Good knowledge of the content and audience profile of TV channels is a key factor in building a successful strategy and campaign in this media channel. The dynamic environment in which we find ourselves leads to constant changes in program schemes, and sometimes in the mix of channels in the portfolio of large media groups. To meet a wide range of interests, the media often resort to tactical actions, which affect the percentage of different viewer groups within the channel, the so-called audience profile. Therefore, to successfully predict and plan TV campaigns, it is necessary to track and analyze the audience. In this topic we present an up-to-date look at the audience profile of the channels of the largest TV groups in the first seven months of 2021. In the first graph we illustrate the ratio between women and men among the viewers of the observed TV channels:
It is evident that among the three main national televisions, BNT 1 enjoys the greatest interest among men – 52%, which is almost 4% above the officially announced by NSI data for 2020. bTV and Nova TV have a predominance of female audiences, respectively 59% and 58%. These results are partly explained by the EURO2020 football championship, which started in June and gathered a large number of men in front of TV screens. In the period between 11th June and 11th July 2021 the average percentage of the male audience in BNT 1 rises to 59%, and in BNT 3, broadcasting in parallel with BNT 1 sports events – up to 70%.
Niche channels with predominance of female profile are WNess TV (89%), bTV Lady (81%), TLC (72%), Diema Family (66%), FOX Crime (61%), BNT 2 (61%), 24 Kitchen (60%). The channels that orient its content to a male audience are Eurosport (76%), RING.BG (66%), National Geographic (65%), Discovery Channel (64%), Diema (63%), BNT 3 (62%), bTV Action (61%).
Another commonly used criterion for segmenting TV channels is based on place of living:
On the chart, viewers are split into four groups – living in Sofia, in large cities with a population of over 100 thousand people, in small towns with a population of less than 100 thousand people and inhabiting villages. The channels with the largest share of viewers from the capital are – Magic TV (39%), Bulgaria On Air (32%), City TV (29%). Among the people from the big cities with the highest share are The Voice (35%), City TV (28%), AXN (26%), National Geographic (26%), and from the smaller cities – WNess TV (51%), BNT 4 (49%), Diema (47%), bTV Lady (43%), FOX Life (43%). The channels with the highest share of people from the villages are ID (45%), Nova Sport (41%), Nickelodeon (40%), Diema Family (39%). Among the three main national TV channels, bTV has the highest share of viewers from the villages, equal to 31%, which is more than the average for the country, reported by NSI- 27%.
The following chart shows the profile of TV channels by age segments:
The results are logical for children aged between 4 and 17 years. The largest share of representatives of this group are kid’s channels, namely Nickelodeon (43%), Disney Channel (42%), Cartoon Network (35%). Distinctive with a high percentage of viewers between 18 and 34 years of age are ID (31%), The Voice (27%), bTV Comedy (20%), FOX Life (20%). According to national statistics in 2020, people aged between 35 and 54 represent 30% of the country’s population. According to the data in the chart, most of the people in this group find interesting TV content and represent a significant part of the audience of channels such as WNess TV (69%), FOX (50%), bTV Comedy (47%), Kino Nova (47%). Among the four analyzed groups, the largest segment of the population is occupied by people over the age of 55 – 37%. The TV channels that are characterized by the highest percentage of viewers of this group are BNT 2 (74%), Bulgaria On Air (72%), BNT 4 (70%). It is an interesting fact that among the three main national channels with the smallest share of people over 55 is Nova TV (48%). BNT 1 and bTV are represented with an equal percentage of people of this target group – 61%.
Another criterion that is often used in practice for profiling the audience of TV channels is the degree of completed education. The following chart shows the split of viewers between secondary or lower education graduates and those with higher level of education:
TV channels with the highest share of viewers who have higher level of education are WNess TV (46%), Bulgaria On Air (46%), BNT 2 (45%). Audience with secondary or lower education predominates in ID (92%), Disney Channel (89%), Cartoon Network (89%), as well as other kid’s channels.
The last criterion we analyze in this topic is the economic activity of the viewers:
One of the most desired segments among advertisers is the economically active people. According to official statistics for 2020, this group of people represents 53% of the total population. The TV channels that are characterized by the highest percentage of economically active viewers are WNess TV (74%), Kino Nova (71%), bTV Comedy (68%), bTV Cinema (66%), FOX Life (66%), TLC (64%), FOX (64%), Travel Channel (64%), ID (63%), bTV Action (62%), Discovery Channel (60%). Among the main national channels Nova TV has the highest share of this audience segment – 53%. bTV and BNT 1 have a value below the average for the country, reported by NSI.
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The 16th edition of the EURO 2020 European Football Championship kicked off with a lavish ceremony at the Olimpico Stadium in Rome on 11 June. For the first time the event is being held at 11 stadiums in 11 cities by 11 UEFA national associations in honor of the 60th “birthday” of the championship. The event is long awaited by the football fans, because due to the complicated pandemic situation it has been postponed for a year. Second consecutive edition of the championship includes 24 teams that promise a spectacular battle for the prestigious first place. On the chart we present a comparison with the results from the previous editions of the championship, according to the reported TV ratings:
Source: GARB Audience Measurement Bulgaria. Period: 2008-11 July 2021.
The last four championships from 2008 to the current year are arranged in chronological order, and the average values are grouped according to their different phases. For the purposes of the comparative analysis, we chose a broad target group, covering all people aged between 15 and 64 years. The data represent an average rating for all matches played in the specific phase, and when a match is broadcast by more than one TV channel, the total reported rating is accumulated. For example, this year the official opening ceremony of the championship was broadcast on BNT 1, BNT 3, Nova TV and Diema Sport 2 and the result with which it appears on the chart is a sum of the ratings of the four channels. With each subsequent edition, the opening ceremony of the championship becomes more spectacular and interesting for the audience. If in 2008 and 2012 the interest in it is lower than in the other phases of the championship, then the last two championships attract much more spectators for the official part. In 2021 the opening ceremony took place in the capital of Italy, and for the entertainment of the fans took care musicians from the local police orchestra, dancers, as well as Andrea Bocelli and Bono from U2. The ceremony started at 9 p.m., lasted one hour and was broadcast simultaneously on BNT 1, BNT 3, Nova TV and Diema Sport 2. The parallel broadcast of the opening ceremony of EURO 2020 on four TV channels contributes to the high result in 2021.
Traditionally, each championship begins with group phases in which all qualified teams participate. In general, the interest in them is the weakest compared to the other stages of the race. During EURO 2012 the group phases reached the highest average rating – 8.3%. In the next two editions of the championships the interest in this phase decreases and remains relatively constant – 5.8% (EURO 2016) and 5.7% (EURO 2020).
In 2016 is the first European Championship in the group stage of which 24 teams play, instead of 16 teams, as in the previous ones. This condition leads to the formation of a completely new phase – round of 16. The data show that the audience’s interest is growing compared to the previous stage, and this year the rating of the round of 16 even exceeds the rating of the quarterfinals. The match with the highest score in this stage of the championship was broadcast on 28.06 (Monday), between the teams of Croatia and Spain and reaches a 12.39% rating in the target group All 15-64. The figures in the chart show that as we approach the culmination, viewers’ interest in front of TV screens increases. The data for the quarterfinals in the previous three championships prove exactly this rule, as in EURO 2008 the achieved average rating of the quarterfinals is 53% above the average rating of the matches in the group stage. An exception is the current championship, in which the results of the quarterfinals are lower than those in the previous phase. The match from this stage of the game with the highest TV audience interest is the match played on 02.07 (Friday) between the teams of Belgium and Italy – 10.67% rating in the target group All 15-64.
The semi-final phase of EURO 2020 has the highest reported average rating among the last four editions of the championships. The matches Italy-Spain (06.07) and England-Denmark (07.07) registered an average rating of 13.2% and this is an increase of 59% above the average rating from the previous phase of the championship. The semi-finals from the previous years also have high results, and in 2012 and 2016 the values are relatively close – 12.0% (EURO 2012) and 11.6% (EURO 2016).
On 11.07.2021 (Sunday), the final match of the championship was played at Wembley Stadium in London. The curious thing in this case is that Italy was a symbolic host and England a visiting team. After an even score in regular time, the players reach a climax worthy of a final, and the winner is decided by taking penalties in the awarded overtime. The final is broadcast on BNT 1, BNT 3, Nova TV and the newly launched in July – Diema Sport 3, and the average rating that reaches is the record for EURO 2020 – 15.8% in the broad target group All 15-64. This result ranks it third among the finals of the championships in question, and a probable reason for the lower rating compared to previous editions is the elections held on the same day for MPs and the defocused attention of the audience.
The following chart presents detailed information on the performance of each EURO 2020 match in three target groups – All 15-64, men and women:
Only three months after the last parliamentary elections, Bulgaria votes again for members of parliament in the National Assembly. The distinguishing feature of the elections held on July 11, was that for the first time in most of the sections the machine voting was obligatory. This feature, as well as everything about the elections, were followed in special studios by the leading national televisions – BNT 1, bTV and Nova TV. To our analysis we added 7/8 TV, which in the previous elections managed to attract the attention of viewers. Traditionally, the most recognizable hosts of the TV channels commented and analyzed what was happening with interesting interlocutors from different spheres of the political and economic environment of the country. Journalism, virtual reality, live coverage of hotspots in the country and abroad were a significant part of the program of the three national televisions during the election day. Which of them attracted the most viewers aged 18 and over you can see in the presented below chart:
Source: GARB Audience Measurement Bulgaria. Period: 11 July 2021.
The morning information blocks – “The day begins with Georgi Lyubenov” (BNT 1), “This Sunday: The new parliament – we are electing again” (bTV) and “Wake up … Bulgaria is electing!” started warming up the audience at the same time, at 7:00 a.m.. The early time slot between 6:00 and 8:00 o’clock in the morning is the only daily time frame in which Nova TV dominates. After 8:00 a.m. the audience in front of the screens increases, and it is clear from the chart that most of them prefer watching bTV. 7/8 TV lags the leading media with almost zero values until 14 o’clock. Traditionally, the lunch time zone, in which News programs are broadcast, is among the most watched during the day. The graph shows that between 12 and 13 o’clock the viewers of Nova TV and bTV peak and increase by 40% and 52% respectively, while the audience of BNT 1 decreases by 23%. The afternoon time slot between 13 and 15:30 o’clock is scheduled for entertainment movies on all three channels, and it is noteworthy that only bTV interrupts its program at 14:00 for a brief news review, but this does not particularly affect the rating in this hour. Again at the same time, exactly at 15:30 o’clock, the live studios start with analyzes and comments about the election day on all three leading televisions. At the same time, the viewers’ interest in 7/8 TV is growing and the channel reaches its first peak for the day – 0.52% rating. As we approach the culmination of election day, interest in what is happening in the country is gradually growing. This is most evident from the high results that are reported for television between 19:00 and 22:00. During this time slot bTV again definitely dominates. Here it is important to note that the televisions with rights to broadcast the matches of the European Football Championship – BNT 1 and Nova TV – began to broadcast “live” the final of the tournament at 21:30 o’clock. This is the main reason for the sharp “jump” of BNT 1 rating, which displaces bTV from the leading position after 10 p.m.
To supplement the information regarding the performance of the televisions, we prepared additional charts with data on the achieved results in other key target groups. You can check them in the image gallery below:
Source: GARB Audience Measurement Bulgaria. Period: 11 July 2021.
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This year started convincingly and strengthened the forecasts for a positive trend in media investments. Many advertisers are convinced that in a pandemic situation or not, successful brands need to be close to the customers and encourage them by reminding of themselves. New companies have joined the well-known and established TV advertisers. Some of them filled the niche gap the National Lottery had vacated and quickly climbed into the ranking of the biggest advertisers. In this topic we are observing top advertisers in the three main national channels – BNT 1, bTV and Nova TV. We are starting the review with the top 10 advertisers in BNT 1, and the focus of our analysis is the achieved weighted TRP’s 30 in the target group, representing all people in the country aged between 25 and 54 years (A 25-54) for the period January-May 2021:
In the first five months of the year the total number of advertisers in BNT 1 rose to 128, which is 70 more than in the same period of 2020. The advertisers in the top 10 are mainly representatives of three sectors – sports betting companies, represented by Brobet Limited, Bulgarian Sports Betting, Winbet and Telematic Interactive (Palms Bet), commercial companies that promote their products mainly through telemarket advertising forms – Skyshop and Studio Moderna, as well as state institutions and political parties and formations. It is interesting to note that the reported weighted TRP’s 30 of the top ten advertisers accounted for 67% of total TRP’s 30 in the channel for the period. In the following table we expand the number of advertisers to the top 20 and present their development compared to the same period in 2020:
Source: GARB Audience Measurement Bulgaria. Period: January-May, 2020 and 2021. Target group: A 25-54.
In the top 20 for this year, the biggest number of advertisers who were not active in January-May 2020 is impressive. Some of them are a consequence of the parliamentary elections held in April. Brobet Limited, Winbet and Porche Bulgaria have the highest growth in the reported results during the observed periods, while Skyshop, Municipal Insurance Company and First Investment Bank have decreased the most. An important fact is that in the period January-May 2021 the achieved weighted TRP’s 30 in BNT 1 are 152% higher than last year’s results for the same period. Part of this growth is due to the elections, but the more significant share is accumulated by the aggressively presence of sports betting companies.
We continue the analysis with the top 10 advertisers in bTV:
Here, as in BNT 1, the number of active companies grows to 183, which is 34 advertisers over last year or 23% more. Advertisers in the top 10 in bTV are from various categories – food (Ferrero), pharmaceuticals (Naturpharma, Sandoz, Stada Bulgaria), chains of stores (Billa and Lidl), beverages (Carlsberg), sports betting (Brobet Limited), cosmetics and household chemistry (Henkel Procter & Gamble) and others. The share accumulated TRP’s 30 amounts to 37% of the total for the TV channel. An expanded ranking of the biggets advertisers in bTV is presented in the following table:
Source: GARB Audience Measurement Bulgaria. Period: January-May, 2020 and 2021. Target group: A 25-54.
Brobet Limited, Access Finance, Nobel Pharma and Naturpharma stand out with a growth of over 50%. Sanofi-Aventis Group, Reckitt Benckiser, Sandoz, Lidl, Kaufland, Ferrero and Procter & Gamble registered a decline of its’ TV activity in bTV. Some of the companies that had a presence in the TV channel in the period January-May 2020, but are currently absent on bTV are Studio Moderna, Bulgarian Sports Totalizator, Coca-Cola, Aflofarm and other smaller participants.
One of the main conclusions we can draw is that the beginning of 2021 turns out to be better for bTV compared to 2020 and we observe an increase of 17% compared to the relevant period last year.
We end the presentation with the ten biggest advertisers for the first five months of 2021 in Nova TV:
The number of active advertisers in Nova TV is also growing – from 203 in the first five months of 2020 to 233 in 2021. Here too, the advertisers in the top 10 have a diverse nature of their main activity. The companies from the top 10 that are active in Nova TV, but are absent in the main competitor bTV as of May 2021 are Studio Moderna, Skyshop, Coca-Cola and GlaxoSmithKline. The share of TRP’s 30 of the ten biggest companies in Nova TV is 27% of the reported value for all advertisers in the TV channel. In the table you can find more information about the top 20 in Nova TV and the changes that have occurred this year:
Source: GARB Audience Measurement Bulgaria. Period: January-May, 2020 and 2021. Target group: A 25-54.
Coca-Cola, Brobet Limited, Kamenitza, Bella and Studio Moderna registered over 100% growth. On the other hand, Vivacom, Fortex, GlaxoSmithKline, P&G, Nestle, Ficosota Syntez and Natur Product reported a decline compared to the same period in 2020. Overall, accumulated by all advertisers in Nova TV TRP’s 30 increased by 8% over the same period last year.
Finally, we present a distribution of advertising investments based on weighted TRP’s 30 for all TV channels for which data are reported:
Source: GARB Audience Measurement Bulgaria. Period: January-May, 2020 and 2021. Target group: A 25-54.
The presented charts show that for the compared periods the market grows by 14%. BNT 1 increases the reported TRP’s 30 by an enviable 152%. Nova TV’s growth is the lowest compared to the total market, which leads to a shrink of its share by 2% in the first five months of the current year. The growth of the market since the beginning of the year strengthens the positive attitudes and gives us reason to look optimistically at the rest of the year.
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Defining the target audience and information about its attitudes, preferences and consumption in the broadest sense are key elements in building a communication strategy. The choice of media and means of expression, as well as the specific messages with which to achieve the set goals of the campaign depend on them. The dynamic environment in which we find ourselves often changes consumer attitudes, creates the need for new products and services and eliminates the need for existing ones. External factors make it difficult for marketers to build and analyze a target group. That is why specially developed software comes to the rescue, which by processing a series of questions and answers explores the attitudes of the audience and discovers hidden patterns of behavior. The purpose of this topic is to introduce you to a little known but very useful platform Theoremus. The system is similar to TGI data, which is not presenting on the Bulgarian market for years, and provides answers to a number of questions, related to the knowledge of the audience and the ability to build its profile. The survey is web-based and is conducted on regular waves. The panel contains information on the urban population aged between 16 and 65 and links to the data officially submitted by the NSI. The data in the Theoremus platform are representative for 3,421,684 Bulgarians, and the possibility to define a target group offers many criteria, such as age, gender, income, marital status, personal interests. One of the advantages of the software is the ability to directly compare between the target groups, thus easily detecting dependencies in the similarities and more importantly – the distinctive features of each. The panel is made up of 1,100 respondents and covers over 670 diverse questions, divided into several sections – demography, lifestyle, devices used, technological and digital activity, finance, shopping, transport and travel, food and drink, traditional and social media, awareness of the brand. In addition to a wide range of questions, the platform provides an opportunity to analyze the answers among a wide range of brands in the following areas:
Media: social media, TV channels;
Financial institutions: banks, fast loans;
Insurance and commercial companies;
Drinks: beers and ciders, soft and alcoholic drinks, bottled water, coffee;
Cosmetic and sanitary products and oral hygiene products;
Medicines, food supplements, pharmacies;
Household chemistry;
Pet food;
Retail chains and online stores.
In this way, Theoremus offers an in-depth analysis from different angles and provides specific answers to the audience’s attitudes. In addition to predicting the strength and importance of a product feature, data analysis allows us to identify emerging needs and trends among consumers. It is important to note that in addition to representative data, Theoremus also provides real-time control over the quality of the study. The questionnaire is filled in online and is completely anonymous, and the system checks the time for which the respondent gave his answers and assesses the quality of the conducted interview.
The first functionality of Theoremus, which we will consider in this topic, is the ability to compare between different target groups. To this end, we have selected some interesting questions related to everyday habits and we present to you the ten most frequently mentioned answers given by men and women between the ages of 16 and 65, urban population:
Source: Theoremus. Period: April 2021.
To the question “What do you do in your spare time?” Both, men and women, answer that they prefer to rest at home. Given the events of the past year and the fact that the survey was conducted in April 2021, the answer is no surprise. The differences are beginning to show in the subsequent possibilities. For example, for men among the most frequently mentioned options are “Play video games” and “Go fishing”, and for women – “Engage in DIY and decorations” and “Engage in arts”.
The most popular answers in terms of shopping, which, although it has become a routine for almost everyone, is characterized by established habits and perceptions of both genders are also interesting.
Source: Theoremus. Period: April 2021.
If men respond pragmatically and point out that the most important thing for a brand is to offer good value for money, then for women the feeling of satisfaction for every successful shopping is of paramount importance. Most of the female target group states that they shop with a list, but one of the statements they recognize as true is ” Often buy things they don’t plan to”.
In addition to the percentage ration of these responses, Theoremus also provides information on how distinctive a given characteristic is for the studied target group. The system calculates the distinctiveness of the options and gives them numerical expression. The higher the value of distinctiveness of a given answer, the more typical it is for the analyzed audience. For example, “Most important thing for a brand is to offer good value for money” (96) is the most distinctive answer for men. For women, the most typical answers are “Feel satisfied for every successful shopping” (121), as well as the statement that “Often buy things they don’t plan to” (117).
Source: Theoremus. Period: April 2021.
The considered examples are only highlights from the wide range of questions, answers and possible target groups for analysis provided by the Theoremus platform.
To illustrate other useful functionality, we present the most important answers to questions from the “Media” section:
The first chart shows ranking of the most frequently used media channels, and the second one reveals in which type of media the respondents last noticed an advertising message. Unsurprisingly, the answers reveal that the Internet and television are the media we resort to most often. The background noise created by these media channels is high and therefore the advertising messages in them often remain less noticeable to the audience. In contrast, radio advertising stands out more in the minds of the target group. To the question ” Where did you last hear/see a commercial? ” 33.8% answered on radio, and 31% answered that radio is one of the most frequently consumed types of media.
Often the viewer’s attention is distracted and the TV in the room is used as a background for other activities. To the question ” Thinking about when you’ve watched TV recently which of the following activities have you also done at the same time?” the highest percentage (68.2%) answered that they have used social media in the meantime. Other common actions that TV audiences take are chatting with friends and playing games. 18.6% of viewers were excited about the TV content and sought additional information about it, and 12.7% undertook a search for a product seen in a TV commercial.
Not surprisingly, the results are presented in the chart above, which shows the devices used while watching TV. The highest percentage – 74.1%, answered the easily accessible smartphone, and only 8.5% answered “None of the above”.
Despite the side effects taken by viewers, television remains one of the strongest media channels, providing wide coverage among the audience. To make sure that our advertising messages reach our target audience the most, it is good to know what TV content our audience is most interested in:
The most popular are movies (66.2%), followed by news (53.4%) and TV series (49.2%). In the background are the various types of reality formats, which are an integral part of the program of leading television.
This summer we expect several sporting events, which traditionally enjoy great spectator interest. 24.5% of the respondents answered that they are interested in and actively follow the European Football Championship, and 22.3% are the fans of the Summer Olympic Games.
The lack of an official source of data for other media channels often leads to their underestimation and less frequent use in the media mix. To get an idea of the audience’s attitudes towards them, we present the following charts based on data from Theoremus:
The chart presents ranking of the statements regarding PRINT media, with which the readers are most recognized. 31.4% of the respondents answered that they do not read newspapers (printed), and 24.1% – magazines (printed). A relatively close percentage of the audience agree with the statements that they are looking for free commercial brochures in their PO boxes (17%) and that it is worth checking brochures in the press (16.4%).
The chart shows that radio fans mostly agree with the statement that when they are in the car they always listen to the radio (49.2%). Almost 30% of respondents listen to the radio every day, and 21.7% are often notice spots on the radio. In addition to background music and good mood, radio often is a source of up-to-date news content. 15.2% of people sharpen their attention when a news program on the radio begins.
In addition to the media channels already described, the Theoremus platform also studies the audience’s attitudes towards outdoor advertising and cinema.
The most noticeable advertising medium out of home is the billboard, 53.6%. Consumers’ attention is often focused on the various media in the supermarket – inside in stores (42.3%), outside stores (41.1%), as well as on the shelves themselves (34.8%). In addition to researching attractive offers for potential purchases, in the last year supermarkets have been constantly open to visitors, unlike large shopping malls, restaurants and cinemas. This is one of the reasons why the largest percentage of people (24.9%) visit cinemas once a year. In April 2021, when the survey was conducted, the percentage of people who do not go to the movies at all continued to remain high – 24.1%.
The charts and data presented are just some of the answers we can get from Theoremus. In addition to traditional media channels, the focus is also on internet consumption and social media. Due to the popularity of these media channels, we present the answers to the questions we ask ourselves most often:
73.5% of the audience say that they are active users of Facebook, and 52.8% are users of the specially developed chat system to it – Messenger. Their main competitor Instagram ranks fifth with 23.5%, which confirms the opinion that the platform is less popular in our country for the broad target group for which the data are representative. Most people spend on average between 1 and 3 hours a day on social media, and the share of people who spend between 3 and 6 hours a day is not small – 17.4%.
Our team remains at your disposal to provide additional information about Theoremus, as well as to prepare specific analyzes upon your request. For additional information, please contact our team via the contact form.
Every spring and autumn, the big commercial televisions compete for the attention of the viewers with interesting and popular entertainment formats. The announcement of the new titles and their strategic arrangement in the television program are eagerly awaited. In the last season there was no shortage of those that provided hours of entertainment and emotions to viewers in front of TV screen. Below in the table we present highlights from the weekly prime time program of the two leading televisions bTV and Nova:
It is obvious that on weekdays, in the same time zone and day, for the attention of the viewers compete the entertainment programs “MasterChef” on bTV and “Power couple” on Nova TV. The other clash is on Sunday night, when “Bulgaria’s got talent” and “Paparazzi” on bTV compete for viewers against the new title on Nova TV – “Rachkov’s forbidden show”.
We have analyzed the performance of the programs for target group A 15-64 and we present to you in separate charts for bTV and for Nova TV the average ratings in all seasons of the specific programs. The graphic information is supplemented with tabular data for rating of the first and last episodes, average rating, average audience (in thousands of people) and number of episodes during the Spring 2021 season. Repetitions of broadcasts are excluded from the analysis to eliminate data distortion:
Last spring, the well-known shows “MasterChef”, “Home makeover” and “Bulgaria’s got talent” found a place on bTV, which has the highest average rating in 2021 – 13.2% (or around 608,000 viewers per episode in average). In 13 episodes of castings and live broadcasts of semifinals and finals, viewers witnessed a contested competition of talented participants of all ages for the title “Talent of Bulgaria” and a prize of BGN 50,000. The format is well known to the audience, but this year marks a decline in viewership. Compared to 2019, when the show was last broadcast, its average rating dropped by 20%. It is worth noting the strong performance of the first episode for 2021, but the show failed to keep the interest of the audience and next episodes reported a significantly lower rating. The difference in the rating of the first and last episode is 27%.
“MasterChef” is the other established over the years production of bTV, which follows the competition of the best hobby chefs in the country. The challenges in MasterChef’s kitchen are also well known to the audience. The interest, generated by the show’s seventh season, is the lowest compared to all previous ones – 9.04% (or about 417,000 viewers per episode on average). Compared to the previous season, this represents a drop in the average rating by 15%.
A drop in viewership was also noted by “Home makeover”, whose social character is unique to our market. The show reached an average rating for all 11 episodes of 9.4% (or about 433,000 viewers on average per episode) and this for the production is the season with the lowest viewer interest.
Nova TV’s spring program was also saturated – with the imposed entertainment show “Your face sounds familiar”, the format “Power couple”, testing the participating couples and the new entertainment talk show – “Rachkov’s forbidden show”:
The highest average rating among them is reported for the 9th season of “Your face sounds familiar” – 15.8% (about 729,000 viewers on average per episode), which gathered its best participants from previous seasons in competition for the audience vote. Despite the selection of stars, this show also marks a decline in viewership by 10% compared to the results achieved in 2020.
“Rachkov’s forbidden show”, which every Sunday night was in direct competition with the leader of bTV – “Bulgaria’s got talent” and the tabloid “Paparazzi”, is distinguished by a good performance. The entertaining and humorous content is liked by the viewers and they rank it second among the show programs of Nova with an average rating for the season of 12.21% (about 564,000 viewers on average per episode). Impressive are the high results of the first and last episode, which were strategically broadcast a week after the start and respectively after the end of the alternative on bTV – “Bulgaria’s got talent”.
On third place in terms of viewership on Nova TV with an average rating of 11.66% (or about 538,000 viewers on average per episode) is the 2nd season of the show “Power couple”. Despite the reported decline of 6% of the average rating compared to the previous season, this is a format that keeps the audience’s interest stable in all 41 episodes. The challenges and emotions that the couples go through continue to excite the audience in the 2nd season.
From the presented data we can summarize that all programs with more than one season show a decline in their average ratings, which is a clear sign that the audience needs a content refreshment.
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The entertainment shows and the series produced in Bulgaria presented another portion of amusement to the TV viewers last spring. The interesting plot lines and the diverse cast distinguished the series and found their fans among all ages. In the table we have schematically marked the main titles on weekdays in prime time of the two leading televisions, bTV and Nova, and in this article we will focus on the Bulgarian series:
It is notable that the arrangement of all titles is strategic and contrasts new or already established series and shows. For example, the reserved time slot of bTV for a hit Turkish series at 20:00 o’clock against the imposed in Nova TV programs – “Your face sound familiar” on Monday, “Stolen life” on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and “Kitchen nightmares” on Friday. It is obvious that both televisions broadcast Bulgarian series at the same time only on Friday night at 21:00 o’clock. “All Inclusive” and “Sunny Beach” are light and entertaining series and attract an audience with a preference to the same comedy content.
With the charts below we give you the opportunity to assess how successfully each of the domestic series has presented itself. The information visualizes the achieved average ratings for the wide target audience “all aged 15-64” (A 15-64), and we trace them back in time from the first broadcast season:
The charts contain data only for the Bulgarian series broadcast in the spring of 2021. Unlike Nova TV, which constantly invests in its successful series and relies on them, the bTV chart contains information only about the two Bulgarian titles broadcast this year. This does not mean that in recent years bTV did not support other Bulgarian series. “Citizens in excess”, “Relationships” and “Dear Heirs” are the titles that the media broadcast in the past years and continues to broadcast them in the present, but our analysis is focused only on the new seasons, skipping the reruns.
The tables below contain information on the ratings of the first and last episode, the average rating per season, the average audience reached in thousands of people per episode and the number of episodes in the last TV season and the data are for the target audience A 15-64.
Last spring, the Bulgarian series returned to the air of bTV, which in recent seasons have been a hallmark of Nova TV. One of them is “Sunny Beach”, whose premiere episodes aired in the spring of 2020. The series is a romantic comedy that brings together famous artists from different generations in a modern sea adventure. Interest in the series declines with 38% this year compared to 2020. The reason for this decline is the fact that in February and March 2020 the first four episodes were broadcast, after which, due to the announcement of state of emergency in the country, the media decided to stop all its productions. The show resumed airing this year, but the first four episodes were repeated. Another thing that makes an impression is that the production maintains an average rating close to the first and last episode and manages to maintain the interest of the audience from beginning to end.
Unlike “Sunny Beach”, the series “Scars” started with high audience interest but failed to keep it until the last episode. The final series reached a 3.77% rating, which is 53% below the result of the first episode. In essence, the series is a contemporary family drama and is a remake of a dramatic Turkish series from 2019.
This year, viewers of Nova TV had the opportunity to enjoy the sequels of the series “Stolen Life”, “Brothers” and “All Inclusive”. They were joined by the current title “Missing PD”, which attracted viewers every Friday. Famous actors take part in the production, which carry the TV viewers into an intriguing criminal plot. Unfortunately, the new series of Nova TV failed to establish itself and ranks last in terms of average rating – 7.4%.
In the spring of 2021, viewers also witnessed the final 11th season of the medical drama “Stolen Life”. Despite its long life, the series holds the attention of the audience and enjoys an average rating close to that of the previous season – 9.6%. The difference in the results of the first and last episode is minimal, which means that fans of the series follow to the end the development of their favorite characters.
The second season of “Brothers” turned out to be more interesting for the viewers and reached 8% higher average rating compared to the fall of 2020. The first and last series have the highest results. However, it ranks third among the Bulgarian series broadcast on Nova TV.
“All Inclusive” is a sitcom, which for the third season is a favorite among television audiences. The results of the current season fail to reach success in the first season, but the series remains the leader. The light and fun content is easily perceived by the audience and the production is more watched than the alternative on the same day and time zone on bTV “Sunny Beach”.
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In the last year we have witnessed a rapid transformation of the business into a new reality. Much of it responds to emerging customer needs by moving to an online environment and expanding its portfolio of goods and services. These changes did not go unnoticed by the participants in the category “Retail outlets”, which is one of the largest and fastest growing in 2021. More and more online platforms continue to join the standard retail chains, offering everything you need at a click away from users. This trend is also being successfully adopted by the standard physical stores, many of which have made their products available for online shopping. To these two segments is added a third, whose activity is to connect physical stores with customers, delivering the desired products to the door (BG Menu, Foodpanda, Glovo). Despite the difficult division and categorization of the main activity of the participants in the sector, in the following chart we answer the question who are the biggest advertisers in the “Retail Outlets”:
The chart illustrates the top 10 advertisers in the category for the first four months of the year based on the reported weighted GRP’s 30 for target group A 25-54. To assess their development, we also added in tabular form the results for the same period for 2020:
Source: GARB Audience Measurement Bulgaria. Period: January-April, 2020 and 2021.
This year, the leading positions are reserved for the established retail chains of stores BILLA, LIDL and KAUFLAND. Serious growth was recorded by BILLA, 40% above the GRP’s 30 in January-April 2020, which took it to the first position in the ranking for 2021. LIDL lost the lead, registering 3% decrease compared to the same period in 2020. KAUFLAND’s communication on television also declined, but the company still maintained its position. METRO CASH & CARRY is the latest FMCG chain to participate in the ranking of the largest advertisers in the sector. The company recorded 18% growth and thus managed to maintain last year’s sixth position in “Retail Outlets” category.
Fourth place in the ranking is occupied by ALLEGRO GROUP, which represents emag.bg, fashiondays.bg and olx.bg. Here it is important to note that since February this year, the official TV monitoring system – GARB, transferred their activities from the category “Telecommunications” to “Retail outlets” and in the table they participate with their results for the period February-April 2021. In order to provide an objective information regarding their performance, below the table is described the data from the communication of the company as a whole for both considered periods. From these figures it is clear that in the first four months of the year their activity in television increased by 21% compared to the same period in 2020. Another representative of online commerce in the ranking is ABOUT YOU. The company is a new advertiser, launched its television activity in the fall of 2020 and is focused on online marketing of famous fashion brands. It quickly took a share, reaching seventh place in the rankings. The companies in question are far from the only representatives of the online commerce that are on TV. The list of active advertisers also includes EOBUWIE.PL (obuvki.bg and modivo.bg), VIVRE DECO, ANSWEAR.COM, BG MENU (takeaway.bg), FOODPANDA and many others.
There is a shift in the arrangement of the advertisers of household appliances. TECHNOPOLIS increased its GRP’s 30 by 9%, but still fell by a position down from January-April 2020. TECHNOMARKET is the other store specializing in the sale of appliances, which is present in the top 10, but recorded a 32% decline and accordingly occupies the ninth place, which is four positions down. In the first four months of the year, both ZORA and MAGNUM-D (TECHMART) have activities, but their performance ranks them below the top ten.
More and more often we are used to seeing on TV furniture stores that promote their goods with attractive offers and prices. For the period January-April 2021, the only representative who enters the top 10 is AIKO, with a 2% increase in GRP’s 30 and a position down from 2020. It is interesting to note that their communication is divided between the brands AIKO and MOMAX. Other representatives of the category that do not fall in the rankings, but also have a presence on TV are VIDENOV GROUP and IKEA.
PRAKTIKER is one of the advertisers with significant growth in January-April 2021, 32%. This investment places it in the group of top advertisers in this category and gives it an advantage over competitors such as DOVERIE BRIKO (Mr. Bricolage) and HOMEMAX-X.
The top ten companies form almost 75% of the total results in the category. All after the tenth position, a total of sixty active advertisers, generate the remaining 25%. This year, the growth of the group “Others” is almost double and one of the reasons behind is the increase in the number of active participants in the category.
Regarding the mix of TV channels used for communication, we can summarize that there is no noticeable change:
Source: GARB Audience Measurement Bulgaria. Period: January 2020-April 2021
About 55% of total GRP’s 30 in the category are achieved by the TV channels of Nova Broadcasting Group (NBG), followed by a 40% share of the TV channels of bTV Media Group (BMG) and a 5% share of the TV channels represented by Sales House (TSH). The share of TV channels from the state owned BNT, as well as TV channels that are not part of a large group is below 0.2%.
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Radio is a media that accompanies the daily life of a large part of the population. Popular music and interesting shows on current topics find their audience in the dynamic everyday life. That is why this media channel is extremely popular among the economically active population. Its advantages are often used to announce events, tactical and promotional campaigns. To take a look at the habits of radio listeners and make full use of the media, we analyzed several key indicators, such as Reach%, number of minutes spent in listening to a radio, and a place where media is consumed.
The first indicator we looked at in detail is the average monthly Reach% that radio achieves in March 2021 for three main age groups – people aged 15 to 69, 18 to 34 and 25 to 54, divided by gender, total for the country and living in the cities:
Source: GARB. Period: March 2021.
In the broad target group A 15-69, the radio achieves 89% average monthly Reach%. The data for March 2021 is notable by the high average monthly Reach%, which the media achieves among the younger and economically active groups A 18-34 – 93.6% and A 25-54 – 93.2%. The range achieved by both is approximately 5% higher than in the broad target group A 15-69.
Men turn out to be more ardent fans of radio and the Reach% achieved by the media among them is higher among all three age groups compared to women. The most pronounced difference is between men and women aged 15-69 years. In this age group, radio achieves 7% higher coverage among male audiences than female. From the data presented in the chart we can conclude that the radio achieves a higher coverage among the urban audience.
Another interesting indicator that reveals the habits of the audience is the time spent in listening to the radio. The advent of Covid-19 has led to a change in the consumption of all media. The biggest impact on the radio was due to relocation of the audience from office to a “home office”, as well as the less frequent use of personal and public transport. However, whether the closure at home leads to a decrease in radio listenership is shown by the following chart, which presents the minutes we spend on average per day for radio listening:
Source: GARB. Period: January 2019-March 2021.
The first two months of 2020 begin with data close to their relevant months in 2019. March 2020 is marked by the first lockdown for the country and by the growing hunger for information among the population. The change in lifestyle leads to higher media consumption and this is reflected in a 12% growth in the time we spend listening to the radio. This trend continues in April and May 2020, when the average daily listening in minutes continues to grow by 9% and by 4%, respectively. In the period June-September 2020 the situation in the country normalizes and the levels return to those of 2019, but with slight deviations. Growth is also evident in October 2020, when the pandemic situation in the country began to deteriorate again and many people prefer to stay at their homes. In the first quarter of 2021, the levels are lower compared to 2020, but radio programs did the best to keep listeners with interesting formats, games and a desire for dialogue between radio hosts and listeners.
The following chart, which shows how habits are changing depending on the place where the audience listens to the radio, also leads to interesting conclusions:
Source: GARB. Period: January 2020-March 2021.
During the first two months of 2020, the radio has the highest daily Reach% in the car. The state of emergency in the country in March 2020 reversed the trend and people replaced the car and the office with the home environment. As a result, the audience changed their habits and began to use radio mostly at home. Workplace consumption lost its share during the year, but has been growing steadily since the beginning of 2021. The same goes for listening outside (in a restaurant, cafe, shop, outdoors, etc.), as well as in public transport, which is gradually starting to attract streams of people again. On the chart, the sum of the percentages is greater than 100, as in the presented survey the respondents indicated more than one way of listening.
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In early April, the NSI published its annual statistics on demographic processes in the country in 2020. Data for previous years are always of great interest because of the trends they outline. Knowledge of the general situation in the country helps in the analysis of consumers and the environment in which the business is placed. In this topic we have collected the main key points from the current data, the impact of which we analyzed with the help of charts.
Declining and aging population of the country is one of the main trends, which is deepening in 2020. At the end of the year, the population of Bulgaria is 6,916,548 people, which means a decrease of 0.5% compared to 2019. For comparison, the population in the European Union is growing by 0.2% in 2020. Children under the age of 15 represent 14.4% of the total population. People at working age between 15 and 64 are 63.8%, and those aged 65+ are 21.8% of the nation. In 2020, the largest decline was registered by the economically active population – minus 0.7%, as well as children under 15 y.o. – minus 0.3%. The number of people in the oldest group remains unchanged, but their share compared to the other two groups rises by 0.1%. The chart presents the dynamics in different age groups in 2020 compared to 2019:
Source: NSI. Period: 2019-2020
The following graph shows the average age in Bulgaria for the last 20 years:
Source: NSI. Period: 2000-2020
The past 2020 is another year in which the average age of the population in the country is rising. As of 31.12.2020 it reaches 44 years of age. The problem of aging is relevant throughout the EU community – in 2018 the average age reaches 43.1 years, and by 2050 it is expected to be 50 years.
In 2020, the share of women reaches 51.6%, which is 0.1% more than in 2019. There are 1,065 women per 1,000 men. The number of men under the age of 54 predominates over the number of women. Another interesting point from the current statistics is the age structure of men and women. With the increasing of age there is an emerging tendency of increase of the number and relative share of women. The aging process is more pronounced among women than among men. One of the reasons for this is the higher mortality rate among men and, therefore, the lower life expectancy among them. Last year, the largest number of men was between the ages of 30 and 54, and for women the upper limit increased up to 74 years. Compared to 2019, the largest increase in both genders is in the age group between 45 and 54 years. The largest decline in both, men and women, was reported by the group between 25 and 29 years. The next chart shows the distribution between the different age intervals for both genders:
Source: NSI. Period: 2020
Another demographic feature of our country is the concentration of the population in the cities and depopulation of small settlements. As of 31.12.2020 the number of people living in cities reaches 72.9%, and those in the villages – 27.1%. Six cities in the country – Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna, Burgas, Ruse and Stara Zagora, have a population above 100,000 people and in total represents 35% of the country’s population:
Source: NSI. Period: 2019-2020
It is an interesting fact that in the past year the internal migration in the country increased by 53.9% compared to 2019:
Source: NSI. Period: 2010-2020
197,242 people have changed the settlement, and more than half of them (108,085 people) have preferred the life of a village to that of the city. This trend is clear from the data in the table above, according to which an average of 2% of the population leave the six largest cities. 2020 is the first year in the last ten years in which there is a greater internal migration towards villages than to the cities. The main reason for this can be found in the appearance of Covid-19 insulation and the ability to work remotely, which the pandemic imposed. The highest migration is in the direction “city – village” (48.4%). This is followed by migration in the direction “city – city” (29.9%) and “village – city” (15.3%). The migration share in the direction “village – village” has the lowest share – 6.4%.
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