When
radio FM stations were launching in different metros and specifically
Mumbai, there were a lot of my colleagues in publication groups
who were of the view that this would turn into some monies for
them as well. Their view was that if TV channels can spend around
1 billion on press annually (9 billion to 10 billion), radio stations
will also use that route to get listeners into their fold. The
speculation by some of us however, was that outdoor and hoarding
companies were more likely to benefit from radio station ad spends
rather than press. This piece attempts to look at the 'worth'
of advertising by radio stations - 'worth' because not all of
that advertising will be paid for. There could be a substantial
number of house-ads or barters.
So
what is that total 'worth' (inclusive of house-ads, barters, paid
ads) of radio advertising in TV and press? We studied TAM ADEX
to find this out and found this number to be just under 200 million(180
Million or 18 crore to be precise)
The
quantum jump from Rs 8 m to 180 m itself is quite stunning. But
how much of this is real and how much is an opportunity cost?
TAM ADEX splits the in-house ads from that overall quantum to
estimate that answer. The results are stunning!
Only 11
per cent of the 180 million appears to be paid whereas the rest
seems all in-house ads. Cross-promotion on TV and press is the
name of the game for the Radio companies.
Now
even if we in the media business dismiss this advertising as in-house
or barter or zero cost, that's not however the way a consumer
sees it. A consumer still sees advertising for one radio station
versus another radio station. Hence, its critical to understand
which radio station did he see more of or which radio station
promoted itself the highest. The chart below makes that comparison
for TV+ press in 2002 and plots the top three radio stations in
terms of their overall worth of media placed in these two mediums.
There
are a slew of radio stations which will get launched pretty soon
in different metros/ mini-metros and TAM ADEX will continue to
study these trends in the immediate future. Watch this space for
more!
Atul Phadnis, director, S-Group, TAM Media Research
Source : TAM ADEX (TV, Newspapers and Magazines)
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