Fall Nielsen Ratings

Latest Buffalo ratings are now available in the usual locations (Radio Online, etc...) WECK is included on the list posting a 1.4 share for Fall 2017. ALT 107.7 has a 1.2.

WBEN slid back to 7.6. WBFO is not publicly listed, but a 5 share or better seems reasonable. 2018 begins...

A very strange book, although we did our best. The were no stations with an 8 share or above 12 plus, except YRK. Lot's of 2 shares, 3 shares, just seemed stuck in the middle. Infact out of all the stations who subscribe, only 4 were up. I am not a real ratings believer, but was admittingly a little disappointed. Then I looked at the Dec trend, and felt a lot better. I would feel whole lot worse if I bought a station like WLKK that covers 13 counties with an FM that was sold for 15 million dollars, as opposed to my small 1K. I have never sold on ratings, I sell on results, so I think I have to look at the ratings as just a barometer of comparison, not a barometer of client results. I know this....with or without ratings, my vision has not changed. Provide timeless trusted names, adult standard music, and quick local information. Whether the ratings like it or not, that is what will continue to happen at my stations. WBFO and WNED and 3-4 shares if I am remembering correctly. On to the winter book....

Buddy Shula said:

I have never sold on ratings, I sell on results,

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I agree, especially given your target audience. Get actual testimonials from real listeners and clients. Build your campaign around that. Then again, you already know that.

Buddy Shula said:

The were no stations with an 8 share or above 12 plus, except YRK.

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uh...lol.

Lot's of 2 shares, 3 shares, just seemed stuck in the middle.

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3 in the 7's, 3 in the 5's, none in the 3's and 2 in the 2's.

Are we looking at the same book?

Fly, you are most likely looking at a website. When you pay for the book, like I do, you get these:

WNED 1.9
WBFO 3.7
WDCX 1.0
WLOF 1.0

SO to answer your question, no we are not looking at the same book. You are not looking at a book at all. I have every number and breakout there is. And like I said, there is NO station over a 7.9 share 12 plus, other than YRK

Buddy Shula said:

Fly, you are most likely looking at a website. When you pay for the book, like I do, you get these:

WNED 1.9
WBFO 3.7
WDCX 1.0
WLOF 1.0

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Still not seeing all the 2's and 3's you talked about.

And like I said, there is NO station over a 7.9 share 12 plus, other than YRK

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And there is NO station over a 2.6 share 12 plus, other than WBUF, WMSX, WEDG, WHTT, WKSE, WGR, WTSS, WGRF, WBEN, WBLK and WYRK.

Strange book indeed.

Everyone loves the ratings when you're up and derides them when you're down. Buddy says he doesn't sell on ratings nor believe their validity. He forecast a 4 share for WECK. Nielsen took his lunch money and curb stomped his station.
An expensive lesson.

As for WLKK, Entercom is still pushing the Alternative format in many markets with meager results. The 1.2 for 107.7 is abysmal even for a limited signal...

Buddy is spot on....leave the ratings for the national sellers who need to quantify. Buddy is focusing on good copy, frequency, endorsements, and jocks that are Buffalo favorites. He is showing up his ex-employer by doing the right thing....kudos to him!

TBolt. We will have a 4 share. Our last book was 2.6, this is 1.4. The next will be better. Wait until we put in 100.5 for the Northtowns. For you to tell me what is expensive or not is a joke. Go back to creeping the All Access page. When you own a metro station, which will never happen, lets talk. I have owned WECK since May. Believe me, there is a plan. Stations have bad and good books all the time. By the way, let's talk about the real ratings.....the bank register. Want to have that conversation?

Oldbloodandguts said:

Buddy is spot on....leave the ratings for the national sellers who need to quantify. Buddy is focusing on good copy, frequency, endorsements, and jocks that are Buffalo favorites. He is showing up his ex-employer by doing the right thing....kudos to him!

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Thank you. There are some people on this board who are just waiting for me to not succeed. I love it. I would never wish that upon someone else. If tbolt had any credibility he would expose who he is, like I do. It is easy to criticize. WECK has a 42K weekly cume, 56K cume in summer. That is pretty damn good for a 1 KW station that just had a format change. The truth probably lies somewhere in the middle. I can understand, and am disappointed in the Fall book. It will get a lot better. tbot, you keep exposing yourself as just a naysayer. I am most likely your last hope for a broadcasting job.

They're Trolls and Wannabees, probably sitting in their pajamas wishing for the good old days when they could puke-voice their way through a job that paid them peanuts. I say they grab a Wal-Mart cart and play greeter and stop the smack talk ...look at some of these knuckleheads who post thousands of memes (that's you Big A, T Bolt, etc all) on what they think of radio...go get your $1 McD coffee and stare at the walls, by the way, reruns of People's Court are on!

Buddy misses the point again. If you don't think ratings are accurate, then why pay for them? A small local station like WECK doesn't need Nielsen. I have no animosity and wish you success with your venture. Again, you boast of getting of a 4 share. What difference does it make? Just be realistic. Some people will listen, many won't care.
Best of luck and hope you succeed...

Bloodandguts obviously knows radio. Thank you. Tbolt. Let me explain to you why WECK now subscribes. First off, WECK is not a small local station. It was owned by CBS at one time. It had a 7 share at one time. My company is small, but WECK is a major metro station. It has been deprived of for years. That is not the case anymore. The station is the best value in the market to reach 50 plus. Neilson is a barometer. I do not sell with it, but my national rep firm does. I also subscribe to Scarbourough. That is far more important to me than Neilson. Do I think the ratings are accurate? Not really.....but clients and agencies on a national level do, and WECK is entitled to a share of that 50 plus revenue pie. I am not boasting about getting a 4 share, but it will happen. Three months ago, we were on the cusp of a 3.0 share, which if that had stuck, would have beat WBUF in this book. They have a 50K station worth millions. I have a 1K i paid a ton less for. That is pretty impressive for WECK and my company. We are literally a share away from WBUF and WMSX, and beat WLKK....and 50K Watt WWKB... Again, a 1KW station. Not bad. We have a 42K cume...also, not bad.

There's always work to be done, whether you're on the street selling Country, doing afternoon drive on the Classic Rock station, promotions for a cluster,. or morning drive on an AC station. As the saying goes, "If you're coasting, you're going down hill." But he who stands still often becomes extinct. Persons 12+ gets all the attention here because it's the only metric most of us have acces to. Anybody even remotely associated with media knows the real money comes from the demos 25-54, 35-64, and making listeners walk through the clients' doors or their phones ring.

Could it be WECK is churning old listeners for new ones. Maybe the listeners who made it a stronger station a year ago preferred Timeless Classics to legacy personalities. First books can be deceiving, but they hold a lot of truths as well ... if one looks in the right places. One book, even a good one, isn't an automatic ticket to guaranteed revenue. One bad book isn't the end of the world. Sure, good is better than bad. Each book can give an owner, sales manager or program director a pretty good idea of where the station has gone over the last three months and where it might wind up in the next three.

Element9 said:

One book, even a good one, isn't an automatic ticket to guaranteed revenue. One bad book isn't the end of the world. Sure, good is better than bad. Each book can give an owner, sales manager or program director a pretty good idea of where the station has gone over the last three months and where it might wind up in the next three.

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Still, in this case, there's a lot to be said about personal relationships. When the owner has built strong personal relationships with clients and other broadcasters in the community, it's a different situation from the other stations in town.

WMSX (ex-WJYE) Mix 96 is at a 2.7 - WOW! Has the 96.1 frequency ever been so low in modern times? It's time to ditch the weird pseudo-Hot AC/Adult CHR uptempo playlist and go back to being a true Mainstream AC station. AC is doing just fine in other markets, even showing many increases in the fall diary markets released so far. They seem far too worried about Star and need to focus on just being a good AC radio station with their own loyal audience.

I'm not wearing pajamas, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn. WECK sounds like it has made some changes in the music since the last time I heard it about a month ago. I noticed the car radio reads Timeless WECK 1230 and 102.9. Being a 50 year old guy, I'm probably not the listener Mix is trying to reach. The only time I listened to Star was a few days before Christmas, and only for about an hour or two each time. Mostly I listen to 103, 97, 550, 88.7, 104, 107.7, Jack and 91.7 at work. Each station has its strong points and weak ones. I just listen to what I like. When I hear something I dont like, I push the button just like everybody else.

I'm not a 'radio guy' as far as employment. But I enjoy listening to local (WNY) radio. I'm mid-late 50's. Born & raised in Amherst, NY. So, unless I completely misunderstand, I should be a so-called target for WECK, right? I mean, most of the talent at WECK were in-their-prime-hot-stuff when I was in my teens & twenties... so, I should adore the time travel back, right?

Wrong.

I listened to Danny, Harv, etc and the music for a bit last week. It sounded old. I'd rather not.

That being said, I love to see local folks succeed. And I realize that there are a LOT of listeners that just love to live in the past. (I mean, just look at all the reminiscing that's done on Facebook!) So, I wish Shula the absolute best luck ever. Make it happen, dude!

Hi Rock. I do appreciate you listening to WECK and your feedback. The demo for the station is 55-75+ More likely 60 plus. I am fine with that, as I want to super-serve and influence this segment of the Buffalo metro. You are really right at the cusp of the demo, and I am not near the demo at all, so I get what you are saying. I would think that not all of the music sounded old. We play plenty of 70's, including late 70's. Again, the station is really an over 60 station, and that demo is the financial demo I am looking for. We want the person who likes to live in the past. Thanks again for the support and the comments. Buddy

four4rock said:

I'm not a 'radio guy' as far as employment. But I enjoy listening to local (WNY) radio. I'm mid-late 50's. Born & raised in Amherst, NY. So, unless I completely misunderstand, I should be a so-called target for WECK, right? I mean, most of the talent at WECK were in-their-prime-hot-stuff when I was in my teens & twenties... so, I should adore the time travel back, right?

Wrong.

I listened to Danny, Harv, etc and the music for a bit last week. It sounded old. I'd rather not.

That being said, I love to see local folks succeed. And I realize that there are a LOT of listeners that just love to live in the past. (I mean, just look at all the reminiscing that's done on Facebook!) So, I wish Shula the absolute best luck ever. Make it happen, dude!

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Buddy Shula said:

Hi Rock. I do appreciate you listening to WECK and your feedback. The demo for the station is 55-75+ More likely 60 plus. I am fine with that, as I want to super-serve and influence this segment of the Buffalo metro. You are really right at the cusp of the demo, and I am not near the demo at all, so I get what you are saying. I would think that not all of the music sounded old. We play plenty of 70's, including late 70's. Again, the station is really an over 60 station, and that demo is the financial demo I am looking for. We want the person who likes to live in the past. Thanks again for the support and the comments. Buddy

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Got it. Given what you've said here, it's true I'm not your target... but I'll continue to follow your progress... and tune in from time to time. Like I said, I love watching local guys succeed (in any industry). Other than general casual knowledge, I know squat about ratings books... but, I agree, your advertisers are less likely to care about all the statistical mumbo-jumbo. [For the 'living in the past' demo, I hope y'all got Vidlers on your customer list!! ]

Also, at the risk of overstepping, here's something that could draw me to listen more: Then-And-Now... Many of the artists that I heard played are still cranking out tunes. How about once an hour, play the "oldie"... then follow it immediately with a current selection from the same artist. This may be done somewhere, by someone, but I've never heard it around here.