Radio advertising is the purchase of audio commercials to promote products or services. Advertisers pay commercial radio stations for airtime; in exchange, the radio station broadcasts the advertisers' commercials to its listening audience. This directory lists selected radio advertising (and audio podcast advertising) providers.
Advertising differs from public relations in that advertisers pay for, and have control over, their messages. Advertising is communicated via (1) traditional media such as newspapers, magazines, television, radio, outdoor advertising or direct mail, and (2) digital media such as search results, blogs, websites, or text messages. The presentation of a message in a medium is called an advertisement, or ad for short.