Phoenix Radio Ratings: August 2023

[pjc1961]

Covering the survey period from Thu. 7/20/2023 thru Wed. 8/16/2023, age 6+ overall:

Phoenix

Nielsen Audio PPM Monthly Ratings Phoenix (Market #13) Population: 4,012,200 Black: 285,500 – Hispanic: 1,207,400 Average Quarter Hour Share for Persons 6+, Mon-Sun 6AM-Mid All ratings are Copyright © 2005-2024 The Nielsen Company. All rights reserved. Nielsen radio audience estimates and data...

radioinsight.com

Top 5+ demo rankings analysis by Research Director Inc. are now posted on their "Hot Topics" blog -

Press release:

https://researchdirectorinc.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Radio-Ratings-Roundup-Is-Moving-to-Hot-Topics-August-31-2023.pdf

This market's results will be available via their blog on Thu. 9/7/2023 at 2 PM MST/PDT.

 

[pjc1961]

Top 5+ demo rankings analysis by Research Director Inc. via their "Hot Topics" blog -
(scroll down to see Phoenix):

RADIO RATINGS ROUNDUP, AUGUST 2023, PART III | Research Director, Inc.

The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. – along with the buckaroos from XTRENDS – are back in the saddle again for our final look at

researchdirectorinc.com

25-54: 1. KSLX 2. KUPD 3. KESZ 4. KDKB 5T. KALV 5T. KOOL
18-34: 1T. KDKB (up from #7) 1T. KZZP (up from #8; was #14 in June) 3. KMXP (up from #12) 4. KMLE
_______ 5. KALV (down from #2) 6. KESZ 7T. KYOT 7T. KUPD 7T. KHOT 10T. KNIX (down from #5) 10T. KOOL
18-49: 1. KUPD (up from #4) 2. KALV 3. KSLX 4. KESZ 5T. KDKB (up from #8) 5T. KMXP (up from #10) 8. KOOL (down from #4)

 

[Prescott Joe]

Imagine that...... A rimshot signal with a translator, playing "oldies" and outperforming
so many other stations....

 

[landtuna]

Imagine that...... A rimshot signal with a translator, playing "oldies" and outperforming
so many other stations....

Been sayin' it all along.....it's the content!

 

[TheBigA]

Imagine that...... A rimshot signal with a translator, playing "oldies" and outperforming
so many other stations....

They get ratings that advertisers don't care about. Lower rated stations are making a lot more money.

Remember that the goal in this business is to make money, not get ratings.

 

[Prescott Joe]

They get ratings that advertisers don't care about. Lower rated stations are making a lot more money.

Remember that the goal in this business is to make money, not get ratings.

Must it ALWAYS be about making the most money????
Perhaps radio and television today would be a whole lot better today, if ratings and content
were the prime motivator. What ever happened to, " Offer a better product and the sales
will take care of themselves."

 

[CTListener]

Must it ALWAYS be about making the most money????

Commercial radio? Yes. That's what commerce is all about.

 

[davideduardo]

Must it ALWAYS be about making the most money????
Perhaps radio and television today would be a whole lot better today, if ratings and content
were the prime motivator. What ever happened to, " Offer a better product and the sales
will take care of themselves."

Sales just don't take care of themselves.

A radio station is not just in competition with all the other stations in the area for revenue. It competes with all the junk you get in the mail... with local TV... with cable channels that sell bulk ads... with print of all kinds... and with the INTERNET. A huge portion of local advertiser money goes to the web, between maintaining a site and paying for referrals and listings on the various search and referral sites that have replaced the Yellow Pages.

 

[TheBigA]

Must it ALWAYS be about making the most money????

Somebody has to pay for a service. Who should pay? The listeners? That makes the most sense to me. But they don't.

How long has this station been in the Top 5? Two years? After all the time, the sales has NOT followed. So the idea that sales will follow is not true.

Is it really a "better product?" Name all the DJs on KOAI. This station is merely an oldies jukebox, doing nothing more than an ipod on shuffle. The only reason people like the station is it plays the music they like.

 

[kwthom]

They get ratings that advertisers don't care about. Lower rated stations are making a lot more money.

Remember that the goal in this business is to make money, not get ratings.

How long has this station been in the Top 5? Two years? After all the time, the sales has NOT followed. So the idea that sales will follow is not true.

Is it really a "better product?" Name all the DJs on KOAI. This station is merely an oldies jukebox, doing nothing more than an ipod on shuffle. The only reason people like the station is it plays the music they like.

Therefore, there *is* some disconnect here between ratings and the ultimate goal, make money for the owners.

If the ratings for this station are a mismatch to the sales associated with that station, then ratings (in general) shouldn't matter.

Yet, they do.

Why is that?

 

[TheBigA]

If the ratings for this station are a mismatch to the sales associated with that station, then ratings (in general) shouldn't matter.

Yet, they do. Why is that?

Good question. They've become a battle cry of fans of the station. For some boomers who are angry that their music doesn't get as much airplay as it once did. And of course for John Sebastian, who posts details of the station ratings on his Facebook page. The ratings matter to him as proof that he can still program a radio station.

But the fact of the matter is that KOOL makes more money. Even though the former listeners of that station take pleasure that the ratings aren't as good as KOAI.

 

[davideduardo]

Therefore, there *is* some disconnect here between ratings and the ultimate goal, make money for the owners.

"Ratings" is too broad. 18-49 and 25-54 year old audiences are desirable and bought by advertisers. Teens and seniors are not.

If the ratings for this station are a mismatch to the sales associated with that station, then ratings (in general) shouldn't matter.

They are not a mismatch. The ratings are almost entirely over 55 and there is no ad money available for those ages.

 

[Prescott Joe]

How do stations like KAHM, KOAI et al, keep on going????
Obviously, it's sort of like the tortoise and the hare. If what so many of you say
is true, how do you explain the popularity and money diginets like Me-TV, Cozi,
Heroes and Icons are garnishing???? Why isn't radio doing the same????
I am confident the Weigel is doing quite well, thank you!

 

[TheBigA]

How do stations like KAHM, KOAI et al, keep on going????

My understanding about KOAI is that the owner has other stations in the cluster that make enough to cover the costs of KOAI, which are minimal, since there basically is no staff. Sebastian is an outside contractor, not an employee.

how do you explain the popularity and money diginets like Me-TV, Cozi,
Heroes and Icons are garnishing????

The popularity is obvious. How they make money is something I don't understand. But advertisers view TV differently. I would bet that the TV at Weigel pays for the radio, and the radio is meant to drive viewers to the TV. If you watch the cable news channels, you will see the advertiser base for 65+ TV and radio.

 

[davideduardo]

How do stations like KAHM, KOAI et al, keep on going????

They operate cheaply and are able to make a smaller amount.

Obviously, it's sort of like the tortoise and the hare. If what so many of you say
is true, how do you explain the popularity and money diginets like Me-TV, Cozi,
Heroes and Icons are garnishing????

They don't have a huge income, but they do produce revenue because they are a national platform for demos agencies seldom buy locally.

Why isn't radio doing the same????

Because of the difference in how radio is owned and radio advertising is bought.

I am confident the Weigel is doing quite well, thank you!

Weigel does OK because agencies buy TV first and foremost by networks, not local direct. Radio is the opposite.

 

[davideduardo]

My understanding about KOAI is that the owner has other stations in the cluster that make enough to cover the costs of KOAI, which are minimal, since there basically is no staff. Sebastian is an outside contractor, not an employee.

And KOAI makes enough to be profitable if expenses are controlled.

The popularity is obvious. How they make money is something I don't understand.

There is a big batch of 55+ acccounts that require (or just "want") visuals. They want simple, national buys that can show their meds, walkers, easy to use phones and the like to the group they are designed for.

But advertisers view TV differently. I would bet that the TV at Weigel pays for the radio, and the radio is meant to drive viewers to the TV.

Yep... what we call in retail a "loss leader".

If you watch the cable news channels, you will see the advertiser base for 65+ TV and radio.

Again, an easy buy for the guy who sells pillows and the Kars-for-Kids folks.

(You and I are saying the same thing from different perspectives, but if you read back, we are actually in total agreement!)

 

[TheBigA]

You and I are saying the same thing from different perspectives, but if you read back, we are actually in total agreement!

Yes I know, nothing I said was intended as a disagreement. I know advertisers prefer TV spots over radio because they can list all the legal disclaimers and go into more product detail, which the older demos need in order to convince them to use the product. When advertisers for older audiences choose radio, they prefer infomercials for the same reason.

 

[davideduardo]

Yes I know, nothing I said was intended as a disagreement.

Yet I get emails asking why you and I "fight". There is not an understanding of how we see different perspectives, and that is a good thing. In fact, that should be the core purpose of this site.

How many times have we seen formats we would not have done "that way" ourselves become very successful? Like anything that involves creativity, there are many ways to achieve a successful objective.

 

[kwthom]

"Ratings" is too broad. 18-49 and 25-54 year old audiences are desirable and bought by advertisers. Teens and seniors are not.

Fair enough. Thus, the results reported in post #2 of this thread (and every other thread about rankings & ratings...) simply can't won't tell a full and complete story of how any radio station compares to any other station in a given market.

The ratings are almost entirely over 55 and there is no ad money available for those ages.

Thus the common theme of "higher ratings = more $$$" isn't true with 100% certainty.

Middle-weight ratings, but the right age group(s) (as you noted in your prior reply to me) is what'll make you money at the end of the month.

 

[davideduardo]

Fair enough. Thus, the results reported in post #2 of this thread (and every other thread about rankings & ratings...) simply can't won't tell a full and complete story of how any radio station compares to any other station in a given market.

Yeah, and that is why they are free.

Thus the common theme of "higher ratings = more $$$" isn't true with 100% certainty.

Higher ratings in the ages that advertisers want is mostly true for revenue generation. But in addition, it depends on station management and the format.

Middle-weight ratings, but the right age group(s) (as you noted in your prior reply to me) is what'll make you money at the end of the month.

The classic example is the first 20 year period of WFAN in New York: never above 15th in 12+ ratings, but #1 in 18-49 or 25-54 men. They were the highest billing station in the market. For clients that only wanted adult men under 55, it was a must buy. And buyers liked the format as it was foreground and not offensive.