amfmsw said:
Here's a fact. My stations are getting buys, locally, regionally and nationally, from direct and agents, that target 35-64 year olds on a daily basis, because they have the money. The stations are in the black, and ahead of last year. If you dig for gold and go to a coal mine, you'll come up empty. It looks like you're digging in the wrong spot.
An "agent" is not an "agency." In fact, I have no idea what you man by an "agent" unless you are talking about a rep firm which acts as a stations representative in buying centers.
But you have said, I believe, that you are not in a rated market. Everything I have posted has specifically excluded non-rated small markets and suburban situations where older demos can be successfully sold to local, direct advertisers who are mostly retail. Retailers, especially local and independent ones, really don't have a brand and demographic focus, so they can take their message to anyone... plus, by carrying multiple brands they are not in the brand-changing business anyway.
In the rated markets, and in proportion to how large they are, you can not live off local direct business alone.
Now, no agencies targeted 55+. It's a rediculous argument, and I know you're intelligent people.
I have now looked at agency sales in 6 of the top 10 markets and for all practical purposes, there were no 55+ buys all last year. That means that there may have been a couple, but against the thousands and thousands of buys "up" in a market, only a tiny and insignificant number went after 55+. In fact, the news of the last year or so is the trend to looking at 18-49 and its subsets vs. 25-54. So, there is even less higher demo business if this continues; there is talk of 35-64 becoming a secondary or occasional demo, but that is merely speculation based on the same "feeling" that the oldest of boomers have greater financial power than previous gnerations... with no truth or documentation that this appl.ies to radio advertising.
Remember that Baby Boomers are those born post-War (1946) until the late 60's (escalation of Viet Nam) so they cover at least 20 years. The oldest is not 61, but the youngest is about 40, and way inside the sales demos for radio. In fact, about 80% of the boomer population is still under 55!
Why do you insist on screaming 55+ when no radio stations formats you or I are talking about are 55+?
Oldies is predominantly 55+, and this is why so many larger market oldies stations haved disappeared in the last 5 years: it is a tough sell and most such staitons in larger rated markets (just so we are clear) have declining sales or have jumped to a better sales format or have become 70's based. Standards is nearly dead as a format... I can only find a few that have even halfway decent rated market coverage... because even for local accounts, the Glen Miller and Doris Day crowd, all over 65, is not very desirable.
AM news talkers are becoming very top heavy, which is why some have already moved to FM and new FM traditional talkers are starting to pop up. This is because the old AM demos are getting tough to sell, especially now that refi and sub-prime biz is nearly dead... yet moving to FM gets better sales demos... proving again that it is all about the under-55 market.
They're 35-64 for Oldies/Classic Rock.
Lots of formats have 55+ listening, but they can not sell the "piece" that is over 55. When a buy comes out for men 35-54 or 25-54 or even 45-54, the classic rocker does a ranker on the demo specs for the buy and submits a rate based on what the advertiser wants. If the CPP is competitive, they may get on. But they do not offer or price based on 12+ delivery. All agency buys are based on goals against the client demo, and the rest of the audience might as well not even exist.
Big Band would truly be 65+, but to insist the other formats are 55+ is NOT a FACT. News/Talk? The few stations you spoke of are not a national trend.
Here is an assortment of well known n/t AM calls whose billing has been declining in the last years as the percentage of over-55 listenership has increased:
WGN, WINS, WBBM, WSB, KNX, WBZ, KFWB, KGO, KCBS, KYW, WLW, KRLD, WABC, KOA, WCCO, WWJ, WOR, WLS, KMOX. I could go on, and the same is to be found in smaller rated markets. All are off in 2006 from whatever their high point was... if you index for 2006 dollars, they are off even more. If you index for market revenue growth, it is even worse.
It's a national trend, from New York to stations like WHAS in Lousiville (market 53) to KLVI in Beaumont, market 133 to KTWO in Casper, market 299. In fact, the only n/t staitons that are even flat are those with significant sports and play by play, since sports is much more 25-54 on AM and the revenue base is still growing due to sports marketing dollars. The traditional news and talk AM formats are, almost without exception (KFI being one notable growth AM talker), off in revenue.
