Everybody in Southwest Florida used to watch TV. Commercials and all. But, as media options proliferate, viewers are fleeing. This is not good news for television advertisers.
Last week, for instance, according to Nielsen, only 79% of SWFL consumers watched broadcast television. To put this in perspective, 93% tuned-in to their favorite Fort Myers radio stations.
For the uninitiated, according to AdAge magazine, the C3 ratings blends a very rough estimate of average commercial ratings with three days of time-shifted viewing; as such, it offers networks, buyers and advertisers the best approximation of actual ad deliveries.
Again, just for perspective, in 2001, prior to the advent of satellite radio, Pandora, Spotify, Facebook, YouTube, Roku, Netflix, iPods, iPads, and smartphones, Fort Myers radio reached 93% of consumers. In 2019, that number remains unchanged.
A few years ago, when broadcast TV still commanded a 90%-plus reach among SWFL consumers, a business owner could target almost any demographic needed to attract new customers.
As viewership plummets, however, certain types of consumers are disappearing. As you can see from the chart below, the demographics most coveted by advertisers are, now, more likely to be non-viewers.
The disparity between the value of TV viewers and non-TV viewers is even more pronounced when major household purchases are considered. For instance, Southwest Florida consumers planning to buy a car or truck over the next 12 months are much more likely not to watch local TV. This holds true for a wide range of key retail categories.
Advertising on Fort Myers radio stations can help local business owners reach the very valuable non-TV viewers.
According to Nielsen, 86.4% of consumers who do not watch local TV in Southwest Florida are reached by Fort Myers radio stations every week. Interestingly, 90% of all consumers who actually do watch local TV are also reached by Fort Myers radio.
Based on these findings, current TV advertisers can effectively eliminate or reapportion their advertising budgets in favor or Fort Myers radio.
As far as Mr. Walker is concerned, there is only one medium he can count on to deliver his message of transparent pricing: advertising on Fort Myers radio.
"I chose radio," he says, "because of the traffic patterns in Southwest Florida. We have more people than our roads and highways can accommodate. So people are spending a lot of time in their cars during mornings and afternoons."
"I-75 is continually congested. Route 41 is congested. The main roads and side streets are congested. As a result, people depend on Fort Myers radio for traffic reports to get them from point-A to point B. That's good for my business because people are captive in their cars, and I can communicate with them."
Fort Myers radio is the only way Naples Nissan advertises. "TV is way too expensive in Southwest Florida for advertising with any consistency," says Mr. Walker. "Cable is way to fragmented with people having access to hundreds of channels. Direct mail gets thrown away without being read. And the people who read the newspaper just aren't our customers."
Fort Myers radio is the only way Naples Nissan advertises. "TV is way too expensive in Southwest Florida for advertising with any consistency," says Mr. Walker. "Cable is way too fragmented with people having access to hundreds of channels. Direct mail gets thrown away without being read. And the people who read the newspaper just aren't our customers."