"Advertising on Boston radio really helped to push our company into profitability for the first time. It was the tipping point for us," says Chad Langley, CEO of Teststripz.
"If we hadn't started advertising on the radio when we did," adds Chad's brother Chris the company's CTO, "we would probably be out of business right now.
Teststripz was founded in 2011 by Chad. The company operates an online marketplace where people who suffer from diabetes can purchase low-cost supplies from others who have an oversupply. This includes test strips and meters.
"A lot of diabetics don't have enough health insurance to cover the cost of their supplies," says Chad. "A box of 100 test strips can retail for up to $250 in a pharmacy. Some people need to test up to 10 times per day. So the costs runs up fast."
The Langley's can offer the same box of strips for $55 by matching those in need with sellers who have more than they can use.
"Test strips are durable medical products, not drugs" explains, Chad. "It is perfectly legal for someone who has an oversupply to sell them to others as long as the boxes are unopened and weren't paid for by Medicare or Medicaid."
"We rely on advertising," says Chris, "to find these sellers. This is the only we can secure enough supply to fulfill the demand."
"Early on, we were posting flyers and putting magnetic signs on our cars. Even though they looked a little cheesy, it worked."
The company's first noticeable growth spurt came, however, when the Langley's began investing in Google pay-per-click advertising (PPC).
"We started seeing results pretty quickly," says Chris "But it was costing us more than we were making, so we were operating at a loss."
"The other issue we had with PPC, is that we could build our brand identity," adds Chad. "We really wanted potential sellers and buyer that we could be trusted. We wanted to put our faces, so to speak, with our name.
In 2017, with the mounting cost of acquiring inventory, the Langley's were not sure their company would ever turn a profit.
“We had run into a bit of a wall," says Chris. "The way we were finding suppliers and buyers was cumbersome and tedious. We really needed something to grow."
Advertising On Boston Radio Exceeds Teststripz Expectations
"We knew to survive we needed to reach a lot of people who never realized there was an alternative market for buying and selling diabetic supplies That's when we first tried advertising on Boston radio."
"Our first campaign was on just one radio station, and the results way exceeded our expectations," says Chad.
Before advertising on Boston radio, the Langley's were bringing in about 100 boxes of test strips each day. Once the first commercials went on air, that number jumped to more than 250."
"When we started advertising on the radio, our cost of acquiring supplies dropped by 66%, which allowed us to be profitable for the first time," says Chad.
Radio Advertising Adds To Brand Credibility
Since Teststripz began advertising on Boston radio, they have not stopped. The company now utilizes four local stations. This includes DJ endorsements which, Chad says, "really adds credibility to our brand."
As a result of its commitment to radio advertising, the company sees increases in their flow of supplies every month, sometimes by as much as 400%.
"Before we started advertising on Boston radio, the vast majority of our sellers were coming from California," says Chris. "Massachusetts was by far our weakest market."
"When our radio commercials started, we saw a 1000% increase in website visits and conversions from Massachusetts. It's now our strongest market."
The Langleys believe, if done correctly, radio advertising can work for other small business owners and start-ups. "If you want to grow your business. I can’t really see how radio can fail," says. Chris.
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