channel Radio. However, some experts remain highly skeptical. "I can't see any advertiser, any agency paying for a spot that's one second," said Lauren Russo, managing director-local radio at Horizon Media, adding that if Clear Channel came to her to buy the ads, she wouldn't be interested. "If they want to throw it in at no charge, I don't think we would say no," she said, but, "I just don't see how you can communicate anything in that little time period."

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