Nielsen’s plan to alter radio listening in three-minute increments, down from the current five-minute rule, is expected to roll out in early 2025. The shift is said to better align radio with today’s shorter media habits, best illustrated by TikTok videos and YouTube shorts. Nielsen has said it could boost ratings for some stations, especially younger-targeted formats, by an estimated 26%.
“Five minutes is longer than almost any song that gets played on the radio, three minutes is a lot more realistic,” said NuVoodoo Executive VP of Research Analysis Leigh Jacobs. “I think their change of the threshold is justifiable, and I think it can be a boost for radio.” In a video assessing the impact of the pending change, Jacobs said that he suspects CHR and alternative rock stations will get the biggest lift, but said that there are also unexpected outcomes when ratings methodologies are revised.
Nielsen has still not publicly confirmed the three-minute rule, but it has relayed to its clients that there remains one more approval stage left during the first quarter before it is implemented. NuVoodoo VP Mike O’Connor said that when it does get implemented, clients have been told that Nielsen will retrofit past surveys so that rolling monthly averages reflect the new guideposts. He points out that while reducing the AQH credit limit by two minutes may not seem all that consequential at first glance when it is implemented, it will mean it will take 40% less listening to achieve the same level of credit.“Playing defense is the most important thing to do,” O’Connor said. “And doing whatever you can to minimize the things that will cause tune-out.”
To help stations prep for the Nielsen changes, NuVoodoo has released the 24th edition of its Ratings Prospects studies that examine people’s listening habits. The latest, with nearly 3,200 respondents aged 13 to 64, was conducted in May and June. It offers fresh insights into some of the top turn-offs that could become even more critical when Nielsen’s AQH ratings thresholds are changed in the coming months.
While commercials are often the thing that people complain about the most, NuVoodoo’s research found that among radio listeners, it ranks as only the eighth-biggest turnoff. Slightly more than a third (35%) of people surveyed said they turn the station because of commercials. But that was the same number who said they reach for the dial when the songs all sound the same or when an air personality is telling jokes that just aren’t all that funny.
Jacobs said that commercial breaks “are certainly not a benefit,” but burned-out songs and songs that repeat at the same time every day are bigger issues — saying it points to the need for stations to test their gold records. In fact, the survey found that new and unfamiliar music was less of a risk to tune-out than burnout.
“The problem with the unfamiliar song is we don’t know where that fits yet, but neither does the listener. And sometimes you’re going to get lucky and they’re going to love the song the first time you play it,” Jacobs said.
NuVoodoo also finds that today’s listeners are more sensitive than people may have been in the past, or at least they are willing to take action for hearing a host say what is considered to be insulting or hurtful statements. More than four in ten people surveyed said it would make them tune out a station.
“Even with the oldest audience group, they’re willing to give you far more latitude for new songs they don’t know than they’ll give you for jokes or sketches that just aren’t funny,” Jacobs said.
Yet for music stations the biggest turn-off remains, unsurprisingly, the music itself. NuVoodoo says its survey finds the top tune-out culprits are a station the listener think is playing too many bad songs, and not far behind is too many overplayed songs.
“That’s something that we can do something about with music testing,” Jacobs said. He said it is also something to remember as broadcasters head into year-end budgeting for 2025.
O’Connor said that as stations get ready for Nielsen AQH changes, there has never been a better time for stations to conduct an audit of their product, including air personalities, liners, promos, and even the tonality of the commercials.
“We’re not going to be able to undo whatever damage or benefit the five- to three-minute transition makes,” he said. “But we do have some tools and solutions.”
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