Father's Day, this year, is June, 18. To celebrate the dads in their lives, 3.4 million Boston area consumers are expected to spend a record $451.1 million. According to a per capita forecast by the National Retail Federation (NRF), 2023 spending will be 14.5% more than last year.
“Father’s Day remains a momentous occasion for Americans to honor the important men in their lives,” NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said. “Consumers plan to celebrate the holiday in a big way this year, and retailers are ready to help make it special.”
The record highs for both collective and average spending are primarily driven by an increase in the percentage of consumers purchasing clothing, electronics, personal care and special outings and the amount they are spending on these categories.
Overall 87% of all Father's Day spending will be concentrated into four gift categories:
- Special Outing: $153.6 million
- Clothing: $68.9 million
- Gift Cards: $55.1 million
- Electronics: $51.2 million
- Clothing: $65.0 million
The remainder of the retail dollars Boston consumers spend will be for personal care, tools/appliances, sporting goods, greeting cards, and books/CDs.
The challenge for Boston area retailers, however, is keeping a significant share of these Father's Day dollars in local cash registers and out of the coffers of online sellers and department stores. Right now, according to the NRF, those two retail channels will gobble up almost 81% of all spending.
To earn a larger share of Father's Day spending, local small business owners will need to advertise to convince Boston consumers of the benefits of buying from local retailers. By almost every marketing metric, the best way to advertise is on Boston radio.
According to Nielsen, after the message itself, the advertising metric most responsible for driving sales is the number of different consumers reached by a campaign.
Every week, according to Nielsen, Boston radio reaches 3,333,841 adults. This is more consumers than use any other medium, including local TV, local cable, streaming video, social media, online audio, and newspapers.'
Radio's unrivaled reach among adult consumers contributes to the medium's ability to deliver an extraordinary return on investment (ROI) for advertisers.
From April through July of 2021, Neilsen measured the sales results of a radio advertising campaign conducted by a major retailer. The study utilized portable people meter technology to segment consumers into two discrete categories: those who were exposed to the retailer's advertising campaign and those who were not.
Nielsen was then able to match the consumers in each segment to their credit/debit or shopper card purchase behavior. Consequently, the study decisively measured how sales were affected by the retailer's advertising campaign.
Here are the key takeaways from the Neilsen study:
- One or two exposures to the radio campaign resulted in a 22.4% increase in the number of shoppers
- Three to six exposures to the radio campaign resulted in a 7.6% increase in the number of shoppers
- Exposure to the radio campaign increased the number of transactions among the retailer's existing customers by 11%
- Exposure to the radio campaign increased the number of transactions by the etailer's most active customers by 31.2%
- Exposure to the retailer's radio campaign generated a sales increase of 9.7%
Most importantly, the Nielsen study revealed that every $1000 that the retailer invested in the radio advertising campaign returned $13,000 in sales. A 13-time ROI.
Boston business owners should know that these findings support 23 other Nielsen studies that indicate, on average, that advertising on local radio delivers a 10-time return on investment.
AdAge, a trade magazine for advertising professionals, calls these types of returns "eye-popping." The magazine goes on to say radio's ROI is superior to commercials on TV, online, and social media.
To learn more about Nielsen's latest ROI study, click here.
Both reach and ROI are the critical metrics for determining the best way to advertise in Boston. By either measurement, local radio is the logical choice for reaching Father's Day shoppers.
More Advertising Advice For Boston Small Business Owners
- Lessons A Boston Business Can Learn From World's Biggest Advertiser
- Advertising In Boston: Mother's Day Spending Will Set Record
- What Marketers Need To Know About Advertising on Boston Radio
- Advertise In Boston: Retail Sales To Exceed $101.1 Billion in 2023
- Boston Small Business Owners Expect Record Easter Spending
- Advertising In Boston: Radio Ratings Exceed TV For First Time
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