Research Director, Inc Exclusive Holiday 2020 PPM Analysis for Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, Seattle-Tacoma, Detroit, Phoenix, Minneapolis-St. Paul

Holiday 2020 Day Three

The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC., along with the gang from the XTRENDS workshop, bring you our third – and final – installment of the nightmare after CHRISTMAS. To this point, the results have tipped decidedly in the favor of those stations who chose to add ELMO & freakin’ PATSY to their playlist. We assume that trend will continue. If you have not been playing along, the HOLIDAY book was an extended affair. It lasted a full five weeks so NIELSEN could properly align the 2021 schedule with reality. This meant that, ironically, the last twelve days of the survey were after Santa had left the building. Ho, Ho, Ho …

MIAMI-FT.LAUDERDALE-HOLLYWOOD: Santa Lost?
The home of the holiday hots was ENTERCOM AC WLYF (101.5 LITE FM), which made the switch towards the end of the DECEMBER survey. The station did well in both 6+ share (5.2-8.0) and cume (833,500-942,000) – a gain of 13.0% (the market was up by 1.9%). However, this was only good enough to push it from #6 to #2. Arch rival COX MEDIA AC WFEZ (EASY 93.1) remained in first place (7.1-8.1). Both stations had their highest share in over a year. Fun fact: Last year, in the exact same scenario, the stations were tied at #1 with a 7.5 share. COX MEDIA Urban AC WHQT (HOT 105 FM) dipped to #3 (6.6-7.1) while UNIVISION Spanish Contemporary WAMR (AMOR 107.5) stepped up to #4 (5.5-5.6). ENTERCOM Classic Hits WMXJ (102.7 THE BEACH) stepped down to #5 (5.8-5.5) and was tied with SBS Spanish Contemporary WCMQ (Z92.3), which slipped from #3 (6.1-5.5).

Adding all that pine roping to the lobby paid off for WLYF 25-54 as the station leaped from #3 to #1 with a huge share increase. This pushed WHQT – which had a small gain – down to #2. WMXJ had a slight increase but dipped to #3. WFEZ repeated at #4, also with a small gain. WAMR remained at #5 with a slight loss. It was joined by iHEARTMEDIA Classic Rock WBGG (BIG 105.9), which jumped from #9 with its highest mark since JUNE.

The 18-34 demo truly embraced the holiday spirit as WLYF went from a tie at #5 to #1. The station was over two points larger than a year ago. COX MEDIA Urban WEDR (99JAMZ) was forced to step down to #2 with a small loss. It shared the moment with WFEZ, which moved up a slot with its highest share in over a year. WMXJ slipped to #4 with its first down book since JUNE. iHEARTMEDIA Urban WMIB (103.5 THE BEAT) bounced back from a down book to rocket from #12 to #5. SBS Tropical WXDJ (EL ZOL 106.7FM) was close behind as it moved up to #6 with its best book in over a year. Two stations dropped out of the top five and ended up in a heap at #10. They were COX MEDIA Top 40/M WFLC (HITS 97.3) and ENTERCOM Country WKIS (KISS COUNTRY 99.9). They were joined in that pile by iHEARTMEDIA Spanish Contemporary WZTU (TU 94.9).

Adding BURL IVES to the mix merely extended the WLYF 18-49 winning streak to five in a row. WFEZ rebounded from a down book to step up to #2, which dropped WHQT – which had a small increase – back to #3. WXDJ repeated at #4 with a small loss while WMIB leaped from #10 to #5 with its highest share since JULY. It was just ahead of two stations at #6. WAMR was up from #7 while WZTU turned it up from #11. WEDR fell to #8 with a small decrease.

SEATTLE-TACOMA: What A Mess
This market was dealing with a lot of stuff. The election blowback, the SEAHAWKS, and, oh yeah, six stations playing some version of the holiday hits. Of those six, four will be worth mentioning. But first, the top two 6+ stations remained unchanged from the last book. BONNEVILLE Talk KIRO-F was #1 (7.2-7.2) and UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON N/T KUOW was #2 (6.9-6.4). The traditional holiday hitmaker is HUBBARD AC KRWM (WARM 106.9). It leaped from a tie at #8 to #3 (3.4-6.0) but was well off last year’s 9.2 shares. The station also assumed control of the cume column (448,200-666,200) with a 48.6% increase. The market was up by 0.9%. ENTERCOM Active Rock KISW ended a three-book slide as it moved up to #4 (5.0-5.4). Another holiday player was ENTERCOM AC KSWD (94.1 THE SOUND). It advanced from a tie at #15 to #5 (3.0-4.9). Last year it finished with a 5.1 share. SINCLAIR News KOMO-A slipped to #6 (5.3-4.6) and was paired with iHEARTMEDIA Classic Rock KZOK (5.5-4.6). HUBBARD Top 40/M KQMV (MOVIN’ 92.5) slid to #8 (5.2-4.1). Two other contributors to the holiday madness were SINCLAIR Hot AC KPLZ (STAR 101.5) (3.2-3.7) at #10 and CRISTA Christian Contemporary KCMS (SPIRIT 105.3) (3.2-4.0) at #9.

Things were interesting in the 25-54 space. KUOW was off a bit but remained #1 for the fourth straight survey. KISW stood alone at #2 with a slight increase. Leaping from a tie at #6 to #3 was UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON Alternative KEXP. KRWM more than doubled its previous share as it took a sleigh ride from #18 to #4. KQMV slid to #5 as it ended a two-book surge. KPLZ was up to #6 as it ended a three-book slide. KIRO-F dropped three places to #7 with a modest loss while KSWD advanced from #17 to #8 with its highest share in over a year. KCMS moved from #19 to #13.
For the second book in a row, KISW was #1 18-34 with a small increase. KRWM was up four places to #2 but was about two shares off the lead. KQMV remained at #3 with a small loss. However, it was locked in mortal combat with iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M KBKS (HITS 106.1), which advanced from a tie at #9 with its best share in over a year. KZOK dropped to #5 with its lowest score since JUNE. KUOW slid to #6 and was tied with KCMS and ENTERCOM Alternative KNDD (107.7 THE END). iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/R KUBE went from #5 to #9 despite a slight increase.
KISW extended its 18-49 winning streak to eight with a solid increase. KEXP jumped from #7 to #2, easily its best book in over a year. It just edged out KUOW, which remained at #3. KQMV slipped to #4 and was joined by cluster sister KRWM, which came up from a tie at #16. Two stations dropped out of the top five and landed at #8. They were KZOK and HUBBARD Country KNUC (98.9 THE BULL). KSWD jumped from a tie at #16 to #10.

DETROIT: Jolly Ole St. NIC
Compared to the previous market, the MOTOR CITY was relatively boring. iHEARTMEDIA AC WNIC crushed it 6+ (10.0-16.8) to remain #1. It easily surpassed last year’s 14.8 shares. The station also remained the cume leader (858,000-1,261,800) – a 47.1% gain. The market was down by 2.1%. iHEARTMEDIA Urban AC WMXD (MIX 92.3) remained #2 (6.1-6.1) while BEASLEY Active Rock WRIF moved up to #3 (5.1-4.9). BEASLEY Classic Rock WCSX slipped to #4 with its lowest total in over a year (5.6-4.8). ENTERCOM Classic Hits WOMC stepped down to #5 with its smallest share since MAY (5.3-4.7). ENTERCOM News WWJ-A slipped to #6 (5.1-4.5) and was partnered with iHEARTMEDIA Urban WJLB, which advanced from #12 (3.9-4.5).

WNIC had another massive share infusion 25-54 as it kept a firm grip on the demo crown. It also beat last year’s number by almost four shares. WRIF was up slightly to remain #2 while WJLB stepped up to #3 with its highest mark since MAY. ENTERCOM Sports WXYT-F (97.1 THE TICKET) inched up to #4 with a small increase while WCSX dropped to #5 with a somewhat large decrease.

For the second straight survey, WNIC was #1 18-34. The station crashed through the double-digit barrier and was over two shares heftier than last year. It also had more total share than the two stations tied at #2. Those were WRIF, which remained in place despite its third straight down book, and iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M WKQI (CHANNEL 955), which moved up from a tie at #4 as it ended a three-book slide. WJLB slid a notch to #4 despite a slight increase. WMXD dipped to #5 with a slight increase. The next closest station was ENTERCOM Country WYCD at #6, and it was two and a half shares behind.

The top three 18-49 stations were unchanged from the last survey. WNIC was, of course, #1 with a massive share increase. A flat WRIF remained #2 while WJLB repeated at #3 with a solid increase. WMXD was stationary at #4 but was joined in that space by WKQI, which stepped up from a tie at #7. WCSX fell five places to a tie at #10.

PHOENIX: Santa’s Easy
It’s not like iHEARTMEDIA AC KESZ (99.9KEZ) needs any help being #1 6+. After all, the station has been in that position in eleven of the last fourteen surveys. However, it doesn’t hurt to have THE CHIPMUNKS on your side (11.4-16.7). The station remained the cume leader with an increase of 39.9% (1,092,700-1,528,700). The market was down by 1.1%. Alas, KESZ could not duplicate last year’s 19.2 shares. ENTRAVISION Regional Mexican KLNZ (LA TRICOLOR 103.5) remained at #2 (6.9-6.0) while iHEARTMEDIA Country KNIX stepped up to #3 (5.6-5.0). iHEARTMEDIA Talk KFYI-A stepped down to #4 with its lowest share since SEPTEMBER (6.3-4.6). It was joined by HUBBARD Classic Rock KSLX, which moved up from #5 (5.4-4.6).

KESZ was even more dominant 25-54 than the last survey. It had a huge double-digit share, which meant it had a massive lead over #2 KLNZ, which had a small loss. A flat HUBBARD Active Rock KUPD was up to #3, which pushed KNIX, which posted its lowest number since JULY, back to #4. KSLX repeated at #5 with a slight loss. To show how compressed things were beyond the top five, HUBBARD Alternative KDKB (93.3 ALT AZ) went from a tie at #10 to #6 with only a slight increase.

In the last survey, KLNZ crushed the competition with a massive double-digit 18-34 share. The station was down this time to #2 but remained a double-digit force. However, KESZ was more forceful as it moved up to #1. KNIX remained at #3 but was down for the third straight survey. iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M KZZP (104.7 KISS FM) repeated at #4 as it bounced back from a down book. It was paired with KSLX, which stepped up from #5 with its highest share in over a year. Not far behind at #6 was UNIVISION Spanish Adult Hits KQMR (LATINO MIX 100.3 & 105.1), which got back about half of the last survey’s huge loss.

The top four 18-49 stations were the same as before. KESZ had another huge double-digit book to remain #1. KLNZ had a pretty big loss but repeated as an exceptionally strong #2. A down KNIX was a distant #3 and finished just ahead of #4 KUPD, which was up slightly. KSLX stepped up to #5 with a slight decrease. UNIVISION Regional Mexican KHOT (QUE BUENA 105.9) dropped from #5 to a tie at #9 with its smallest share in exactly one year.

MINNEAPOLIS-ST.PAUL: Santa’s KOOL
Right on schedule, iHEARTMEDIA Classic Hits KQQL (KOOL 108) skated up to #1 6+ with a heaping helping of figgy pudding (7.8-11.5). That was in line with last year’s 11.6 shares. The station continued as the cume leader (606,500-928,000) – an increase of 53.0%. The market was off by 1.4%. MPR N/T KNOW, the market leader for the last two surveys, stepped down to #2 in deference to the big guy (9.0-8.3). iHEARTMEDIA Sports KFXN (K-FAN) repeated at #3 (7.4-7.8) while HUBBARD Hot AC KSTP (KS95) remained #4 (7.0-6.2). ENTERCOM Talk WCCO-A made the jump from a tie at #9 to #5 (4.7-5.2), which pushed CUMULUS Classic Rock KQRS back to #6 (6.0-5.0). The UNIVERSITY OF NORTHWESTERN-ST.PAUL Christian Contemporary KTIS also got into the holiday spirit and moved from #11 to a tie at #7 (4.2-4.9). As did CUMULUS AC WGVX (LOVE 105FM), which went from #20 to #17 with its best outing since JUNE (1.2-2.2).

There was no coal in the 25-54 stocking for KQQL as it moved up two spaces to #1 and entered the double-digit territory. The station was also about a share and a half jollier than last year. KFXN repeated at #2 with a slight increase while KNOW went from first to third as it returned most of the last survey’s massive increase. CUMULUS Active Rock KXXR (93X) remained at #4 with a slight loss while ENTERCOM Adult Hits KZJK (104.1 JACK FM) advanced three squares to #5 with a slight increase. iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M KDWB dropped to #7 with its lowest score in over a year and was tied with KSTP and KTIS.

KQQL assumed command of the 18-34 theater with a solid double-digit share that was larger than last year’s. Despite all the holiday turmoil, KSTP had a huge book as it leaped from #5 to #2. KDWB had its smallest share since JULY as it fell from #1 to #3. KXXR dropped to #4 with its lowest mark in over a year. KTIS advanced from #9 to #5 with its best performance since FEBRUARY. KNOW dropped five places to #9 as it ended a strong three-book surge.
KQQL completed the demo sweep as it captured the 18-49 flag with a strong double-digit showing. KFXN rebounded from a down book as it leaped from #5 to #2. KNOW dropped from #1 to #3 as it returned most of the last survey’s huge increase. KXXR stepped down to #4 with a modest loss while a flat KSTP was up to #5. KDWB had its lowest number since MAY as it slipped to #6 and a tie with KZJK.

This concludes our foray into the holiday skirmishes. The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. will be back in roughly 28 days to pick through the aftermath of yet another survey. Thank you for indulging us.

Before you click away, click on over to our blog page and sign up. It comes with a money-back guarantee! Of course, it’s free so that’s pretty much an empty promise.  Check it out here: www.ResearchDirectorInc.com/Hot-Topics

About RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC.: RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. is based in ANNAPOLIS, MD. We help radio stations’ programming and sales departments maximize the value of their research. For more information, visit www.ResearchDirectorInc.com, call 410-295-6619, or email info@ResearchDirectorInc.com or sallan@ResearchDirectorInc.com.
 
LINKEDIN: www.linkedin.com/company/ResearchDirectorInc
FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/ResearchDirectorInc
TWITTER: @ResearchDirectr

« see more Net News