Online home improvement retail websites, led by brands such as Wayfair, accounted for a highest-ever 29% of such purchases during the first half of 2024 — ahead of the 2020 pandemic era — according to the Home Improvement Research Institute, as reported in Westwood One’s weekly blog. Another study cited shows a high intent among home improvement shoppers to shop online at the same level or more in the next year.
A MARU/Matchbox survey shows online home improvement buyers skew significantly younger vs. brick-and-mortar shoppers, while heavy listeners of AM/FM radio or podcasts account for 58% of those saying they plan to shop online more often for home improvement/home décor in the next year (29% for each), compared to heavy TV viewers’ 18%.
Audio’s power with online home improvement shoppers doesn’t end there, as the same study shows the heaviest spenders are 50% more likely to be heavy AM/FM heavy listeners than heavy TV viewers, with the former having spent 1.4 times more than the latter in the past year. “Versus heavy TV viewers, heavy AM/FM radio listeners shop more retailers (3.2 versus 2.7) and make more shopping trips (5.2 versus 4.7),” Cumulus Media/Westwood One Audio Active Group Chief Insights Officer Pierre Bouvard says.
All the above begs the question, why isn’t Wayfair buying advertising on radio?
Citing Harris Poll research, Bouvard notes that “Wayfair’s trial, usage, and recommendation levels are the same among TV and AM/FM radio listeners, despite zero spend on AM/FM radio and heavy spending on TV. What gives?”
As it turns out, moving 20% of Wayfair’s TV March 2024 budget to AM/FM radio results in a 69% reach increase, based on Nielsen Media Impact’s analysis. “[When] Wayfair invested $8.9M in linear TV, the campaign reached 41% of total U.S. adults 18+. A significant impact, no doubt, yet 60% of the U.S. was not reached. [By] shifting 20% of Wayfair’s TV spend to AM/FM radio, Wayfair’s monthly reach soars from 41% to 70%, a 69% increase for the same investment!”
In terms of adult demographics, the reallocation to AM/FM lifts Wayfair’s reach across the board, most notably among younger demos, while at the same time boosting its reach of light TV viewers by 215%.
“AM/FM radio affords Wayfair with a giant media platform to drive its brand and sales with an audience far more likely to purchase online,” Bouvard says. “The starting point with the AM/FM radio audience is brand equity, which is virtually the same as among the TV audience. With AM/FM radio, Wayfair ‘cannot fall off the floor.’ Brand equity has nowhere to go but up!”
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