Posts in "Hot Topics"
February 26, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
For those of you just tuning in, here’s where we are. The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. – in cooperation with the masters of the algorithm from XTRENDS – have been doing our normal deep dive into the monthly PPM data. However, this particular survey comes with a twist. We are getting our first look at how the three-minute qualifier has affected the ratings.
In our first two episodes, we saw, as expected, a minimal effect on station shares in the four demographics we cover. We did expect significant PUMM growth in every market, and that is what is occurring. What has come as a surprise is the wide variations in PUMM growth we are seeing from market to market. Will that trend continue with our next batch of contestants? Read on…
The JANUARY survey ran from JANUARY 9TH through FEBRUARY 5TH and did feature a long holiday weekend and signaled a return to normal-ish listening patterns in the wake of Santa’s demise. Note that all PUMM changes are book-to-book numbers.
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February 25, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
The big reveal continues as The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. – in close proximity to our fellow numbers nerds from XTRENDS – are back to see what AMERICA’S new radio ratings reality has produced. If you tuned in for our previous episode, you saw that the growth in market PUMM across the four demos we examined was all over the place. Will that trend continue with our latest installment? Read on.
The JANUARY survey ran from JANUARY 9TH through FEBRUARY 5TH. It contained one three-day weekend, playoff football, and some really lousy weather. Oh, yeah, it also measured listening differently than ever before.
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February 24, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
And so it begins. Welcome to the first book of the rest of your radio life. The JANUARY survey marks the beginning of the three-minute rule era. The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC., along with our compatriots from XTRENDS, have been anxiously awaiting this moment. Yes, we are ratings nerds.
A few housekeeping notes. The survey ran from JANUARY 9TH through FEBRUARY 5TH. There was a federally-mandated three-day weekend in there, playoff football, and some really lousy weather.
Besides our normal analysis of the numbers, we will be adding in a new wrinkle. We always show how the market cume has changed every month. As we adjust to this new reality, we will also be listing the percentage change of market PUMM by demo. For this book, we will compare it to the previous survey. In future roundups, we will look at year over year.
Let’s do this…
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February 20, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
One of the buzz phrases spawned by the digital age is brand safety. In the Wild West that is digital ad placement, many brands have no clue as to where their ads appear. They might think they know, but the reality is a bit fuzzy.
In his most recent newsletter, Bob Hoffman – aka The Ad Contrarian – wrote about a peer reviewed study written by Dr. Krzysztof Franaszek, the head of Adalytics. I won’t quote the entire article, but these few paragraphs should startle you:
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February 13, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
I live in a two book a year market that is dominated by two radio groups.
Group #1 has many live and local stations. They also recently established a local digital news site. This group is frequently seen in the community doing, well, community stuff. In other words – they have a presence.
To the best of my knowledge, the other group has zero local live personalities. I have rarely seen them in the community. When I have, their “presence” consisted of a sound system…and nothing else. I frequently drive by their local so-called headquarters. The parking lot is usually empty, and the building has been up for sale for several months. It would appear that this group is completely abandoning the market.
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February 6, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
As an industry, we have a tendency to play a lot of defense. While radio has weathered many storms over the last 100 years, the dawn of the digital age drastically and dramatically changed the media landscape.
Yet, to paraphrase a quote from Monty Python – “We’re not dead yet.”
We need to play more offense. I want to highlight two areas where the power of radio continues to shine.
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January 31, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
We are here to bid a fond farewell to the HOLIDAY book. The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. – in complete agreement with the leaping lords of the algorithms at XTRENDS – have had enough of this CHRISTMAS stuff. We can pack it all away in mislabeled containers until next fall.
This survey ran from DECEMBER 5TH through JANUARY 9TH and, surprisingly enough, featured two holidays. It was also a five-week survey, which meant that only the first three weeks were contaminated with the foul stench from BURL IVES. This was the final time we will be encumbered by the NIELSEN five-minute rule. The next time we gather our spreadsheets will be filled with more PUMM than we have seen in a while. We await that with anxious anticipation.
Now, on with the show…
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January 30, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. – along with the math mavens from XTRENDS – are back with another attempt at making sense out of the ratings. As you are well aware, the HOLIDAY book is sort of the forgotten survey. Any station with a bad book can chalk it up to those dastardly bells and drummers.
This book is notable for a few things. First, it was five weeks long. This allowed NIELSEN to readjust its circadian rhythms. As a result, the CHRISTMAS carnage only affected the first three weeks of the book, which ran from DECEMBER 5TH through JANUARY 8TH.
This is also the book where we bid a fond farewell to the five-minute rule. We wish it well in its future endeavors.
Let’s go inside the numbers…
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January 29, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
Welcome back for another exciting round of ‘How the Ratings Turned.’ Once again, The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. – along with the computational crafters from XTRENDS – are here to see how the holiday hostilities panned out. If our previous edition is any indication, then we are in for another wild sleigh ride.
The HOLIDAY book ran from DECEMBER 5TH through JANUARY 8TH. As a result, 40% of the survey was not tainted by the stench of BURL IVES and his ilk.
One other note – this also marks the end of the era: from now until the end of time, we will no longer have to abide by the five-minute rule. I’m thinking we should put up one of those roadside historical markers to commemorate the event.
Now, on with the countdown…
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January 28, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
Welcome to the roundup. In this issue we will see how much carnage Santa wrought on the radio landscape. However, there are three things that are worth noting for this survey.
First, it was five weeks long. This was so Nielsen could realign its metaverse.
Second, of the five weeks surveyed, only three were covered by the holiday music scam.
Third, this is the last time we will be encumbered by the five-minute rule (which is not to be confused with the five-second rule, which is the law of the land).
The HOLIDAY book ran from DECEMBER 5TH through JANUARY 8TH and featured, oddly enough, a few holidays. Imagine that. Here is the reality of the situation:
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