www.spotsndots.com Subscriptions: $350 per year. This publication cannot be distributed beyond the office of the actual subscriber. Need us? 888-884-2630 or [email protected] The Daily News of TV Sales Monday, April 13, 2020 Copyright 2020. COVID-19’S LASTING IMPACT ON GROCERY E-COMMERCE EVEN BEFORE CRISIS, BUSINESS WAS ON THE RISE ADVERTISER NEWS With the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic still ricocheting Michigan has extended its COVID-19 shutdown to April 30; throughout the U.S. economy, it can be difficult to envision if not extended later that would allow Fiat Chrysler to restart retail returning to normal one day. And yet somehow it will production on May 4 as it hopes. The home state of the Detroit — and much of it will look virtually indistinguishable from the 3 has also authorized online and remote sales during the pre-crisis reality. But changes in consumer behavior will be current crisis… In a special analysis of the first quarter, the lasting, eMarketer says. National Automobile Dealers Association says that March Aside from the many brick-and-mortar retailers watching foot sales at dealerships were down 37.9%. It also notes factory traffic and sales drop to near zero, the most profound shift in incentives available now are at all-time records: $4,800 per consumer behavior is happening in grocery vehicle overall and as much as $7,200 on e-commerce — and this shift is likely to have pickup trucks… The start of production on one of the longest-lasting consequences. the Ford Bronco Sport has been pushed According to the research firm’s most recent back to September. The off-road capable e-commerce forecast (prior to COVID-19), vehicle had been due to start production eMarketer expected U.S. food and beverage e-commerce in July… Staples stores remain open, but the chain hasn’t sales to rise 23.4% to $32.22 billion this year, with the paid April , according to Chain Store Age. Landlords are segment accounting for just 3.2% of total retail sales. It is said to be “up in arms,” especially since hedge-fund owner both the fastest-growing and least penetrated e-commerce Sycamore Partners is reported to have taken a $1 billion category — and expect these figures to be revised upward in dividend from the chain last year. Competitor Office Depot the coming months. has reportedly paid its rent… Big Lots is raising money via Grocery e-commerce has had huge momentum behind it — a sale/leaseback deal for its four distribution centers. The even prior to much of the U.S. population social distancing company says it will use the proceeds to pay down debt and staying home — with last year representing an obvious and for growth initiatives once conditions normalize… Iowa- inflection point. According to TABS Analytics, 2019 was a based Kum & Go, with 400 stores in 11 states, is bringing year of hockey-stick growth for both initial trials and increasing back full-service fueling for customers who don’t wish to get frequency of online grocery ordering. Overall penetration out of their car. Customers phone the main store number among U.S. internet users jumped from 38% in 2018 to 56% when they get to the pump to get an employee to come out, in 2019, while the percentage of those who regularly ordered take a credit-card payment and gas up the vehicle. Curbside groceries online spiked from 17% to 37%. pickup of orders is also available… Nation’s Restaurant Online logistics are also continuing to improve. Amazon’s News reports DoorDash is giving independent restaurants investment in warehouse and last-mile logistics for next-day with five or fewer locations a 50% break in delivery fees and same-day Prime (not to mention removing its $14.99 through the end of May. DoorDash fees are negotiated, so monthly fee for Amazon Fresh) eliminated barriers to online grocery delivery. The buildouts of click-and-collect operations (Continued on Page 3) by Walmart and various national grocery chains helped propel that behavior forward. The flame was already lit, but the coronavirus crisis has clearly poured gas on the fire. According to Rakuten Intelligence, order volume for online grocery retailers surged 210% from March 12-15, compared with the same period in 2019. Showing similar trends, NetElixir reported that online food sales surged 183% between March 1-25, vs. the same period last year. In a CivicScience poll of U.S. adults and their digital grocery shopping habits, the percentage of those who said they increased their online grocery shopping jumped from 11% to 37% from March 1-22. And it’s very likely that these behaviors will continue, even when the coronavirus pandemic eventually subsides. Why? Because e-commerce habits tend to form during periods of intense activity, and when those habits already have momentum, they become even stickier. Millions of first-time online grocery buyers are now materializing, and millions of infrequent buyers are now doing so on a weekly basis vs. over multiple weeks or months. NETWORK NEWS AVAILS TMZ Investigates: Tiger King: What Really Went Sinclair Broadcast Group is seeking a Sales and Pricing Down? will premiere on Fox tonight at 9 PM (ET). The one- Analyst for our Cockeysville, Md., or Los Angeles offices. hour special will delve into what really happened, with the You will get to use your analytical interviews only TMZ can get, exploring outstanding ques- skills to make a major contribution tions about Joe Exotic’s guilt, an inside look into Carole in supporting growth and profitability Baskin’s husband’s disappearance and the current status objectives by working closely with of the new investigation… The ABC special The Happy the Sinclair sales organizations. Days of Garry Marshall will air on Tuesday, May 12 and Bachelor’s in any business or communications discipline and will feature an array of celebrities sharing their memories 2 years of related experience required. Sales experience a of the late director and producer, including Julie Andrews, plus. Find a full list of qualifications and duties, or apply now Jennifer Garner, Richard Gere, Anne HERE. EOE and Drug-Free Workplace! Hathaway, Kate Hudson, Ron How- KIMT-TV is seeking an Assistant ard, Jimmy Kimmel, Ashton Kutch- Dr. Fauci said he doesn’t News Director to efficiently and er, Chris Pine, Julia Roberts, John think that we should ever effectively oversee a content-driven and Stamos and Henry Winkler… Chris- shake hands again, which community-focused newsroom at our tina Aguilera, Kristin Chenoweth and will be weird when every Rochester, Minn., station. The qualified Luke Evans are among the stars that job interview starts with an individual will be passionate about the will feature in a Disney musical spe- awkward chest bump. issues and stories important to the cial for ABC. The broadcaster has set communities KIMT serves. This person The Disney Family Singalong, a one- Jimmy Fallon must be a fanatic about details. Join a hour event special, to launch Thursday growing team focused on finding the at 8 PM. The special will fill the gap left stories that matter. To apply, please visit by the move of firefighter drama Station 19 to the Grey’s www.kimt.com or send resume and cover letter to: hr@kimt. Anatomy slot, after the medical drama was forced to move com. EOE/M/F/D/V. up its season finale as a result of the coronavirus produc- WFFT-TV FOX 55, Fort Wayne, Ind., is looking for a tion shutdown. The nationwide singalong will feature ce- dynamic Creative Services Director who likes to tell a lebrities and their families taking on their favorite Disney story and create market memorable tunes from their own homes. Others involved in the remote promotions. If you are an experienced performances including Erin Andrews, , Mi- Marketing/Creative Services Director chael Bublé, Auliʻi Cravalho, , Josh Gad, who can generate and execute , , Carrie Ann Inaba, Lit- powerful, memorable marketing, tle Big Town, Kenny Ortega, , Thomas messaging and branding, we would like to talk to you. If you Rhett, and John Stamos… Timmy Brown, are an aggressive, strategic leader with a “we should try that” a three-time Pro Bowl running back for the Philadelphia attitude, then we are definitely looking for you to join our Eagles in the 1960s and later an actor, has died from de- team. Send resume and examples of your recent work to: mentia complications, the team announced. He was 82 and [email protected]. EOE. was living in Southern California with his son at the time WISH-TV/WNDY-TV, Indianapolis, is expanding its of his death. Brown the actor is best remembered for his local sports and news content and is expanding the sales roles in the Robert Altman filmsMASH and Nashville, and team. We’re searching for an Advertising & Marketing appeared in about a half-dozen episodes of the M*A*S*H Salesperson with a self-starter mentality and with the TV series. Brown had a long career in television in non- ability to learn how to be customer service oriented. This recurring roles, appearing on such shows as The Wild Wild individual must be able to assess needs of local businesses West, Adam-12, Mission: Impossible, T.J. Hooker and and then develop custom advertising/marketing solutions Benson, among others. for clients across television and digital platforms. Resume to: [email protected]. Please include “AE - HOG HEAVEN? NOT FOR CLOSED PORK PLANT Indianapolis” in the subject line. EOE. Smithfield Foods will keep its Sioux Falls, S.D., pork plant closed indefinitely at the urging of the governor and FREE CLASSIFIED ADS TO ALL SUBSCRIBERS mayor, though the company’s chief executive warned of This is a difficult time for the TV industry. But in the very dire consequences for farmers and consumers, The Wall near future, it’s likely that things will begin to return to normal Street Journal reports. and every station will need a full staffto The plant, which employs about 3,700 people, accounts for recover and gain share. 4% to 5% of U.S. pork production, according to Smithfield. If you’re a Spots n Dots subscriber, It also accounts for more than half of all COVID-19 cases in we’re offering FREE classified ads the county, state and local officials estimated, with at least through the end of April. We’ll post all 238 confirmed cases. the jobs on our website for 30 days “We understand that Smithfield has taken numerous steps and will run them in this newsletter as often as possible, to help mitigate COVID-19 spread, yet we believe there is depending on response. an opportunity for you to do more,” wrote South Dakota Send jobs to [email protected]. Please send in a word Gov. Kristi Noem in a Saturday letter to Smithfield CEO doc, or send a link to the job opening online — no PDFs, Ken Sullivan and Sioux Falls Mayor Paul TenHaken. please. 4/13/2020

The Daily News of TV Sales @ www.spotsndots.com PAGE 2 NIELSEN: STREAMING UP AGAIN IN MARCH’S H2 ADVERTISER NEWS (Continued from Page 1) Streaming TV minutes continued their dramatic growth it’s likely those smaller eateries are paying more than chain during the last two weeks of March, according to Nielsen’s restaurants… The latest numbers for the restaurant industry latest streaming TV report updating activity during the are staggering. Black Box Intelligence has now computed COVID-19 pandemic. full March numbers, and same-store sales were down The new report, MediaPost reports, also shows a 28.3%, with the final two weeks of the month down more continuation of streaming’s dramatic increase in share of total than 65%... Sprouts Farmers Market is moving ahead with TV time, which was at 24% and 23% in those two weeks, plans to open three stores this month (in Washington state, respectively, versus 14% in each of last year’s comparable Maryland and Jacksonville, Fla.) and another in Estero, Fla., weeks. in June. But grand opening promotions and celebrations Streaming’s share of total TV time was also 23% as of the will be postponed… State Farm and week of March 16 this year, per Nielsen’s Progressive are joining Allstate in last report. I’ve showered, washed granting customers rebates due to less monopolized the entire Top 10 my hair, put on my day driving and fewer accidents. State Farm viewership ranking, ending March with a pajamas and applied a is giving credits of 25% retroactive to 33% share of streaming minutes — up smidge of mascara. I’m March 20 and going through May 31. from 29% as of the week of March 16. ready for any and all House Progressive is crediting 20% for April and Total streaming minutes in the third Party/WhatsApp/Zoom May… Another category hit hard by stay- and fourth weeks of March were 168.7 conversations. in-place orders is the auto aftermarket. billion and 161.4 billon — way more than Advance Auto Parts comps were double the 76.4 and 69.8 billion minutes Darlene Rodriguez, 4NY already down 3.2% for the 12 weeks recorded, respectively, in the comparable that ended March 21, but fell to -28% year-ago weeks. for the following two weeks… The last two weeks’ streaming minute totals were also up AMC , the nation’s largest chain of movie theaters from the first two weeks of March, which were 127.6 billion Entertainment and 156.1 billion, respectively. with 630 now-closed venues, is reported to be in talks with a law firm that specializes in bankruptcies. AMC now DONE DEAL carries $4.9 billion in debt. Among the company’s upcoming Nexstar Broadcasting has promoted John Lewis to vice obstacles is that many of its theaters are in malls, which president and GM of its broadcast and digital operations may re-open later than other venues. In addition, production in Raleigh, N.C., (DMA #27), overseeing on many Hollywood blockbusters has been delayed by the WNCN-TV (CBS), CBS17.com, and coronavirus crisis. their related social media channels. He will assume his new responsibilities HERE AND GONE: XFL, WE HARDLY KNEW YA immediately. Lewis brings more than 30 The XFL suspended operations late last week, with multiple years of executive experience in broadcast sources tell ESPN the league has laid off nearly all of its television management, marketing and staffers — a handful of executives remain employed — and sales to his new role at Nexstar, serving currently has no plans to return in 2021. most recently as VP and GM for Nexstar’s The XFL is owned by WWE CEO/president Vince McMahon broadcast and digital operations in and Alpha Entertainment. In a statement, the WWE said: Greenville, N.C. (DMA #100), where he oversaw WNCT-TV “Given the uncertainty of the current environment, the XFL (CBS), ENCT-TV (CW) and WNCT.com. has suspended operations and is evaluating next steps.” The XFL canceled its season last month after five games GAS IS CHEAP, BUT THERE’S NOWHERE TO GO as part of a nationwide shutdown due to the coronavirus The national average for a gallon of gas — $1.883 as pandemic, pledging to return next year. But XFL COO Jeffrey of Friday, according to the latest data from AAA — is the Pollack changed course last week, conducting a 10-minute cheapest in more than four years, CNBC reports. conference call to inform employees of the news. The coronavirus outbreak has sapped demand for both Commissioner Oliver Luck, hired in 2018 to guide the most crude oil and gasoline, just as a price war between Saudi ambitious spring football league in decades, didn’t speak on Arabia kicked off as each sought to gain market share in the the call. It wasn’t immediately clear if he’s still with the league. global oil market. In the last month the national average per SATURDAY NIELSEN RATINGS - LIVE + SAME DAY gallon has dropped 48 cents, and current prices are 32% below what consumers paid a year ago. Prices could fall even further. “We are seeing major destruction to gasoline demand which could push the national average below $1.70 or cheaper this month,” AAA spokesperson Jeanette Casselano told CNBC. Some believe it won’t stop there. Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy.com, sees the national average dropping below 2016’s low of $1.66. Prices could get all the way down to $1.49, he said, depending on how quickly the COVID-19 crisis eases. 4/13/2020

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