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The topsy turvy world of Total People vs Demos

Week 30 of TV ratings emphasised the difference between winning in Total People and winning in the advertiser-friendly Demographics.

Last week’s ratings results illustrated the differences that often exist between winning in Total People and winning in Demographics.

Whilst a snapshot of Total People gives an overview that makes results easy to understand, the advertising market is more concerned with how those numbers break down.

In Week 30 the Seven Network won in Total People, but fell to third place in all key demos 16-39, 18-49 and 25-54.

Nine won the the demos last week and unusually TEN came second.

Seven’s audience, which skews older than Nine and TEN, gave them the eyeballs, but Nine actually had more of the ones that interested advertisers.

Network:
Seven: 28.7
Nine: 26.6
TEN: 23.3
ABC: 14.0
SBS: 7.5

Primary Channels:
Seven: 21.3
Nine: 19.9
TEN: 17.8
ABC1: 10.6
SBS1: 6.9

Multichannels:
7TWO: 4.1
GO!: 4.0
ELEVEN: 3.5
7mate: 3.3
GEM: 2.7
ABC2: 2.2
One: 2.0
ABC3: 0.6
ABC News 24: 0.6
SBS2: 0.6

Seven won Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Friday and Saturday. Nine won Wednesday and Thursday.

TEN bettered Seven on Wednesday and Thursday.

Seven won Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth but Nine won Sydney and Brisbane.

Top 100
Rnk Description Stn Network Sydney Melbourne Brisbane Adelaide Perth
1 Australia’s Got Talent-Tue Seven 1,859,000 542,000 558,000 337,000 221,000 201,000
2 Masterchef Australia Sun Ten 1,713,000 509,000 563,000 280,000 168,000 194,000
3 Masterchef Australia Mon Ten 1,655,000 461,000 570,000 265,000 169,000 190,000
4 Masterchef Australia Thurs Ten 1,605,000 453,000 532,000 290,000 148,000 183,000
5 The Block -Sun Nine 1,593,000 463,000 569,000 318,000 140,000 103,000
6 Seven News – Sun Seven 1,589,000 347,000 439,000 348,000 191,000 264,000
7 Downton Abbey Seven 1,589,000 399,000 526,000 308,000 167,000 188,000
8 Masterchef Australia Wed Ten 1,551,000 450,000 519,000 231,000 139,000 210,000
9 Masterchef Australia Tues Ten 1,489,000 400,000 494,000 248,000 163,000 183,000
10 Nine News Sunday Nine 1,462,000 561,000 421,000 281,000 124,000 76,000
11 The Block -Mon Nine 1,364,000 334,000 506,000 226,000 140,000 158,000
12 Seven News – Sat Seven 1,347,000 359,000 347,000 270,000 161,000 208,000
13 Seven News Seven 1,344,000 323,000 366,000 259,000 166,000 231,000
14 The Block -Tue Nine 1,340,000 359,000 506,000 266,000 93,000 117,000
15 Sunday Night Seven 1,321,000 348,000 342,000 281,000 168,000 182,000
16 60 Minutes Nine 1,275,000 402,000 386,000 239,000 127,000 121,000
17 The Block -Thu Nine 1,265,000 322,000 495,000 208,000 122,000 118,000
18 Today Tonight Seven 1,257,000 306,000 335,000 237,000 164,000 215,000
19 The Block -Wed Nine 1,242,000 352,000 439,000 222,000 116,000 112,000
20 Winners & Losers Seven 1,240,000 328,000 430,000 208,000 146,000 127,000
21 The Block -Fri Nine 1,136,000 368,000 363,000 197,000 114,000 96,000
22 Bondi Vet Ten 1,129,000 350,000 304,000 190,000 124,000 161,000
23 The Amazing Race Australia Seven 1,124,000 303,000 344,000 175,000 125,000 177,000
24 Nine News Nine 1,124,000 356,000 363,000 227,000 101,000 76,000
25 Better Homes And Gardens Seven 1,122,000 325,000 334,000 190,000 121,000 152,000
26 Nine News Saturday Nine 1,111,000 313,000 360,000 233,000 122,000 84,000
27 Great Migrations Seven 1,045,000 347,000 239,000 207,000 109,000 143,000
28 Offspring Wed Ten 1,031,000 238,000 384,000 154,000 99,000 155,000
29 A Current Affair Nine 1,017,000 323,000 330,000 207,000 92,000 65,000
30 Home And Away Seven 1,016,000 277,000 271,000 200,000 127,000 141,000
31 Law And Order: SVU Ten 951,000 322,000 254,000 187,000 88,000 101,000
32 Highway Patrol Seven 937,000 310,000 256,000 168,000 88,000 115,000
33 The Big Bang Theory -Mon Nine 934,000 260,000 264,000 184,000 102,000 125,000
34 Border Security – Australia’s Front Line (R) Seven 922,000 270,000 255,000 192,000 103,000 101,000
35 Rescue Special Ops Nine 919,000 232,000 255,000 190,000 125,000 116,000
36 Grand Designs ABC1 912,000 252,000 310,000 149,000 98,000 103,000
37 NCIS Rpt Ten 909,000 246,000 244,000 183,000 99,000 137,000
38 Can Of Worms Ten 892,000 208,000 315,000 169,000 105,000 95,000
39 ABC News ABC1 874,000 277,000 239,000 130,000 100,000 129,000
40 The Mentalist Nine 862,000 307,000 241,000 165,000 78,000 71,000
41 Australia’s Funniest Home Videos Nine 857,000 237,000 280,000 175,000 80,000 86,000
42 Silent Witness ABC1 857,000 284,000 196,000 167,000 96,000 114,000
43 Hot Property Nine 856,000 290,000 285,000 123,000 93,000 65,000
44 The Big Bang Theory -Tue Nine 842,000 243,000 248,000 198,000 56,000 97,000
45 Nine’s Live Friday Night Football Nine 819,000 504,000 *** 315,000 *** ***
46 Criminal Minds (R) Seven 817,000 280,000 232,000 129,000 85,000 90,000
47 Merlin Ten 805,000 296,000 193,000 144,000 76,000 96,000
48 Top Design Nine 800,000 244,000 244,000 144,000 96,000 71,000
49 Human Body: In The Womb – Fight For Life Nine 789,000 228,000 259,000 117,000 107,000 78,000
50 Crash Investigation Unit Seven 788,000 243,000 226,000 149,000 85,000 85,000
51 World’s Deadliest Roads Seven 787,000 247,000 237,000 124,000 80,000 99,000
52 Masterchef Australia – Masterclass Ten 770,000 185,000 294,000 113,000 89,000 88,000
53 The 7pm Project Ten 768,000 204,000 233,000 160,000 76,000 94,000
54 NCIS: Los Angeles Tues Ten 758,000 205,000 203,000 144,000 92,000 114,000
55 ABC News-Sa ABC1 752,000 226,000 261,000 125,000 73,000 66,000
56 Australian Story ABC1 744,000 221,000 211,000 153,000 81,000 78,000
57 Top Gear Nine 734,000 198,000 217,000 171,000 61,000 87,000
58 Die Hard 4.0 Rpt Ten 720,000 207,000 263,000 95,000 93,000 62,000
59 ABC News-Su ABC1 714,000 204,000 219,000 93,000 84,000 116,000
60 Man Almighty Seven 710,000 223,000 168,000 149,000 79,000 91,000
61 Spicks And Specks ABC1 705,000 231,000 205,000 106,000 78,000 85,000
62 Martin Clunes: Man To Manta – In Search Of The Giant Ray Seven 694,000 180,000 154,000 158,000 80,000 122,000
63 RBT Nine 693,000 221,000 184,000 164,000 58,000 65,000
64 Law And Order: SVU Rpt Ten 692,000 256,000 181,000 114,000 71,000 70,000
65 Tour De France 2011 Live: Stage 20 SBS ONE 690,000 202,000 246,000 60,000 65,000 118,000
66 Four Corners ABC1 658,000 193,000 168,000 131,000 69,000 97,000
67 The Footy Show Nine 644,000 142,000 291,000 73,000 95,000 43,000
68 Ten News At Five Ten 639,000 184,000 195,000 97,000 65,000 98,000
69 Media Watch ABC1 639,000 222,000 156,000 128,000 59,000 73,000
70 Hot Seat Nine 638,000 193,000 187,000 152,000 59,000 47,000
71 Saturday Night AFL Ten 626,000 *** 395,000 37,000 114,000 80,000
72 Deal Or No Deal Seven 622,000 167,000 180,000 116,000 74,000 86,000
73 The Vicar Of Dibley (R) Seven 617,000 165,000 145,000 119,000 91,000 96,000
74 Q&A ABC1 615,000 208,000 184,000 115,000 68,000 40,000
75 Tour De France 2011 Live: Stage 19 SBS ONE 604,000 148,000 235,000 65,000 61,000 95,000
76 Castle (R) Seven 600,000 145,000 187,000 123,000 67,000 78,000
77 RPA Nine 598,000 170,000 167,000 99,000 94,000 67,000
78 Midsomer Murders Rpt ABC1 587,000 163,000 146,000 138,000 62,000 78,000
79 Crownies ABC1 586,000 195,000 154,000 104,000 61,000 72,000
80 7.30 (National) ABC1 586,000 205,000 146,000 101,000 56,000 77,000
81 7.30 ABC1 574,000 194,000 151,000 92,000 64,000 72,000
82 Qi ABC1 569,000 163,000 196,000 74,000 71,000 66,000
83 Kingdom ABC1 564,000 147,000 196,000 104,000 63,000 55,000
84 Bones-Mon (R) Seven 559,000 141,000 180,000 84,000 64,000 89,000
85 CSI: Miami Nine 553,000 176,000 166,000 89,000 71,000 52,000
86 Covert Affairs Seven 544,000 174,000 184,000 73,000 53,000 61,000
87 RPA Where Are They Now? Nine 543,000 174,000 164,000 76,000 84,000 45,000
88 Wonders Of The Universe ABC1 528,000 152,000 169,000 80,000 61,000 66,000
89 Gardening Australia ABC1 527,000 141,000 159,000 122,000 57,000 48,000
90 Collectors ABC1 520,000 151,000 164,000 81,000 63,000 61,000
91 The Mentalist -Sun Nine 518,000 183,000 151,000 91,000 49,000 45,000
92 Law & Order: LA Seven 516,000 156,000 152,000 75,000 60,000 74,000
93 Law & Order: Criminal Intent Ten 507,000 154,000 147,000 80,000 64,000 61,000
94 Seven’s AFL: Rnd 17: Brisbane Vs Geelong Seven 506,000 3,000 262,000 77,000 96,000 68,000
95 Crownies Teaser ABC1 501,000 137,000 152,000 107,000 41,000 64,000
96 Jamie’s Thirty Minute Meals Sun Rpt Ten 496,000 163,000 99,000 121,000 48,000 64,000
97 Seven’s AFL: Rnd 18: St Kilda Vs Adelaide Seven 494,000 16,000 251,000 16,000 158,000 53,000
98 Nine’s Sunday Football Nine 492,000 322,000 *** 169,000 *** ***
99 Nine’s Tri-Nations Rugby: Australia Vs. South Africa Nine 485,000 249,000 8,000 201,000 6,000 21,000
100 Marchlands ABC1 483,000 131,000 139,000 93,000 58,000 62,000

Week 30

16 Responses

  1. honestly, if you think programmers and networks give 2 stuffs about anyone over 60, then think again. It’s the truth.

    They don’t program for every single, breathing, living Australian – they work for where the advertising dollar will bring them the revenue… get used to it.

  2. Whilst Seven had a bad week, YTD they are still #1 in 25-54 which is their target demo.

    And it’s not just advertisers who are concerned with demos. It’s the networks too. Seven and Nine sell advertising based on how many 25-54 viewers they had, not how many total people they have. And Ten sells based on 18-49.

    The only reason ratings exist is to measure the amount of people watching so advertising rates can be set for each show. And those ad rates are based on the demos.

    Total people is great for headline and press, but that is about it.

    The reason advertisers are obsessed with demos is (rightly or wrongly) they believe people younger than 16 do not have enough disposable income to spend and people older than 55 are set in the ways and will not be swayed by advertising.

    There for they only really care about 16-55

    There for the networks only care about 16-55

  3. The reason total people still has it’s place is because the hard evidence that winning demos = winning profits is hard to come by. Since 2007 ch7 has won the year in demos but has struggled in demos which have mostly gone to 9 and ten. But when you look at advertising revenue for the year 7 has been smashing its rivals.

    Speaking of demos, ten don’t seem to be doing well in them. This is supposed to be their peak part of the year (tail end of MC)and they can’t seem to even count on their trusty 16-39 for a win which has been going to 7 and 9 which you wouldn’t think would have much for those people looking at their schedules.

  4. The thing is that the demos that the networks chase contain the majority of the advertising market.
    Last week, 7 came 3rd in these demos.
    In 2005, Nine was Seven now. It was skewing 55+, and advertisers were flocking to TEN and 7 because the demos were there. The reason Nine declined in ratings in the end was because even though they were popular with the oldies, the advertisers were giving up on it and Nine couldn’t maintain the high cost of their operations.
    Back in the 90s, Nine skewed generally towards a broader audience. Advertisers and Nine reaped the rewards but Nine got too desperate on being #1 that they skewed older to maintain their lead instead of thinking of their income.
    Which would advertisers prefer? Location Location or Big Brother.
    Seven is making the same mistakes Nine did from 2003-07 by trying to catch advertisers by total viewership, not where the fields are green.
    In a few years, when Nine and TEN are back on their feet winning the demos and Seven will be the One overall, Seven will feel it too.
    Its a cycle.
    The yanks are smart by trying to focus the market more towards what advertisers want. CBS is #1 overall, but FOX is the big winner in demos and profits.

  5. You would think that the advertisers would be more interested in how many people watch a show than the demo’s, as the more people watching their adverts the more chance they have of selling their products, don’t understand advertising people. Still give my vote to 7 and 10, nine is a has been channel

  6. @ Knowfirst excluding everyone outside the 18-49 age bracket is no way to run government licenced TV channels paid for by our tax payer dollars that is meant to be for all people.

  7. The Americans get it right – 18-49.

    Primetime should be 7.30-10.30 and let the channels load it up and rip.

    Make it more interesting 🙂

  8. What a farce. The more people watching a show the better I say. Most ads on TV for example about washing powders, chocolates, cars, banks, supermarkets, cold medicines, pretty much most things etc etc appeal to the masses which is why total people is the most important.

    Also from a viewer’s point of view the total number of viewers of a show is also a good indication of how good it is and what the majority of people want to watch/what interests them rather than succumbing to and appeasing some small fragment of the population which is what they call “demos”.

  9. Demo’s make the stations coming second and third in total numbers feel good about themselves. Let’s face it, it’s more impressive to say you had 2 million people watching a show, then to say 800 thousand of a certain age group watched a certain show. Which one make the headlines!! I reckon that is what counts.

    I thought demo’s was only useful for advertisers to target a certain timeslot for certain individuals. For the everyday items that most people buy, demo’s don’t really do that much as they can advertise at any time of the day.

    Channel 9 would love to be number one in total people again, they can pretend that they enjoy winning a demo every now and then but it will always come back to what channel has the biggest overall audience.

  10. Seven have had a unusual dream run this year and are very far ahead in all demographics. They have some good content coming up to finish off the year that is Very demo friendly (Beauty & Geek, Four Weddings, PTTR, Bones, Castle, probably also Dinner Date and probably also Wild Boys).

    Looking at Sevens schedule they are serving these demos up to Nine and Ten on a platter (Vicar of Dibley rots, Law and Order, Border rots etc) and I still think this is their strategy. Get a few so-so results for this 4-6 week period before coming back to try and smash it come August.

  11. Despite the fact that people always criticise seven for not winning the demo’s, they still enjoy a commanding share of the television advertising market, and that’s what really matters. Advertises still choose to place their ads on seven because lets face it, banks, cars and supermarkets (which make up the lions share of ads I see on TV) are ads that appeal to a mass audience, not a specific age group.
    Also, YTD seven still enjoys leads in the 18-49, 25-54 and 55+ demos

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