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sales@spotsndots.com Copyright 2019.The Daily News of TV Sales Friday, January 10, 2020

KOHL’S, PENNEY POST DISAPPOINTING RESULTS Kohl’s and J.C. Penney reported lower holiday season sales yesterday, a sign that traditional brick-and-mortar retailers struggled to compete with record-breaking online shopping between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day. Kohl’s says it now expects full-year earnings to come in at the bottom end of an already lowered forecast, blaming weak demand for women’s apparel during the crucial shopping season, Reuters reports. The Menomonee Falls, Wis.-based department store operator posted a 0.2 percent drop in comparable sales in November and December. In a bid to drive traffic to its stores, Kohl’s formed a partnership with Amazon.com in 2017, allowing customers to buy products such as Echo dot speakers and return online purchases at all of its stores. Smaller rival J.C. Penney posted a 7.5 percent drop for the nine-week period ended Jan. 4. Plano, Texas-based Penney is losing business to larger rivals such as Amazon, Walmart and Target as well as discount retailers like TJX Cos’ Marshalls and T.J. Maxx chains. “E-commerce is definitely compromising the competitiveness of the physical assets of retailers,” CFRA Research analyst Camilla Yanushevsky said. “Amazon, Target and Walmart are really big names in this space and have squeezed out a lot of the little guys.” CEO Jill Soltau has shifted Penney’s strategic priorities to refocus on the retailer’s once-thriving, higher-margin apparel business and chose to stop selling major appliances and limit its furniture offerings. The moves have contributed to near-term financial pain. Data from Mastercard in December showed U.S. e-commerce sales in the period from Nov. 1 through Christmas Eve rose 18.8 percent, while overall holiday retail sales, excluding autos, rose just 3.4 percent. Macy’s, however, surprised investors earlier this week with a smaller-than-feared drop in holiday season sales after trimming its own full-year forecast just two months ago. The decline at Macy’s was viewed by most analysts with a sigh of relief in light of Macy’s disastrous third quarter. What got more attention was the department store’s plans to shutter 28 namesake stores and one Bloomingdale’s — equal to almost a third of the 100-store reduction the company undertook a few years ago. Victoria’s Secret owner L Brands yesterday lowered its profit forecast for the fourth quarter after reporting a 3 percent drop in comparable store sales for the holiday period. Profligate discounting could make 2019 the most promotional holiday season since the recession, according to one analyst cited by RetailDive. Hardest hit by price wars may be department stores, along with apparel sellers and other specialists tied to the same malls.

WEAK HOLIDAY SALES SPELL TROUBLE FOR STORESADVERTISER NEWS For the first time since 2014, SodaStream will have a 30-second spot immediately prior to the Super Bowl halftime show. MediaPost reports the campaign is being developed by Goodby Silverstein & Partners and will be directed by Bryan Buckley, a Super Bowl veteran with more than 63 game commercials under his belt. The at-home sparkling

water maker will be “making a splash with a Super Bowl ad that reminds consumers that SodaStream is the best way to stay hydrated and help the environment by cutting out single-use plastic,” according to a spokesperson. PepsiCo acquired SodaStream in 2018 for $3.2 billion... Target is rolling out a new line of men’s and women’s activewear – All in Motion – to replace the C9 by Champion

exclusive line currently sold by the retailer, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. All in Motion items will be available on target.com on Jan. 17 and in stores a week later... Grubhub may put itself up for sale with competition in the online delivery business growing increasingly intense, The Wall Street Journal reports. The Chicago company was a pioneer in the sector, but it’s since been joined by Uber Eats, DoorDash and Postmates. The companies are finding that customers jump freely between services to find the best deal, making it more difficult to deliver stable sales numbers... Walmart is piloting Alphabot, a backroom automated fulfillment system in New Hampshire that can collect 10 times as many products as a human employee, The Wall Street Journal reports. The system allows employees to more quickly fill online orders for delivery or pickup without clogging store aisles... Partnering with physicians who have offices in or near its stores is a key part of Walgreens Boots Alliance’s growth strategy. Forbes reports that Walgreens has teamed with health insurance provider Humana and primary care clinic startup VillageMD to experiment with new physician partnership formats... Bed Bath & Beyond says it will delay closing 20 of its namesake stores. CNBC reports the company originally planned to close 60 locations, including 40 Bed Bath & Beyond stores, in fiscal 2019. Twenty of those Bed Bath & Beyond closures will be delayed until after the first half of fiscal 2020 to sell more of their merchandise. Bed Bath & Beyond, which also owns Buy Buy Baby and Christmas Tree Shops, has roughly 1,500 locations in total. Bed Bath & Beyond has withdrawn its fiscal 2019 outlook, saying it will reveal its strategic plan in early 2020... Procter & Gamble has announced plans to acquire Billie, a direct-to-consumer (DTC) maker of women’s shaving and personal care products. The acquisition will add to P&G’s stable of female grooming brands that includes Venus, Braun and Joy. The companies will combine consumer insights, digital capabilities and innovation. Billie’s co-founders, Georgina Gooley and Jason Bravman, will continue to lead the company. Billie launched in 2017 as a subscription service that delivers a steady supply of women’s shaving products.

PAGE 2 The Daily News of TV Sales @ www.spotsndots.com

AVAILS CBS3, KYW-TV and the CW Philly 57, WPSG-TV — ViacomCBS-owned and operated television stations in the No. 4 television market of Philadelphia, have an immediate opening for an energetic and extremely motivated Multi-Platform sales professional. Candidate must possess strong presentation and communication skills, experience working with advertising agencies, plus proven success in new business development. The ideal applicant has a minimum of five year of media sales experience, possesses a strong work ethic, and thrives in a fast-

paced and competitive environment. College degree and ratings knowledge preferred, computer skills are a must. CLICK HERE to apply. KFVS-TV, Cape Girardeau, Mo., has an immediate opening for a Local Sales Manager. The LSM is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the sales department and the Account Executives. The ideal candidate must be able to coach and lead our team of AEs to reach individual and collective goals

across all revenue platforms. Must have a proven history of developing and executing successful sales campaigns. A minimum of 3 years of sales management and five years of digital media sales experience, and a college degree required. CLICK HERE for info or to apply. EOE. E.W. Scripps is searching for an Account Executive to join the sales team at WGBA in Green Bay, Wis. The AE works under the direction of the LSM to maintain and grow existing business/relationships with our key accounts, and to identify and pursue ways to increase individual, client and company sales growth and retention in our full product portfolio. Bachelor’s degree in related discipline and sales experience generating leads, cold calling, and closing business required. CLICK HERE for more info or to apply now. EOE.

See your ad here Monday! CLICK HERE for details.

CUSTOMERS SAY BANKS EDGE CREDIT UNIONS For years credit unions have enjoyed a higher level of customer satisfaction than banks, but that changed last year, according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index, according to a story at Marketingcharts.com. Measured on a scale of 0 to 100, the ACSI — which bases its findings on customer surveys — found that retail banks scored an 80 compared to credit unions’ score of 79. Customer satisfaction ratings for banks and credit unions have narrowed in recent years, reaching parity in 2018. For banks, convenience and accessibility present a concern as customers are less happy with the number and location of ATMs (73) and branches (71). Although credit unions rate high in the same areas, customers aren’t as satisfied as they were in the previous year. In 2018, credit union customers scored staff courtesy and helpfulness an impressive 89, yet in 2019 the score fell to 87. Similar drops occurred with speed of in-branch financial transactions (-3 points to 85), website satisfaction (-2 points to 84), and quality of mobile apps (-2 points to 83).

NETWORK NEWS ABC is expanding its Bachelor franchise with The Bachelor: Listen to Your Heart, which premieres Monday, April 13. The show features 20 single men and women trying to find love through music. Singing well-known songs, individually and as couples, they’ll look to form attractions through the melodies, find and reveal their feelings and ultimately, fall in love... The Bachelor announcement is among an avalanche of programming news from ABC this week. Here’s your rundown: The network has greenlit a pilot for a proposed new version of thirtysomething, featuring an ensemble of new faces playing the grown-up, 30-something children of the original cast reprised by Ken Olin (Michael Steadman), Mel Harris (Hope Murdoch), Timothy Busfield (Elliot Weston) and Patty Wettig (Nancy Weston)... ABC has picked up The Brides, which is billed as a sexy contemporary reimagining of Dracula. The family drama features a trio of powerful female leads... ABC News’ coverage of the first-in-the-nation primary will be incorporated into the broadcast of sitcom The Conners, which will air live on both coasts Tuesday, Feb. 11 at 8 PM (ET). The results will be incorporated into the story in real time... Former Saturday Night Live star Leslie Jones has been tapped to host the upcoming revival of game show Supermarket Sweep on ABC... The network’s Shark Tank is returning to its former Friday 8 PM (ET) slot on Feb. 28. It replaces sitcoms American Housewife and Fresh Off the Boat.

NFL RATINGS BOOST BROADCAST NETWORKS While it’s not quite fourth down and long for broadcast networks, lackluster scripted-programming ratings and cord-cutting woes are weighing heavily on the industry’s collective consciousness. So Variety says it’s particularly good news that one broadcast mainstay seems to have regained its mojo: live football. After a bumpy year or two, the 2019 NFL regular season grabbed an average of 16.7 million TV and digital viewers, the league says, marking 5 percent growth from 2018. Audiences may hold that live sports in general — and the NFL in particular, with its breakout stars and fast-paced action — are the last bastion of appointment television. On Fox, which airs almost all of its NFL games on Sundays, viewership grew 7 percent from the 2018 regular season to an average of 19.2 million viewers, with America’s Game of the Week leading the way with 24.4 million viewers, up 10 percent year over year. Studio programs Fox NFL Sunday and Fox NFL Kickoff have gone along for the ratings ride, with viewership up 6 percent and 3 percent, respectively. On CBS, NFL games have attracted 4 percent more viewers, with an average of 17.2 million. The Buffalo-Dallas matchup on Thanksgiving Day drew 32.6 million viewers, taking the title of most-watched regular season game. On NBC, Sunday Night Football continued to pull in its biggest numbers since 2015, averaging 20.5 million viewers in 2019, a 5 percent increase from last season. And ESPN’s Monday Night Football averaged 12.6 million viewers, up 8 percent for the second consecutive year — its best regular-season performance in four years.

1/10/2020

Jimmy Fallon

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle say they might move

to Canada. I give them a lot of credit — tons of

celebrities always threaten to move to Canada; they’re

actually doing it.

The Daily News of TV Sales @ www.spotsndots.com PAGE 3

CONSTELLATION EYES BIG HARD SELTZER PUSH Constellation Brands says it will make its biggest-ever single-brand investment to launch its Corona brand hard seltzer this spring — $40 million, Marketwatch reports. Corona hard seltzer will come in four flavors: tropical lime, mango, cherry and blackberry lime. Retailers have already made space on the shelves for the new brand, says William Newlands, Constellation’s CEO, who says the company’s research shows that seltzer is taking share across the board from beer, wine and spirits, with beer being hit the hardest.

Constellation’s brands include Modelo and Corona beers. Nielsen data shows that hard seltzer sales in the latest 52 weeks were $1.44 billion, up more than 208 percent from the previous year. The hard seltzer category is crowded, with names like White Claw, Truly, The Boston Beer Co. and Bon & Viv competing. White Claw had the highest brand awareness and loyalty as measured through repeat purchases, according to

a UBS report on hard seltzer published in September 2019.

FOR THOSE 13-24, PASSWORD SHARING A GIVEN A new report shows just how widespread the issue of password sharing is. The study from Hub Entertainment Research found that a whopping 80 percent of people 13-24 have shared a password for a streaming service (that’s giving their password to someone or using someone else’s password). That number drops dramatically in the 35 and older group, where only 16 percent have shared a password, Streaming Observer reports. Naturally, the most popular streaming service, Netflix, is the most commonly shared password. Just over 55 percent of 13- to 24-year-olds admit to mooching off another Netflix account or letting someone use theirs. The brand new Disney+ service claimed the second spot, with 31 percent of that same age group sharing logins. Hulu brought up the third spot. It’s estimated that companies lost more than $9 billion to password sharing and privacy in 2019.

1/10/2020

FunnyTweeter.com

My husband declared Sunday as a technology-free day, so naturally this has led to a closer bond between my children and me as we sneak

off to look at my phone.

WEDNESDAY NIELSEN RATINGS - LIVE + SAME DAY

H-E-B TOPS TRADER JOE’S AS FAVORITE GROCER Move over, Trader Joe’s. Dunnhumby has just released its latest Retailer Preference Index, with Texas-based H-E-B leaping into first place, muscling past Trader Joe’s, Amazon and Costco. The new rankings reveal a power surge coming from traditional regional grocers, fueled by exceptional relevance and convenience, MediaPost reports. Trader Joe’s comes in second, followed by Amazon, Market Basket, Wegmans Food Markets, Costco, Aldi, Sam’s Club, Walmart and Publix. Dunnhumby’s rankings look at the top 60 grocers and are based on responses from 7,000 households, evaluating them in seven areas: price, quality, digital, operations, convenience, discounts/rewards and speed. For the third straight year, price and quality are the most important customer needs, while convenience is the fastest-growing. Based solely on price, Aldi, Market Basket, WinCo, Lidl and Trader Joe’s are the top five. Among households with $200,000 or more in income, quality matters most. But the ranking finds that price-first retailers have grown twice as fast as quality-first retailers in the last five years.

MEREDITH BUYS SWEARBY DIGITAL PLATFORM Meredith Corp.’s properties drove more than $1 billion in sales for its retail partners through its affiliate and shopper marketing efforts last year. No wonder digital platforms are getting their full attention. Meredith has purchased SwearBy, a digital platform for word-of-mouth recommendations designed to crowdsource and share products that women “swear by” based on their personal experiences. The price wasn’t disclosed. “SwearBy immediately provides us a platform to host these recommendations as well as offer consumers the ability to easily store and share their own SwearBys with friends,” said Meredith President and Chief Digital Officer Catherine Levene. “We see enormous potential in promoting this platform across our network of trusted brands and developing SwearBy into the gold standard destination for products and services women actually want when it comes to beauty, style, parenting, lifestyle and entertainment — all searchable and shoppable.”

SHOPPERTRAK: DEC. STORE TRAFFIC FALLS The shortened holiday shopping calendar likely put a dent into in-store shopping traffic in December, Chain Store Age reports. Sensormatic Controls, part of Johnson Controls, released the annual ShopperTrak traffic and trends recap for the 2019 holiday season (encompassing the Sunday before Thanksgiving, Nov. 24, through Saturday, Dec. 28.) The data revealed that the busiest shopping days of 2019 accounted for 46.5 percent of the total season’s brick-and-mortar traffic. It also showed that Sensormatic’s early prediction of the top 10 busiest shopping days aligned with the actual busiest in-store shopping days, with Black Friday and Dec. 21 topping the list.