• by August 29, 2005

NEWS FLASH: NIELSEN REPORTS STARTLING PEOPLE-METER FINDINGS -- Nielsen Media Research has "found startling changes in TV viewership over the last year among 18- to 34-year-olds." At least that's how the Nielsen-watchers at ad industry bible Advertising Age interpreted the press release issued last week by Nielsen's PR team. That was the same press release, mind you, that our friends at MediaPost's MediaDailyNews ignored for the simple reason that it wasn't startling at all. In fact, it wasn't much different than a series of other releases Nielsen has been putting out showing significant differences between how its local people meters measure all sorts of things - including those things between the ages of 18 and 34 - and the TV set meters and diaries they are replacing.

It's good PR for Nielsen to get the data out and to depict it as showing that more people watch TV. More African Americans and Hispanic Americans watch TV. Nielsen even put a release out showing that more people watch cable TV shows in the local people meter markets. The problem is the data don't compare changes in actual TV viewing behavior. They compare changes in ratings methods. People meters simply record more people watching TV than diaries do. And if you find that startling, you'll probably want to read the banner headline published by Ad Age when Nielsen reports that more left-handed people watch TV, according to the local people meters. In fact, the only demographic unlikely to show an improvement via people meters is no-handed people. Think about it.

THE REAL MEDIA RIFFS THING -- When Coca-Cola Co. Chairman-CEO Neville Isdell tapped Chuck Fruit last year to be the chief marketing officer of the world's largest soft drinker marketer he vowed to improve the company's innovation in the field of marketing. On Monday, the company announced Fruit is stepping down as CMO and that the role is being phased out. The news no doubt will come as a shock for Coke watchers everywhere, especially those who hope to emulate the company's marketing blueprint. It also should send some mixed signals to industry groups, and trade publications like Advertising Age, The Point and CMO magazine, which have been championing the C-level notion of marketing.

The truth is that marketing has always resided at the C-level, even if a marketing executive didn't have the third letter of the alphabet in front of his or her title. In fact, marketing always has and always will be one of the main preoccupations of the executive suite at Coca-Cola Co. and companies like it. In fact, while Fruit steps into a new role, which sounds awfully like his old job as chief media officer, oversight for Coca-Cola Co.'s marketing strategy and innovation will remain under Mary Minnick. Apparently, great marketing organizations don't necessarily need a marketer at the top. They just need someone at the top who can think about great marketing.

Meanwhile, Fruit's new/old role should be good news for media. His title will be "senior advisor," but his focus will be on developing new media strategies, sports and entertainment marketing initiatives. In other words, what he's been doing for the past quarter century as the media kingpin at Coca-Cola, and at Anheuser-Busch before that.

According, to a report by Reuters, the move was voluntary.

"Those of you who know me well know that my greatest strengths -- and passions -- lie in the areas of integrated marketing, media and sponsorships," said Fruit in a memo released to the press on Monday.