As predicted, the upcoming holiday weekend again created new opportunities for brands to use radio to make the most of their sales and summer. Leading the pack is The Home Depot, which dethroned longtime chart leader Progressive after a multi-month lead.
The latest Media Monitors report of radio’s top national advertisers for May 13-19 shows The Home Depot spots totaled an impressive 61,976 airings, marking a significant jump from its second-place ranking the previous week. Even so, Progressive isn’t far behind. The insurer holds second place with 54,692 spot plays.
As for other Memorial Day related ad jumps, another home improvement giant and radio regular, Lowe’s, leapt from 21 to four with 38,668 spins. Mattress Firm also sured up a holiday sale push, moving from sixth to fifth with 35,433 plays. And even though they just barely made the top ten for the week, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration jumped up from 48 to warn revelers of the dangers of drunk driving.
Outside of the holiday auspices, wireless carriers also had a big week as well. T-Mobile surged to the third position from 98th place, boasting 45,722 airings. Verizon Wireless also saw an incredible jump, moving from 42nd to the number six spot.
With radio companies looking for a big Q2 revenue bump after an underwhelming first quarter, the upcoming Memorial Day week will be one to watch to forecast summer brand ad spending.