Spinal Tap II will be in theaters soon, and it’s back to NFL and school season. Life is good.
While reminders about Fall’s listener behavioral and commute changes are helpful, today we’re going to a different class:
Nielsen 101: Everything you should know about the ratings but were afraid to ask.
As you gather your RockTernative troops to motivate them for Fall domination, bring this. Many in the room won’t know all of this.
The Panel:
- Everyone 6+ within a household must participate.
- As of a new change this week, Panelists can now stay in the panel for approximately three years, but can opt out at any time.
- Panelists are compensated at varying levels depending upon household makeup.
- Panelists carry weights based on several demo/socio factors (ex: one may be weighted to equal 5,000 people, while another may be 1,900).
How it Works:
- There are four quarter-hours per hour (00:00-14:59, 15:00-29:59, etc.).
- Five minutes of listening in Diary, and three in PPM (which can be nonconsecutive), inside a quarter-hour = credit for one quarter-hour.
- 30 seconds of listening (in PPM) is the threshold for one full minute of credit.
There are over a dozen different metrics that can be reviewed — they all play roles in the big picture — AQH Persons, Cume, TSL/ATE, etc., but I’m going to focus on two.
Programmers and Sellers often speak different languages.
- Programmers speak AQH Share.
- Sales Pros speak AQH Rating.
What’s the difference?
One drives revenue, the other is more ego.
AQH Share is your listener % vs. all listeners. The number of people who were listening to your station in an average quarter-hour over the number of people listening to radio at the same time (demo/daypart). Bragging rights! “High-five, we hit a 4-share!”
AQH Rating is your listeners vs. market population (everyone from kids to Sydney Sweeney). The number of people who were listening to your station in an average quarter-hour (demo/daypart) over the market population (demo). This is measured in tenths and directly affects revenue. You’ve heard of cost per point. “Woo hoo! Our rates are going UP — our Rating went from .3 to .4!”
Even 20 years from now, there will always be 100 Shares up for grabs.
However, the number of Rating Points can change monthly based on PUMM (a PPM term = People Using Measured Media). For today’s purposes, think of it as the number of people who actually listen to Radio.
These Programming and Sales languages collide at times — they don’t necessarily move in tandem or mean the same thing.
The morning show is pouring Jameson shots after seeing their 4.1 Share jump to 4.9, but Sales is sticking with Diet Coke because the 4.9 may still be a .3 Rating. That’s a separate column on math.
Two more notes of confusing clarity:
- Shares can go up while the actual number of radio listeners goes down. It’s all based on usage and the size of the pie.
- Not all Rating Points are created equal — they’re rounded up or down to the nearest tenth.
For example: A .2 AQH Rating — .249 and .150 are both rounded to .2, but both have different Share numbers.
Most clients place ad-buys using AQH Rating — it’s better for them than Share:
- A station at .249 (just shy of a .3) and one at .150 (barely a .2) are usually sold at the same rate (.2). The power — and the flaw — of the Average Rating Point.
- For more context, Shares of 5.3 and 4.3 could both be a .3 Rating.
- With shrinking PUMM (fewer Ratings Points due to fewer radio users), it becomes harder for brands to maintain their historical Rating Point Averages and, therefore, their spot rates and revenue budgets suffer.
- Buying on Rating also helps advertisers flatten or steady rates vs. numerous price points based on small ups or downs in Share.
Some of the smartest in Radio, but certainly not all, like to look at AQH Persons when making their sales pitches — when two stations have a .2 Rating, the higher AQH Persons number can be used for strength.
In any case, when you hear about Radio revenue being in decline, it’s largely a reflection of PUMM and the Rating Point metric, not Nielsen’s measurement of Share that programmers flex over.
And while the Radio industry is smart to remind everyone the medium’s reach is still above 90%, that’s a collective national number, not your station’s local number, and the truth is spots are being valued and priced lower.
Imagine if fast food worked this way — fewer customers this month means my burger gets cheaper next month. What a dream.
It’s important for our RockTernative soldiers to know this so everyone understands the real fight our sales teams are up against. It also helps explain to your #1 morning show why the brand isn’t printing money like it did years ago.
We can complain all day about Nielsen — I’ve been on those front lines — but they’re doing the best they can with a moving target, and we’re all at the same party.
I love Share like most programmers, but Average Quarter-Hour Rating is a more “accurate” measure of Radio out in the wild, especially for advertisers who are buying across media.
*Thanks to Dr. Ed Cohen for double-checking my facts to make sure I didn’t drive you into a ditch.
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Keith Cunningham is a music industry and Rock/Alternative columnist for Barrett Media and the founder of Black Box Group, a modern-modeled creative & strategic consultancy built for brands that need strategies with teeth. He’s the former Master of Mayhem at 95.5 KLOS-FM in Los Angeles for over a decade, a nationwide consultant, and has been repeatedly voted one of America’s top Program Directors and strategic thinkers. Keith has built his career by taking multi-million-dollar brands from worst to first and leading Marconi & Gracie award winners along the way. A data nerd with a rock-and-roll heart, he is an advisory council member for St. Jude fundraising, a fantasy football champion, and lover of his daughters & dogs. Reach him at keithblackboxgroup@gmail.com or on LinkedIn or X.
