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Nielsen Buffalo Ratings -- Fall 2018
- Thread starter tbolt909
- Start date
I was surprised to see in the All Access ratings report that Buffalo’s two public radio stations are now included in the 12+ rankings. WBFO had a 3.8 last Fall while WNED-FM had a 2.1. There must have been some change in Nielsen policy. Before this book, you had to access the public radio numbers from the Radio Research Consortium website. WBFO has ranged from number 10 to number 8 in the market quite consistently for several years now. Also of note was WGR’s 6.6 rating for number 4 in the market. WGR usually has its best book in the Fall because of the Bills and Sabres, but this year the number was especially strong. I’d also like to hear from those of you who are better informed to comment on what might be happening to WYRK. For years, it was number one with ratings between 10 and 12. But for the past three books, WBLK has vaulted to number one, while WYRK has slipped to number 2 with a single digit rating. Not a huge fall, but interesting nonetheless.
You have to be subscribed to appear in the public releases. Apparently those stations have subscribed, as have many who were only viewable via the RRC.
We've made no change at WXXI, yet we're showing up in the public releases all of a sudden.
For years WYRK rode to the top on its heritage. But Buffalo is changing and that means listenership changes which WYRK's past PD likely didn't address (and may be behind her termination). We'll have to see if Chris Crowley can reverse that trend.
That being said - if it's another TSM station taking the top spot it isn't all bad news.
Certainly a change in leadership after so many years can lead to a slight loss in audience. By the same token, there's also a cyclical pattern in the country format that is usually lower in winter and higher in summer. So my expectation would be to see an increase back to double digits in the next book.
That is interesting, as I just checked in the subscriber section of Nielsen's site and there is no bulletin or release that shows any policy change since the one in mid-2018 about minimum rating for non-subscribers to show in subscriber data and the policy of subscribed HD-2 (and beyond) "showing" if they got a minimum of a single listening incident in PPM markets.
Maybe it is something they "forgot" like the two day's worth of data in December Week 4!
I guess this is worth a phone call... or at least an email.
Changes in the underlying product - so-called 'today's country music' - may also result in lower popularity(?), no?
It looks like any all-Christmas bump for Star was diluted by the all-Christmas format on WMSX.
I wonder how much longer Kiss can stand getting spanked by WBLK. Maybe it's time for their 50-ish morning host to move on to their Hot A/C station and for Entercom to better define both Kiss and Star. It appears that Kiss ain't so "young and hip."
The "Breeze Watch" begins. It doesn't appear that the all-Christmas format had quite the impact that they hoped for, but the Joe Chille news has made the rounds. It will be interesting to see what impact they may have.
It's too bad Buddy isn't available for his retort to the WECK numbers. I don't mean to speak for Buddy, but I'm sure that he'd say "You know NOTHING! We're WINNING." In truth, he's statistically even with WBUF. It's likely that his format was nicked more by all-Christmas programming than most others.
97-Rock's up-and-down pattern continues. They seem to be tweaking the formula lately and the response is tepid at best.
WGR benefitted from an interesting Bills season and the emergence of the Sabres as a winning team. I have to believe that the John Murphy/Steve Tasker combo from Noon - 3 every day - also broadcast on cable TV - provides a nice bump. If you're not a fantasy fan, skip the PM drive show. Schopp seems more interested in how his myriad fantasy teams are doing than the local sports teams.
Otherwise, everything else seems to be within normal statistical deviation. It's nice to see the public radio numbers. I hope they continue to be included by Nielsen.
I wonder how much longer Kiss can stand getting spanked by WBLK. Maybe it's time for their 50-ish morning host to move on to their Hot A/C station and for Entercom to better define both Kiss and Star. It appears that Kiss ain't so "young and hip."
The "Breeze Watch" begins. It doesn't appear that the all-Christmas format had quite the impact that they hoped for, but the Joe Chille news has made the rounds. It will be interesting to see what impact they may have.
It's too bad Buddy isn't available for his retort to the WECK numbers. I don't mean to speak for Buddy, but I'm sure that he'd say "You know NOTHING! We're WINNING." In truth, he's statistically even with WBUF. It's likely that his format was nicked more by all-Christmas programming than most others.
97-Rock's up-and-down pattern continues. They seem to be tweaking the formula lately and the response is tepid at best.
WGR benefitted from an interesting Bills season and the emergence of the Sabres as a winning team. I have to believe that the John Murphy/Steve Tasker combo from Noon - 3 every day - also broadcast on cable TV - provides a nice bump. If you're not a fantasy fan, skip the PM drive show. Schopp seems more interested in how his myriad fantasy teams are doing than the local sports teams.
Otherwise, everything else seems to be within normal statistical deviation. It's nice to see the public radio numbers. I hope they continue to be included by Nielsen.
It's also interesting that while they're included at All Access, they aren't included at ****************
I agree with Sir Rox, re: WECK. We’ve all read Buddy’s postings that WECK would top a 4 share, maybe even reach a 5. Yet, in book after book in the year-and-a-half since he took over, WECK’s 12+ numbers have remained in the 2 to 3 range, relatively similar to the numbers that I heard the previous owner was getting. I’m sure the 35+ numbers are much better for WECK. But, as Rox humorously pointed out, I know nothing!
I'm skeptical that WECK would have many listeners in the 35-50 range. The format is playing Malt Shop Golden Oldies. The audience must be almost entirely 50+ or even 60+. The 2.3 is actually respectable when compared to the signal of WBUF. The 5 share prediction was not "Reality Based".
It's interesting that the Classical WNED has a 2.1. That's good for a niche format. WBFO seems to be in good shape with high quality content. How long will Entercom ride the Alternative 107.7 Train to Nowhere? The hip young Millennials apparently aren't interested...
It's interesting that the Classical WNED has a 2.1. That's good for a niche format. WBFO seems to be in good shape with high quality content. How long will Entercom ride the Alternative 107.7 Train to Nowhere? The hip young Millennials apparently aren't interested...
Since there is no standard 35-50 demo in diary books that's not a provable... or disprovable... statement.
What we do know from the Summer book is that only about 15% of WECK audience is under 55, and 60% is over 65.
But again, that is what Buddy is targeting and it is certainly different from the 35-54 target of the Breeze.
David, what demo accounts for the other 25% of WECK's audience composition?
97 Rock drops 3.5 shares? Kissed in summer, boned in Fall. So what changed? The station is essentially the same. Same for WYRK, although the PD change may point to some serious issues that have been brewing over time. At least three WYRK P-1s have remarked, generally speaking, "They changed the music." Did the person doing the music change the "secret Coke formula" while T-square was looking for a new PD? WBLK has become the runaway train. Can T-square squeeze more revenue from those gargantuan WBLK numbers? WMSX goes out on an up trend, thanks likely due to All Christmas. Star seasonally strong but not as strong as ACs in other comparable markets that went All Christmas. Jack-in-the-rack asleep at the wheel. Alt 107.7 appears to be on life support. The Alt format... uh, 'scuse me, the Alt brand is non-descript, but David Field loves it so it's probably good for a few more books. WGR up. A ten game winning streak always helps. "Thank you Sabres!" (Local reference... Siskel & Ebert can look it up) And what would the Wizard of Weck say about that 2.3 share? Right. We know. "Five share on the way." Good to see WBFO nicely placed and reported with WNED-FM in the All Access report. Good takes in this thread.
If you look at WECK's Now Playing on their website, most of the music is from the late 50s through the late 60s with some early 70s. No surprise that their main audience is over 60.
What's left? 55-64. That is where the other 25% lies.
According to a knowledgeable source, Persons 25-54, Monday-Sunday, 6 a.m.-midnight, WECK scored a share just slightly higher than 0.5 ... also the average age of WECK listeners is around 72 ... additionally, according to the source, WBEN draws nearly three times as many Persons 65+ than does WECK
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Kudos to the board admins for addressing the log-in snafu
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Kudos to the board admins for addressing the log-in snafu
Sort of confirms my opinion that people of that age are not necessarily attracted to 50-60 year old songs. More excited by talk.
Not that there isn't an audience for it, but that it's not as big as one might expect.
But that still means that WECK is a viable and valuable medium for local direct accounts who want to reach the 55 and over audience in the market.
Local accounts don't have the kind of concerns that brand managers for national accounts do, and they are aware that the large 55+ population does spend money and can be attracted to local businesses.
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