A DEEPER LOOK AT WQXR’S DROP IN LISTENERS

Yesterday’s column featured the Spring 2015 Nielsen Audio ratings for classical stations that buy the data. According to trends, WQXR lost 151,100 weekly cumulative listeners between Spring 2014 and Spring 2015.  A couple of readers messaged me saying: How can this be? Where did they go? Is this the start of the rapture?

I decided to get a granular view and looked up the month-to-month data.  It turns out WQXR had a big drop in weekly listeners between December 2014 and January 2015:

SURVEY PERIOD	Average Quarter Hour Listeners	Average Quarter Hour Share (%)	Weekly Cumulative Listeners
July 2015	NA	1.0	432,000
June 2015	12,800	1.1	470,000
May 2015	11,400	0.9	459,900
April 2015	14,000	1.2	502,100
March 2015	12,600	1.1	468,700
February 2015	11,400	1.0	497,700
January 2015	11,700	1.0	456,200
December 2014	14,400	1.2	579,000
November 2014	14,600	1.2	600,200
October 2014	17,600	1.5	634,400
Summer 2014	15,500	1.3	557,700
Spring 2014	20,800	1.7	628,400
Winter 2014	18,300	1.6	605,100

These data are provided for use by Nielsen subscribers ONLY, in accordance with RRC's limited license with Nielsen Inc.
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Data Copyright Nielsen Inc. Format distinctions are the sole responsibility of Ken Mills Agency, LCC, the publisher of SPARK!

WQXR SAYS: WE DON’T KNOW EITHER

Graham Parker, WQXR’S Program Director, is on vacation. I heard back from Jennifer Houlihan Roussel, New York Public Radio’s Senior Director of Publicity.  Her response was [paraphrasing] We are looking into it. She says they are checking all of the vital signs:

WQXR: Yes, we’ve observed the drop in cume, we watching it closely, and we are undertaking some research into it. Currently our “weekly time exposed” is at a six-month high.

KEN: This means fewer people are listening but those who are listening listen longer and/or tune it more often.

WQXR: But we are also watching closely how our audience is engaging with WQXR on all platforms.  Notably, we’ve witnessed increases in all digital activity – including a 23% increase in WQXR app users, and a 56% increase in total listening hours to the app.

KEN: I wish it was due to increased listening to Q2 Music, WQXR’s highly praised music stream featuring living composers and in-the-moment performances by new-music performers at city venues. It is available online [link] and mobile app. 

WQXR: …the Q2 audience has been stable, so it wouldn’t appear WQXR listeners are moving over to Q2.

So, the fate of WQXR’s missing 150,000 listeners is still a mystery.  To be continued...