Lead-In Audience Stays Tuned-In During Commercial Breaks

A new study from Arbitron’s Portable People Meter and Media Monitors might dispel the belief among advertisers, agencies and radio executives that radio loses a considerable portion of its audience during commercial breaks. The lowest rated minute during an average commercial break is 92 percent of the size of the audience before the spots began, according to the new data.

The study analyzed 93,876 radio commercial breaks from November and December 2005 in Houston, Texas, comparing the audience level for each minute of a commercial break to the audience for the minute before the commercials began.

The lowest rated minute during an average commercial break in morning-drive is 94 percent of the lead-in audience.

The audience for one-minute breaks is nearly the same as the lead-in audience (99.6 percent), and the lowest rated minute in two-minute breaks is 94.7 percent of the audience prior to the spot break.

The lowest rated minute during three-, four-, five- and six-minute breaks ranges from 87.7 percent to 89.4 percent of the lead-in audience.

Younger listeners are more likely to tune out of commercials than older listeners.

These findings stand in stark contrast to industry perceptions. In a web poll conducted by Arbitron and Coleman, people identifying themselves as members of the advertiser/agency industry (200 responses) said that, on average, the size of the audience in the middle of a radio commercial break is only 63 percent of the size of the audience one minute prior to the start of the break.