Arbitron May Have It Right....

There are some very well publicized sampling issues in the African American and Hispanic communities in regard to the People Meter. I think some of that is understandable given the fact that the Arbitron service will accept individuals who are not legal citizens as a member of the listening panel. That is to say in those markets that are rated by a paper diary as well as those that are monitored electronically with the People Meter will be counted as part of the panel.

So imagine this; you are not a legal citizen of the United States and you are asked to wear something that is akin to a lo-jack that has GPS-like abilities. The monitor knows where you are, knows what you’re listening to and can speculate on what you’re doing. Would you be brave enough to accept such a monitor given that it could lead to deportation and possible imprisonment? The answer for the most part will be no.

This programming problem does not diminish the number of actual listeners the Hispanic station has, but rather invalidates the ratings in regard to the size of their audience. Does this mean that advertisers should not use Latino targeted stations? No! In fact it means that they should use them and take advantage of the discount they can receive by basing the pricing on an audience you know is larger than what the ratings show.

The first real programming job I ever had was in Wheeling,WV at WNEU radio. I had programmed in Connellsville PA, Uniontown, PA and in a suburb of Wheeling known as Moundsville, WV before I became what I consider a “real” PD. The man I worked for in Wheeling was the General Manager and he was the owner of the station and his name was Gene Johnson.

Gene had an amazing impact on my career and the few years I spent working with him were as the same as getting a Masters Degree in Broadcasting. Gene has worked with Lew Dickey Sr. (the father of the Lew Dickey Jr, who is the CEO of Cumulus Radio) and even though later on I worked for Lew Sr., Gene Johnson combined the aforementioned seniors skills and talents with his own worldly experiences and my education was begun.

Gene used to say “if you don’t advertise on my station, then my listeners won’t hear about your product, and you’re missing a significant part of the market that could be spending money in your store or on your service.” That same thinking and mentality translates to Spanish radio. I can even argue that it applies to African American targeted radio albeit that the African American targeted broadcasters (despite their loud voices and lobbying efforts) are not in as much peril as is a Latino broadcaster.

Spanish language radio stations still have great opportunities for success. Arbitron can be expected to spend more money to build the Spanish panel and better represent the community, but those individuals who are in the United States illegally, or have never been legalized as a citizen of the United States (which is different than being in the country legally) live in homes, buy clothes, drive cars, purchase gasoline, and eat meals. These are individuals who have an income and spend their dollars in the community.

The message to your advertisers should be what my mentor Gene Johnson said…

“IF YOU DO NOT ADVERTISE ON OUR STATION THEN YOU ARE MISSING A SIGNIFCANT BUYING COMMUNITY THAT COULD PURCHASE YOUR PRODUCT, USE YOUR SERVICE OR SPEND MONEY WITH YOU.”