Numeris Overview: PPM Ratings - Winter 2023

Written by David Bray on Wednesday, 06 March 2024 11:55.

Significant changes in radio ownership across Canada have prompted discussions concerning the medium's future. Bell Media has announced the sale of 45 of its radio stations, shockingly declaring “ it’s not a viable business anymore”. The buyers are Vista Radio, Whiteoaks, Durham Radio, My Broadcasting Corp., ZoomerMedia, Arsenal Media, and Maritime Broadcasting. Clearly, there are many believers remaining. Still, with stations struggling to maximize revenue, it seems the good old days are gone.

Conversely, radio remains consistently popular, with an average weekly reach of 84% for A12+. Perhaps reflective of the work-from-home trend, in-home represents 52% of tuning. Out-of-home represents 48% of tuning. We should note that, for Canadians,10% of radio consumption come from AM/FM live radio streaming. Let’s forge on.

The new PPM release from Numeris completes the thirteen-week period covering November 23, 2023-February 25, 2024. Instead of driving to and from work, many are still working from home. In-home represents 54% of tuning while out-of-home represents 46%.

Let’s look at the five PPM markets.

Toronto: Bragging rights at the top of the ratings heap go to CHFI delivering a 15.4 % share for A12+ (up from 12.8 %).  CHFI comes out on top for Females 25-54 with a 15.2% share, followed by BOOM at 12.7 %. and CHUM-FM with 12.4%. For males 25-54 BOOM leads with 10.4 % followed by CHFI with 9.0 %. Q107 is out in front for M18-34 with an 11.9% (up from 10.8%) followed by CHFI at 10.4%. CHFI-FM is waaaay out in front for F18-34 topping the list at 24.9%. 

Numeris Overview: PPM Ratings - Fall 2023

Written by David Bray on Sunday, 10 December 2023 20:22.

Across the country, consolidation and station staff cuts continue to be an issue. Numeris has already experienced Diary market cuts as well as staff cuts. Radio seems to be taking a back seat in terms of priorities. In the PPM markets, there is significant discussion concerning sample sizes. As someone who has been around awhile, I can say that the good old days in radio are gone and stations are struggling to maximize revenue. Many radio sales reps have been asked to cover digital and sometimes TV. Still, radio remains consistently popular with an average weekly reach of 85% for A12+. Perhaps reflective of the work-from-home trend, in-home represents 52% of tuning. Out-of-home represents 48% of tuning. We should note that, for Canadians,10% of radio consumption comes from AM/FM live radio streaming. Let’s forge on.

The new PPM release from Numeris completes the 13-week period covering August 28-November 26, 2023. Instead of driving to and from work, many are still working from home. This, in turn, has an effect on the nature of drive times.

Let’s look at the five PPM markets.

Toronto: Bragging rights at the top of the ratings heap go to CBC Radio One delivering a 13.2 % share for A12+ (up from 11.5%) followed by CHFI with 12.8%. boom 97.3 comes out on top with women 25-54, with a 12.1% share followed by CHFI at 11.4%. and CHUM-FM with 10.4%. For men 25-54, CityNews 680 leads with 9.0% followed by boom with 8.4% and Z103.5 at 8.3%. Q107 is out in front for M18-34 with 10.8% (down from 16.4%) followed by boom at 10.4%. CHFI tops the list for F18-34 at 21.5% share, followed by boom with 15.5%.

Numeris Overview: DIARY Ratings - Fall 2023

Written by David Bray on Sunday, 10 December 2023 16:51.

As I previously reported, 56 diary markets were discontinued by Numeris, leaving us with our current 22, reporting central area only. radioCount, using a different methodology, has recently released its October/Fall book surveying 22 different markets. All 22 Numeris markets were measured under continuous measurement, using the Online Radio Diary. radioCount uses individual recruitment, while Numeris uses household recruitment. Today’s Numeris release covers the period of November 7, 2022, to November 5, 2023. It is worth mentioning that, in these markets, radio reached 82% of adults 12+ and 84% of adults 25-54. This fall. 38% of A25-54’s listening occurred in their vehicles, up 4% from Fall 2022. In-home tuning, now at 33%, has decreased by 4 percentage points from the previous fall. Canadians 12+ in the top markets spent an average of 13.4 hours per week listening to the radio.

Quebecers 12+ spend 15.8 hours per week listening to radio.

That said, let’s look at 5 sample markets from the latest Numeris release.

Numeris Overview: PPM Ratings - Summer 2023

Written by David Bray on Thursday, 07 September 2023 15:32.

Across the country, consolidation and staff cuts continue to be an issue. In the PPM markets, there is some discussion concerning sample sizes. Sadly, the good old days of radio are gone, and stations are struggling to maximize revenue. Still, radio remains popular, with an average weekly reach of 85% for A12+. Out-of-home represents 49% of tuning. We should note that, for Canadians,10% of radio consumption comes from AM/FM live radio streaming. Let’s forge on.

The new PPM release from Numeris completes the thirteen weeks covering May 29 to August 27, 2023. Instead of driving to and from work, many are still working from home. This, in turn, can affect the nature of drive times.

Let’s look at the five PPM markets.

Toronto: Bragging rights at the top of the ratings heap go to CBC Radio One, delivering an 11.5 % share for A12+ (down from 12.6%) followed by CHFI-FM with 11.0% and Q107 with 10.6%.  CHUM-FM comes out on top for Females 25-54 with a 12.6% share (up from 11.2%) followed by CHFI-FM at 11.2%. For males 25-54, CityNews 680 leads with 9.5%, while Q107 climbs to 9.4%. Q107 is well out in front for M18-34 with a 16.4% (down from 17.6%). CHFI-FM tops the list for F18-34 at 22.1% share followed by BOOM with 10.9%. 

NUMERIS Overview: Diary Ratings - December 2022

Written by David Bray on Thursday, 08 December 2022 14:02.

As I previously reported, 56 diary markets were discontinued by Numeris leaving us with our current 22, reporting central area only. radioCount, using a different methodology has recently released their Fall book surveying 22 different markets. Numeris has transitioned to the exclusive use of online diaries. radioCount uses individual recruitment while Numeris uses household recruitment. All that being said,

let’s take a look at 5 sample markets from the latest Numeris release. This covers the period of Fall, 2021 to Fall, 2022.

NUMERIS Overview: PPM Ratings - December 2022

Written by David Bray on Thursday, 08 December 2022 13:59.

In the midst of significant changes in measurement methodology for many of the other markets, PPM in the big five keeps rolling on. The new PPM release from Numeris completes the thirteen-week period covering August 29 to November 27.  The subsiding stages of the COVID-19 pandemic seem to be having a lesser effect. Radio revenues are generally somewhat improved from their Covid low point. It may be worth noting that instead of driving to and from work, many are still working from home. This, in turn alters the nature of drive time.

Let’s look at the five PPM markets.

NUMERIS Overview: PPM Ratings - June 2022

Written by David Bray on Thursday, 09 June 2022 13:01.

While there have been significant changes in measurement methodology for many of the other markets, PPM in the big five keeps rolling on. The new PPM release from Numeris completes the thirteen-week period covering February 28 to May 29. Once again, all listening for this period occurred during the subsiding stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. It may be worth noting that instead of driving to and from work, many are working from home. This, in turn alters the nature of drive time.

 Let’s look at the five PPM markets

NUMERIS Overview: Diary Ratings - June 2022

Written by David Bray on Thursday, 02 June 2022 21:05.

As you may recall, 56 diary markets were discontinued by Numeris leaving us with our current 22, reporting central area only. Rawlco had reportedly withdrawn from Numeris, but their stations continued to be included once again in this release. radioCount, using a different methodology has recently released their Spring book surveying just 5 markets which utilize continuous measurement. Numeris has transitioned to the exclusive use of online diaries. radioCount uses individual recruitment while Numeris uses household recruitment. All that being said, let’s take a look at 5 sample markets from the latest Numeris release. This covers the period of May 3, 2021 to May 3, 2022.

NUMERIS Overview: PPM Ratings - March 2022

Written by David Bray on Wednesday, 09 March 2022 20:54.

These days we all need a bit of good news. Let’s look for some in the latest PPM radio ratings released today. The new PPM release from Numeris completes the thirteen-week period covering November 29, 2021 to February 27, 2022. Once again, all listening for this period occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic which now appears to be subsiding.

Let’s look at the five PPM markets.

NUMERIS Overview: PPM Ratings - Dec 2021

Written by David Bray on Wednesday, 08 December 2021 22:01.

While the COVID numbers are backsliding, let’s look for some good news in the latest PPM radio ratings released today. The new PPM release from Numeris completes the thirteen-week period covering August 30 to November 28, 2021. Once again, all listening for this period occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, sometimes yielding unusual results.

 Let’s look at the five PPM markets.

 Toronto: Bragging rights at the top of the ratings heap go to CBC Radio One delivering a 14.3 % share for A12+ (up from 13.6%). Taking the #1 spot with females 25-54 is CHUM-FM delivering a 16.6% share (down from 19.3%).  BOOM-FM is on top for males 25-54, posting a 12.6% share (up from 11.5%). BOOM also leads the way for M18-34 with a 16.5%. For F18-34, CHFI-FM is in front with 14.0% (down from 17.1%).

Counting On The Future (of Radio)

Written by David Bray on Thursday, 25 November 2021 14:55.

Welcome back! With today’s release 22 markets previously dropped by Numeris have been brought back to life courtesy of radioCount. These are:

Belleville
Brandon
Charlottetown
Chatham
Chilliwack
Cornwall

Fredericton
Guelph
Kamloops
Lethbridge
North Bay
Owen Sound

Pembroke
Peterborough
Prince George
Red Deer
Saint John
Sarnia

Sydney
Thunder Bay
Timmins
Wingham


 

A new radio ratings supplier is a major step forward for the industry and bodes very well for the future.

The methodology seems to be a marked improvement on the past. The sample sizes, which are generally 500-600, are robust for these smaller markets. Unlike that experienced with diary, they have had no problem getting responses for all demographics. They use a combination of call-out and online in securing respondents. They avoid household recruitment and only use one respondent per household.

This allows for broad coverage as opposed to the duplication that can exist within one family. The qualitative categories included are Education, Household Income, Household Size and Children in Household.

 As a sample, let’s look at six of the markets. I should note that CBC market specific data is not reported so I have not included them in my charts. Since this is the first radioCount release there is no trending data. The methodology is different from the Numeris approach, so a trend from one to the other wouldn’t be appropriate. I will say that this new approach is quite impressive.

NUMERIS Overview: PPM Ratings - Sep 2021

Written by David Bray on Thursday, 09 September 2021 15:36.

COVID continues to impact radio across Canada, although things seem to be improving. Let’s look for some good news in the latest PPM radio ratings released today. The new PPM release from Numeris completes the thirteen-week period covering May 31 to August 29, 2021. Once again, all listening for this period occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, sometimes yielding unusual results.

Let’s look at the five PPM markets.

Toronto: Bragging rights at the top of the ratings heap go to CBC Radio One delivering a 13.6 % share for A12+ (down from 15.5%). Taking the #1 spot with females 25-54 is CHUM-FM delivering a 19.3% share (up from 12.6%).  BOOM-FM is on top for males 25-54, posting an 11.5% share (down from 12.1%) followed closely by Q107 with 11.3% (up from 9.5%). Q107 leads the way for M18-34 with an 15.1% share (down from 15.7%). For F18-34, CHFI-FM is in front with 17.1% (down from 20.1%).

NUMERIS Overview: DIARY Ratings - Jun 2021

Written by David Bray on Thursday, 03 June 2021 18:56.

The Spring Of Discontent

I’m not sure that I can aptly describe people’s reaction to the diary book radio ratings released today. I will humbly try, to the best of my ability, to describe the methodology utilized and the overall climate in the world of radio measurement.

As you may recall, 56 diary markets were discontinued by Numeris leaving us with our current 22, reporting central area only. The Fall 2020 book was cancelled outright due to a number of factors.

This Spring book (and I use those words loosely) uses data collected from August 31, 2020 to May 2, 2021 (continuous measurement). That in itself present challenges. As everyone is aware, substantial changes, formatic and otherwise, have taken place during that time period. I don’t think that any of us are what we used to be. For certain markets (we don’t know which) where there was a shortfall in sample, some data from Spring 2020 was used.  Oh my. Numeris has transitioned to the exclusive use of online diaries which presents another series of methodological challenges. Don’t forget to add Covid and our altered behaviours into the mix. As per my updated quote from last year of SNL’s Gilda Radner (if you remember her) …it’s always something…..but never more than now.

NUMERIS Overview: PPM Ratings - Mar 2021

Written by David Bray on Wednesday, 10 March 2021 17:14.

COVID has substantially impacted radio revenues across Canada and continues to do so. Let’s see if we can find some good news in the latest PPM radio ratings released today. The new PPM release from Numeris completes the thirteen-week period covering Nov. 30, 2020 to February 28, 2021. Once again, all listening for this period occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, sometimes yielding unusual results.

 Let’s look at the five PPM markets.

 Toronto: Bragging rights at the top of the ratings heap go to CBC Radio One delivering a 16.0 % share for A12+ (down from 16.9 %). Taking the #1 spot with females 25-54 is CHFI-FM delivering a 14.5 % share (up from 10.2%).  Q107 is back on top for males 25-54, posting a 12.0% share followed by BOOM-FM with 11.1%. Q107 also leads the way for M18-34 with an 20.0% share.  Despite some unusual results in recent books, F18-34 now shows CHFI-FM to be back in front with 24.6%. BUT…coming in a strong second with young women is Q107 with 14.3%.

NUMERIS Overview: PPM Ratings - Dec 2020

Written by David Bray on Wednesday, 09 December 2020 18:19.

In the last book of 2020 (also known as the year from Hell), it’s time to see how the latest PPM radio ratings released today have shaken out. The new PPM release from Numeris completes the thirteen-week period covering Aug. 31, 2020 to November 29, 2020. All listening for this period occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, sometimes yielding unusual results.

 Let’s look at the five PPM markets.

 

 Toronto: Bragging rights at the top of the ratings heap go to CBC Radio One delivering a 16.9 % share for A12+ (up from 15.9 %). Taking the #1 spot with females 25-54 is Radio One delivering an 11.3 % share followed by CHFI-FM with 10.2%.  Radio One holds the #1 spot for males 25-54, posting a 12.9% share followed by BOOM-FM with 11.7& and Q107 with 10.6%. CBC Radio One leads the way for M18-34 with an 18.1%. followed by Q107 at 16.1%. Oh boy, no that should be oh girl……... for F18-34, Q107 leads posting a 19.7% (up from 17.3%). I can’t explain it. Is now the time to talk about sample size? That will be coming in another article.

Numeris takes a fall

Written by David Bray on Monday, 09 November 2020 14:31.

When does “not enough” amount to “too much”? Numeris has announced that, in diary markets, the response rates from those enumerated were not enough to allow for the release of a Fall book. To both buyers and sellers, the Fall book is critical. I enquired as to whether Numeris members would be granted refunds or discounted fees given that they will be receiving nothing in return during this period.

I’m sure you know the answer. Can you imagine any retail sector where the customers were told they would not receive refunds despite receiving no product? Simply because the staff still had to be paid.

I would like to examine recent occurrences and ask if this has all become “too much”.

NUMERIS Overview: PPM Ratings - Sep 2020

Written by David Bray on Thursday, 10 September 2020 19:09.

In a world badly shaken up by the events of 2020, it’s time to see how the latest PPM radio ratings released today have fallen out. The new PPM release from Numeris completes the fourteen-week period covering May 25, 2020 to August 30, 2020. Of course, this period includes listening that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, sometimes yielding unusual results.

Let’s look at the five PPM markets.

Toronto: Bragging rights at the top of the ratings heap go to CBC Radio One delivering a 15.9 % share for A12+ (down from 17.9 %). Here is a result worth taking note of. Taking the #1 spot with females 25-54 is Q107 (yes, Q107) delivering a 10.9 % share (up from 8.2%).  Q107 also holds the #1 spot for males 25-54, posting a 12.1% share (up from 9.7 % in the last 13-week book). CBC Radio One leads the way for M18-34 with a 13.3%. closely followed by Q107 at 13.0%. Oh boy, no that should be oh girl……... for F18-34, Q107 leads posting a 17.3%. Congratulations to the Q.

NUMERIS Overview: PPM Ratings - Jun 2020

Written by David Bray on Wednesday, 03 June 2020 19:38.

In a world overrun by Covid-19, not to mention racial disputes and protesting in the streets, this doesn’t seem to hold the same significance that it would usually have. The latest PPM radio ratings were released today. The new PPM release from Numeris completes the thirteen-week period covering Feb. 24, 2020 to May 24, 2020. This period includes listening that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Home tuning has increased during this time frame. Currently, in-home tuning represents 62% of total tuning this spring compared to 48% last quarter for A12+.

There can be little doubt that the nature of pandemic tuning has resulted in some unusual if not downright peculiar results.  Consider the decreased in-car numbers, the increased home tuning percentages, the lack of any fodder for the sports stations, the nature of the news during this period and the fact that we are all living with completely unfamiliar conditions. It would be surprising if we didn’t see some odd skews. I’m looking forward to hearing how the stations who came out on top will let us know that their research had indicated that they could expect these kind of gains.

 Let’s look at the five PPM markets.

 Toronto: Bragging rights at the top of the ratings heap go to CBC Radio One delivering a 17.9 % share for A12+ (up from 15.5%). CBC Radio One take the #1 spot with ladies 25-54 delivering a 13.8 % share (up from 10.3 %).  Undoubtedly, in an example of how crazy these times are, CHFI-FM holds the #1 spot for males 25-54, posting a 14.0 % share (up from 11.3% in the last 13-week book). You won’t believe this. CHFI-FM leads the way for M18-34 with a 32.0%. (yes, 32.0%). Get ready for this. For F18-34, Q107 leads posting a 13.6% tied with CHFI at 13.6%. 

Overview Diary Radio Ratings May, 2020

Written by David Bray on Thursday, 28 May 2020 21:43.

These are crazy times in the era of “Work from Home” COVID-19. I come to you today direct from my bedroom. With this latest release, today marks the second installment in the new world of diary measurement. Continuous measurement? Well, sort of.

 

In theory, all but the smallest markets (basic) will now be measured for a period covering 48 weeks of the year. During those 48 weeks, markets will be surveyed every other week. Four weeks at the end of December and the beginning of January are not measured. I suppose the term “continuous” is used in order to keep pace with their larger market (PPM) brethren.

 

Continuous Measurement?

Written by David Bray on Thursday, 05 December 2019 22:39.

Today marks a new beginning in the world of diary measurement. Let’s take a look.

Continuous measurement? Well, not exactly. All but the smallest markets (basic) will now be measured for a period covering 48 weeks of the year. During those 48 weeks, markets will be surveyed every other week. Four weeks at the end of December and the beginning of January are not measured.

It seems the term “continuous” is used in order to keep pace with their larger market (PPM) brethren.

Is this a good development? Yes. This seems like a good compromise with a variety of benefits. We are now able to cover a broader time frame in a way that should serve to limit unpredictable bounces.

All but the basic markets will now have 2 releases each year, Spring and Fall. That is a substantial benefit for the markets which previously had only a Fall book. If a station had a bad bounce in the Fall, they had to wait a year for a correction.

Each surveyed household will be limited to one week per year, assuring broader coverage.

This as compared to PPM methodology which surveys the same people week after week.

I will discuss the controversial aspects of PPMmarkets in a future article.

The controversial aspect of today’s release is the fact that it deviates this new approach.

This book will blend random results from the last available survey with the 6 weeks of “continuous measurement” data in Fall 2019.While less than desirable, this is a one-time anomaly which was necessary in the transition to the new methodology. As such, we can’t really trend this book with the last release. We’ll save that for the Spring book.

 For now, let’s take a look at five market results from this book.

NUMERIS Overview: PPM Ratings - Dec 2019

Written by David Bray on Wednesday, 04 December 2019 17:25.

Toronto: Bragging rights at the top of the ratings heap go to CBC Radio One delivering a 15.7% share for A12+ (up from 14.4%). CHUM-FM grabs the #1 spot with ladies 25-54 delivering a 15.4% share (down from 16.1 %).  CBC Radio One holds the #1 spot for males 25-54, posting an 11.7% share (up from 11.5% in the last 13 week book) followed by BOOM-FM at 10.2% . CHUM-FM leads the way for M18-34 with an 12.5%. For F18-34, Virgin leads, posting a 15.3% followed closely by CHFI-FM at 14.7%.

NUMERIS Overview: PPM Ratings - Sep 2019

Written by David Bray on Thursday, 05 September 2019 17:07.

It’s summer again! At least as far as today’s release is concerned. Here they are.....the latest radio ratings. The new PPM release from Numeris completes the thirteen week period covering May 27, 2019 to August 25, 2019. Let’s look at the five PPM markets.

Toronto: Bragging rights at the top of the ratings heap go to CBC Radio One delivering a 14.4% share for A12+ (up from 13.3%). CHUM-FM grabs the #1 spot with ladies 25-54 delivering a 16.1% share (down from 17.7 %).  CBC Radio One holds the #1 spot for males 25-54, posting an 11.5% share (up from 9.3% in the last 13 week book) followed by BOOM-FM at 10.7% and Q107 with 9.2%. CHUM-FM leads the way for M18-34 with an 11.0% share followed by Q107 with 9.9%. For F18-34, CHFI-FM leads, posting a 14.1% followed closely by CHUM-FM at 13.8%.

NUMERIS Overview: PPM Ratings - Jun 2019

Written by David Bray on Thursday, 06 June 2019 18:22.

With wonderful weather outside, why am I sitting inside writing about ratings? At any rate, here they are....  the latest radio ratings. The new PPM release from Numeris completes the thirteen-week period covering Feb. 25, 2019 to May 26, 2019. Let’s look at the five PPM markets.

Toronto: Bragging rights at the top of the ratings heap go to CBC Radio One delivering a 13.3% share for A12+ (up from 12.3%). CHUM-FM trades places with CHFI-FM grabbing the #1 spot with ladies 25-54 delivering a 17.7% share (up from 13.6%).  BOOM-FM holds the #1 spot for males 25-54, posting an 11.1% share (down from 12.6 % in the last 13-week book). CHUM-FM leads the way for M18-34 with an 11.6% share. For F18-34, CHUM-FM leads, posting a 14.7% followed closely by CHFI-FM at 14.6%. 

NUMERIS Overview: Diary Ratings - May 2019

Written by David Bray on Sunday, 02 June 2019 22:58.

As we ease into summer I have some hard numbers for you .....the latest diary radio ratings. Let’s look at five of the top Diary markets.