400+ categories advertised on radio in 2024: TAM AdEx

TAM AdEx has released its tune-in for advertising in Y 2024 on Radio report. Monitoring over 122 radio stations in association with RCS India, the report focuses on advertising trends for 2024 with valuable insights on top spenders on radio - categories, advertisers and brands. It also deep dives into city and state-specific trends for Radio AdEx.

The report states that compared to 2020, ad volumes on the radio increased by 77% in 2023 and 80% in 2024. However, between 2023 and 2024, the surge was only 2%. In 2024, average ad volumes on the radio saw a consistent quarterly growth with Q4 2024 seeing an 18% growth over Q2 2024. 

The top 10 sectors advertising on the radio included Services (30%), Auto (11%), Retail (9%), BFSI (9%), Personal Accessories (8%), F&B (8%), Education (6%), Personal Healthcare (3%), Building, Industrial & Land Materials/Equipments (3%) and Durables (2%). The top 10 Sectors had a collective share of 89% of ad volumes in 2024.

In 2024, over 400 categories advertised on the radio, with the top 10 categories making up 51% of the total ad volumes. More than 10,000 advertisers were present on the radio in 2024. Of these about 5,700 were not present on the medium in 2023, the report added.

The top 10 categories advertising on the radio included Properties/Real Estate (15%), Cars (8%), Retail - Jewellers (7%), Hospitals/Clinics (7%), Retail Outlets - Clothing/Textiles/Fashion (3%), Retail Outlets - Electronics/Durables (3%), Life Insurance (3%), Multiple Courses (2%), Pan Masala (2%) and Housing/Construction Loans (1%). 

According to TAM AdEx, over 185 categories registered positive growth in ad volumes over 2023. The top growing categories included Cars, Retail Outlets-Jewellers, Properties/Real Estate, Hospital/Clinics, Life Insurance, Mortgage Loans, Retail Outlets-Electronics/Durables, Corporate/Brand Image, Multiple Courses and Tooth Pastes.

The top 10 advertisers on the radio in 2024 included Maruti Suzuki India, LIC of India, LIC Housing Finance, SBS Biotech, Vishnu Packaging, Tata Motors, GCMMF (Amul), Hyundai Motor India, Malabar Group Of Companies and Reliance Retail. 

The top 10 brands on the radio in 2024 included LIC Housing Finance, Vimal Pan Masala, Maruti Suzuki Arena, Malabar Gold And Diamonds, LIC Jeevan Utsav, Jeena Sikho Lifecare, Manappuram Loan Against Gold, Acko General Auto Insurance, Nissan Magnite and Alishan.

In 2023, LIC Housing Finance stood 3rd in the list of top brands on the radio, ascending 1st in 2024. Maruti Suzuki Arena, Malabar Gold And Diamonds, LIC Jeevan Utsav, Manappuram Loan Against Gold and Acko General Auto Insurance were new entrants during 2024 over 2023. The top 10 brands contributed a 7% share of ad volumes on the radio in 2024.

Gujarat was the leading state with an 18% share of ad volumes on radio, closely followed by Maharashtra with a 16% share. Jaipur topped among the 18 cities on radio followed by New Delhi. Other top cities included Nagpur, Surat, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Indore, Pune, Bangalore and Lucknow. The top 10 cities accounted for 62% of total ad volumes on radio, the report stated.

The evening was the most preferred time band on the radio followed by the morning time band for advertising on the radio. Evening and morning time bands together added 69% share of ad volumes. Ad commercials with 20-40 seconds were most preferred for advertising on radio in 2024 and 2023. The frequency of less than 20-second ads on the radio grew by 1% in 2024 compared to 2023.