<FONT COLOR="#FF0033"><B>Radio AdEx:</B></FONT> LIC surpasses HLL in ad spends on FM radio

The AdEx India (a division of TAM Media Research in technical collaboration with AirCheck USA) report on radio advertising expenditure in the first quarter of 2006 suggests that LIC (5 per cent) was the top spender on FM radio, followed by HLL (4 per cent). Following HLL is another PSU, MTNL, which contributed around 3 per cent of the total ad spend on FM stations.

Other companies such as Brooke Bond Lipton, Parsvnath Developers and UTI (Unit Trust of India) contributed around 2 per cent each on the total spends on FM radio in India. Behind them are Bharti Cellular, HDFC Standard Life Insurance, Hutchison Essar and HSBC, with 1 per cent each.

Among the top categories, television channel promotions once again topped the list of categories advertising on radio, with a share of 13 per cent.

The other top categories that followed television channel promos were insurance (7 per cent), cellular phone services (6 per cent), mutual funds (5 per cent), real estate (5 per cent), books and publications (4 per cent) and independent retailers (3 per cent).

About the continuous trend of television channel promotions on radio, Kajal Malik, regional director, Optimum Media Solutions, says, “TV channels advertise a lot on radio because it is a very effective way to get the tune-ins for the day. For instance, to remind the listeners of a particular serial on a particular day, radio is very relevant since it is a medium that is consumed every day.”

She adds, “We need to remember that these promotions of television shows need not be a paid activity. There are a lot of tie-ups between radio stations and television channels, where the radio station is an official partner. In that case, the figures can be high.” She is referring to tie-ups like the one between ‘Indian Idol 2’ and Red FM.

Premjeet Sodhi, senior vice-president, Intellect, points out that the figures may be low in the retailers’ category because ‘independent retailers’, according to him, is a vague term. “These may include only single city establishments, which means it refers to showrooms and shops that are located only in one particular city,” he suggests.

And the reason for the low spends by retail advertisers, he says, is possibly because there still exists a gap between advertising on radio and getting foot-falls. “That this effect is higher in print than it is on radio might be the perception of the advertisers,” he explains.

It was also observed that the top three categories of spenders varied in each of the three metros. Though television channel promos topped in Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata, it did not even feature among the top three in Chennai. Life insurance came in second in Mumbai and Chennai, but only third in Kolkata, and not among the top three at all in Delhi.

Cellular phone services were in the third spot in Delhi and Chennai. Biscuits came in second in Kolkata. Mutual funds came in third in Mumbai.

Yet another interesting finding was the new spenders in this medium for the first quarter. The top ten new spenders this quarter, as compared to 2005, were the Ministry of Tourism, KS Publications, Ashok and Co., Prince Pharma, WNS Global Services, JM Asset Management Company, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance, Singapore Tourism, Deutsche Bank and Go Airlines, in that order.

© 2006 agencyfaqs!