Boston Radio Ratings October 2021

[davideduardo]

Maybe David can tell us how WRKO does in each daypart P25-54.

Here is a little bit of data:

WRKO is:
#23 in 25-54
#24 in 35-44
#13 in 35-64
#24 in 18-49

That's a 3-book average.

In 25-54 they are #17 mornings, #23 Middays, #19 PM Drive and #22 evenings.

This is a very old leaning station.

 

[davideduardo]

Why is WBQT still listed a Rhythmic AC?
Hard rap has no place on any type of AC station

Listed where?

The websites that give ratings data are not provided with format names by Nielsen. They have to fill that in themselves, and there are lots of ways of describing formats and many of the sites have secondary stations quite wrong.

I recommend https://radioinsight.com/ratings/ for this reason: Lance does the best job of all in identifying formats and he gives us f full 6 books worth of data to analyze.

 

[davideduardo]

Looks like some of the listings are off. They still list WMVX-AM as "Valley 98.9," while we have been documenting how the Spanish language talk format of its sister station was moved over to the AM signal, while the 98.9 translator continues to air the "Valley" brand through an HD-2 of the 102.9 translator.

To be clear, my unproven assumption is that the stations are reporting as such. WBQT is saying they are Rhythmic AC and WMVX-AM is saying that they are still "Valley." Makes sense for the latter as the 98.9 translator still identifies as WMVX on the legal station ID at the top of the hour.

See my other post from a moment ago. Nielsen does not give format data with the public 6+ or 12+ numbers. They give call letters and share. That's all. Each website that publishes ratings data can fill in other info, like the owner, the name, the format, etc.

This is why there are many differences in the format descriptors between site.

Oh, and in the PPM markets, while Nielsen does ask stations for a format type using one of the list of "approved format names", this data is not used anywhere in ratings data collection and processing.

And remember, Nielsen gives away those 6+ or 12+ numbers because they have no value. They give out the data more to promote the Nielsen name and to allow "the press" to write about radio than to provide useful data.

 

[MassMusicMan]

WBQT is saying they are Rhythmic AC

Right, because they are.

 

[CTListener]

Here is a little bit of data:

WRKO is:
#23 in 25-54
#24 in 35-44
#13 in 35-64
#24 in 18-49

That's a 3-book average.

In 25-54 they are #17 mornings, #23 Middays, #19 PM Drive and #22 evenings.

This is a very old leaning station.

That would indicate that much of its audience is 65+! Does WRKO do ANY agency business with that demographic profile or is it just selling locally at a deep discount?

 

[Retro]

WBWL, although I'm not a fan of country music, serves a purpose in protecting WXKS-FM. We could theorize that WKLB would be more neck and neck, perhaps even above Kiss if The Bull didn't exist. Personally, I'd like to see a Modern Rock or a commercial alternative station, but neither is going to happen in the near future.

On a separate note, I think WBOS might benefit from some more talk within the shows. Have Adam 12 do more of what he did with requests or giving him some free form like he did on WBCN and Indie 617. Maybe have music guests on Hardy's show. The problem is that it takes away from WBZ-FM. So, I don't see that happening as well. However, I think not only the playlist but also the personalities are helping WZLX in that battle.

Using one stations format to protect the other stations ratings. This goes back to the beginning of consolidation, when then Clear Channel was very purposefully having so-so morning shows on stations in certain markets, to protect their #1 morning show at one of their main stations instead!

 

[Retro]

Would WBWL and WZRM both benefit if they swapped frequencies?

There is that distinct possibility, however, where are the core listeners tuning in from for each station?

 

[Retro]

https://ratings.****************/cgi-bin/rol.exe/arb013

WWBX with a very large gain.

That is good then! I had posted last month about how Mix was trending down to a dangerously low level!

The truth be told, I stop being a regular listener 3 years ago.

 

[johnster]

A lot of these female music stations have been hurting because there audience hasn't been in their cars a lot lately. Let's face it that is where most of the listening is done today. As people get back out there the numbers will probably start to climb again.

 

[CTListener]

A lot of these female music stations have been hurting because there audience hasn't been in their cars a lot lately. Let's face it that is where most of the listening is done today. As people get back out there the numbers will probably start to climb again.

David will be in here before you know it with those statistics about all those people none of us know who listen to radio outside the car.

 

[MarkW]

Nielsen's *own* web site, on the public ratings pages, lists each reported station's format.

Such info also appears in Maximi$er. I have no idea if the ratings report generation software is still known by that name.

It is certainly possible third party republishers of the beauty pageant 6+ numbers choose to use their own home-cooked format identifiers.

 

[dumber than a box of hair]

Nielsen's *own* web site, on the public ratings pages, lists each reported station's format.

Such info also appears in Maximi$er. I have no idea if the ratings report generation software is still known by that name.

It is certainly possible third party republishers of the beauty pageant 6+ numbers choose to use their own home-cooked format identifiers.

Maximi$er? That died at the beginning of the PPM era (2014, I think).

 

[davideduardo]

Maximi$er? That died at the beginning of the PPM era (2014, I think).

No, it did not. It continued on for the Diary markets. PPM has its own "PPM Annalist Tool".

 

[davideduardo]

David will be in here before you know it with those statistics about all those people none of us know who listen to radio outside the car.

We have 200 markets or so that use the diary where "home", "work" and "car" are selected. We now have about half the listening in home and work, and half in cars. Exception: New York City where in-car is only about 30% of listening.

 

[davideduardo]

That would indicate that much of its audience is 65+! Does WRKO do ANY agency business with that demographic profile or is it just selling locally at a deep discount?

Local sales is not necessarily done at a discount. Automated agency buying is where the lowest rates are found. And there are lots of local accountants that don't close the door to those over 55.

Example: car brands don't go after much older listeners, but dealers do. The brand is looking to establish permanent preferences, while the dealer is just moving cars one by one. Personally, I've been loyal to one brand of car for decades, but I'd change dealers in an instant for better service, less annoying salespeople and the like.

 

[Least]

Local sales is not necessarily done at a discount. Automated agency buying is where the lowest rates are found. And there are lots of local accountants that don't close the door to those over 55.

Example: car brands don't go after much older listeners, but dealers do. The brand is looking to establish permanent preferences, while the dealer is just moving cars one by one. Personally, I've been loyal to one brand of car for decades, but I'd change dealers in an instant for better service, less annoying salespeople and the like.

I can second that to some extent. I've owned only Honda cars/vans/trucks for the last 18 years. In all honesty, it's simply due to price and reliability. I don't swear by Honda, and if I found a F-150 or Silverado that I liked and was in my price range at the time, I'd buy it. Usually, I can get a good deal on my Honda. With that, I will be more apt to switch the dealer than the make of the car/truck. My comfort is with the product, not the place where I bought it.

 

[davideduardo]

I can second that to some extent. I've owned only Honda cars/vans/trucks for the last 18 years. In all honesty, it's simply due to price and reliability. I don't swear by Honda, and if I found a F-150 or Silverado that I liked and was in my price range at the time, I'd buy it. Usually, I can get a good deal on my Honda. With that, I will be more apt to switch the dealer than the make of the car/truck. My comfort is with the product, not the place where I bought it.

Good example. And car dealers know that it's more about the dealer than the vehicle that keeps people away from certain dealerships. So they have to "renew" the invitation to visit them often.

Several of the online car purchasing services play on the unsavory image many car dealers (most?) have. I don't understand why more dealers don't try to overcome this directly in their ads. Despite the enormous number of dealer and manufacturer ads I see and hear, the category is almost devoid of originality.

When is the last time you heard or saw and original and motivating car or vehicle ad?

 

[Least]

Good example. And car dealers know that it's more about the dealer than the vehicle that keeps people away from certain dealerships. So they have to "renew" the invitation to visit them often.

Several of the online car purchasing services play on the unsavory image many car dealers (most?) have. I don't understand why more dealers don't try to overcome this directly in their ads. Despite the enormous number of dealer and manufacturer ads I see and hear, the category is almost devoid of originality.

When is the last time you heard or saw and original and motivating car or vehicle ad?

I couldn't tell you. It's one of those rare times where the cliche stock image or portrayal of a salesperson tends to fit the overall experience. I swear that the only reason I get good deals is because the dealership Ive gone to made a couple of mistakes with us, and my wife is better at their game than I am. I don't have the patience that she has.

First time, I went to their dealership when my gas gage died in an '03 Civic. They had to replace my whole dashboard, resetting my odometer. We reminded them when I was trading it in to get my wife a '12 Oddessy. They valued my Civic much higher due to that, then when they realized the issue, they tried to reneg on the deal. "You didn't tell us that it actually has more milage." Well, here's the place where your mechanic put the sticker. Here's the info we updated in our handwriting, correcting your information when you first made your offer. And, if you looked in your service computer, all the info on the car's history is there as well. They weren't happy.

With my '19 Ridgeline, where we were trading in our '06 CRV, my wife just walked in and said "here's what we're looking for, and I don't want to pay any more than (X amount), make it happen or I'll go somewhere else.

Most people are taken for rides, and I don't see many dealerships that try to erode the perception of the "shadey car dealer," as you point out.

Car ads themselves are simply always the milage it gets and the monthly rate for cost (radio ads). Television ads are only the car driving on a smooth road (insert season here), then depending on the type (SUV, Truck, sports car), you see basic stock videos of it doing what the consumer would want out of it.

When shopping around, we were going between either the Tacoma or the Ridgeline, and one would think that Honda would advertise the greater leg room in the backseat of the Ridgeline. I had to sit in both trucks to find that out. My kids are growing, so it was a point of interest for us.

 

[Least]

Looks like some of the listings are off. They still list WMVX-AM as "Valley 98.9," while we have been documenting how the Spanish language talk format of its sister station was moved over to the AM signal, while the 98.9 translator continues to air the "Valley" brand through an HD-2 of the 102.9 translator.

To be clear, my unproven assumption is that the stations are reporting as such. WBQT is saying they are Rhythmic AC and WMVX-AM is saying that they are still "Valley." Makes sense for the latter as the 98.9 translator still identifies as WMVX on the legal station ID at the top of the hour.

I started writing this, aiming to say how it appears that 1110 is back to English language programming. I flipped to the 98.9 translator, but I didn't take to the time of day. I'm not picking up WMVX. Instead I'm hearing WBT from North Carolina. Once they started talking about Tar Heel basketball pregame, I realized I was mistaken. 😆

 

[philsirkin]

I couldn't tell you. It's one of those rare times where the cliche stock image or portrayal of a salesperson tends to fit the overall experience. I swear that the only reason I get good deals is because the dealership Ive gone to made a couple of mistakes with us, and my wife is better at their game than I am. I don't have the patience that she has.

First time, I went to their dealership when my gas gage died in an '03 Civic. They had to replace my whole dashboard, resetting my odometer. We reminded them when I was trading it in to get my wife a '12 Oddessy. They valued my Civic much higher due to that, then when they realized the issue, they tried to reneg on the deal. "You didn't tell us that it actually has more milage." Well, here's the place where your mechanic put the sticker. Here's the info we updated in our handwriting, correcting your information when you first made your offer. And, if you looked in your service computer, all the info on the car's history is there as well. They weren't happy.

With my '19 Ridgeline, where we were trading in our '06 CRV, my wife just walked in and said "here's what we're looking for, and I don't want to pay any more than (X amount), make it happen or I'll go somewhere else.

Most people are taken for rides, and I don't see many dealerships that try to erode the perception of the "shadey car dealer," as you point out.

Car ads themselves are simply always the milage it gets and the monthly rate for cost (radio ads). Television ads are only the car driving on a smooth road (insert season here), then depending on the type (SUV, Truck, sports car), you see basic stock videos of it doing what the consumer would want out of it.

When shopping around, we were going between either the Tacoma or the Ridgeline, and one would think that Honda would advertise the greater leg room in the backseat of the Ridgeline. I had to sit in both trucks to find that out. My kids are growing, so it was a point of interest for us.

The last time I bought a car, I used one of the online services (I forget which one). You choose the car you want, and then the services submits that info to all the dealers in a several hundred mile radius. The dealers then contact you via email with bids. I had gone to a couple of dealerships first, just to decide on exactly what I wanted - and I ended up getting a much better deal from the dealer nearest me (where I'd bought before) than the price they'd offered in person. Would never do it any other way again.