Houston: Thriving with auto and retail

Houston didn’t see a lot of political spending in 2012, but it is quite healthy, in part because of a large and thriving Hispanic population that media buyers are eager to reach.

The TV market in Houston is always tight. Inventory isn’t entirely sold out, but advertisers coming in at the last minute can expect to pay a premium.

Auto and retail are the main categories driving the market, and many advertisers have messages tailored to Hispanic viewers.

Houston is the nation’s No. 4 Hispanic TV market, and Spanish-language programs often draw audiences similar to English-language ones.

For example, during the week ended Nov. 4, three of the top 10 and five of the top 20 TV programs in Houston aired on Univision, led by an episode of the novela “Abismo de Pasion,” which was No. 4 for the week on both cable and broadcast.

Located in a traditionally red state, Houston didn’t see the glut of presidential political spending that many other markets experienced this year.

“I think the Democrats figured Texas was pretty much a lost cause and spent their money elsewhere,” says one buyer. “Republicans must have assumed they had Texas locked up.”

Hispanic media in Houston earned much of the local political dollars as candidates tried to target the city’s sizeable Latino community.

“I have heard from Hispanic reps that there were a lot of local races creating extra unexpected money,” says the buyer.

The Hispanic population also impacts the radio market in Houston, which is healthy and up a bit versus 2011. Like TV, unit pricing on radio is generally flat to last year outside of last-minute buys.

“Pricing is fairly flat given adequate lead time, but short lead times always result in high rates in Houston,” the buyer says. “Buy early–it makes a world of difference in this market.”

Inventory on news/talk stations was predictably tight leading up to last week’s election, and Hispanic stations saw a slight bump as well.

Like TV, Hispanic radio outlets are competitive with general-market stations, with four of Houston’s top 15 stations in October having a Hispanic format, according to Arbitron portable people meter ratings.

In fact, Univision-owned regional Mexican station KTLN-FM was tied for No. 2 in the market with a 6.1 average PPM rating in October, according to Arbitron. Also pulling a 6.1 were Radio One’s urban adult contemporary station KMJQ-FM and Elite Broadcasting’s Christian station KSBJ-FM.

But the clear leader in the market is the rhythmic current hits station KBXX-FM, which averaged a 7.6 PPM rating in October. The station’s lead was even larger just a few months ago, when it averaged an 8.7 PPM rating in July, with the No. 2 station well behind at a 6.9.

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