The radio advertising landscape took a notable downturn for the week of August 14 through 20, 2023, as the top five national advertisers recorded the worst week of spot plays for the year to date. The decline in numbers recorded by Media Monitors reflects a challenging period for the industry, with both familiar ad names and new entrants experiencing decreases.
After dancing around first place for months, ZipRecruiter finally secured the top position. The job finder actually climbed from its previous week’s third place while playing fewer spots this week – 39,567, compared to 40,047. Babbel held second with 37,103 spot plays, down from last week’s 42,625. This marks a continuation of the brand’s declining trend in place since mid-July.
It wasn’t all bad news. The remaining three top advertisers actually saw increases in total spot play, thanks to the approaching Labor Day holiday. Grainger stayed steady and captured the third position with 36,256 spot plays, up from last week’s 35,377.
A new entrant, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), made its mark in the fourth position with 36,223 spot plays. Finally, The Home Depot completed the top five with 31,772 spot plays, rising one rank from last week.
The cumulative spot plays for the top five advertisers for the week totaled 180,921 with an average of 36,184.2 plays per advertiser, showing a significant dip from last week’s total and average plays of 198,692 and 39,738.4, respectively.
This week’s data underscores a concerning trend in the radio advertising space, with top brands experiencing declines and the overall numbers reflecting the weakest week of the year. The reasons behind this downturn may be multifaceted, including seasonal factors, economic climate, and changing market dynamics. As the industry looks ahead, it remains to be seen how advertisers will respond to this challenging period and whether the coming weeks will bring a rebound or signal a continued slump.
