Cost Per Rating Point (CPRP) Calculator
The Cost Per Rating Point (CPRP) is a media metric used in advertising to determine the cost-effectiveness of a media placement or campaign. It tells you how much it costs to achieve one rating point (or 1% of the target audience) for a specific ad spot or schedule.
Enter the **Total Cost** of your media buy and the **Total Rating Points** (also known as Gross Rating Points or GRPs) achieved to calculate the CPRP.
Calculate Your CPRP
Understanding CPRP and Its Formula
What is CPRP?
CPRP stands for Cost Per Rating Point. It's a fundamental metric in media planning and buying, particularly for broadcast media (like TV and Radio) and sometimes for digital video, that helps advertisers evaluate the efficiency of different advertising opportunities. A 'rating point' represents 1% of the target audience in a specific geographic market or demographic group.
CPRP Formula
The formula for calculating CPRP is straightforward:
CPRP = Total Cost / Total Rating Points (GRPs)
Where:
- **Total Cost:** The total expenditure for the media buy (e.g., the cost of a single commercial spot or an entire campaign schedule).
- **Total Rating Points (GRPs):** The sum of the individual rating points for each ad placement in the schedule. If it's for a single spot, it's just the rating of that spot.
A lower CPRP generally indicates a more efficient media buy, meaning you are paying less to reach 1% of your target audience.
Why is CPRP Important?
- **Comparing Media:** It allows advertisers to compare the cost-efficiency of different TV programs, time slots, or even different stations or networks within the same market.
- **Budget Allocation:** Helps in allocating advertising budgets effectively by identifying where you get the most reach for your money on a per-point basis.
- **Negotiation:** Provides a basis for negotiation with media vendors.
- **Performance Evaluation:** Used after a campaign to evaluate how efficiently the GRP goals were achieved against the budget.
CPRP Calculation Examples
Click on an example to see the calculation:
Example 1: TV Commercial Spot
Scenario: A single TV commercial spot costs $10,000 and achieves a rating of 5 GRPs in the target demographic.
1. Known Values: Total Cost = $10,000, Total Rating Points = 5 GRPs.
2. Formula: CPRP = Total Cost / Total Rating Points
3. Calculation: CPRP = $10,000 / 5
4. Result: CPRP = $2,000.
Conclusion: It costs $2,000 to reach 1% of the target audience with this specific spot.
Example 2: Radio Campaign Schedule
Scenario: A radio advertising schedule costs $50,000 and delivers a total of 250 GRPs over the campaign period.
1. Known Values: Total Cost = $50,000, Total Rating Points = 250 GRPs.
2. Formula: CPRP = Total Cost / Total Rating Points
3. Calculation: CPRP = $50,000 / 250
4. Result: CPRP = $200.
Conclusion: The CPRP for this radio campaign is $200.
Example 3: Comparing Two TV Shows
Scenario: Compare the efficiency of two TV shows for the same budget.
Show A: Costs $7,500, delivers 3 GRPs.
Show B: Costs $12,000, delivers 4 GRPs.
1. Calculate Show A CPRP: $7,500 / 3 GRPs = $2,500.
2. Calculate Show B CPRP: $12,000 / 4 GRPs = $3,000.
3. Result: Show A CPRP = $2,500, Show B CPRP = $3,000.
Conclusion: Show A is more cost-efficient (lower CPRP) per rating point than Show B.
Example 4: Calculating CPRP from Net Cost
Scenario: An ad agency buys time. Gross cost is $20,000, agency commission is 15%. GRPs delivered are 8.
1. Calculate Net Cost: $20,000 * (1 - 0.15) = $17,000.
2. Known Values (Net): Total Cost = $17,000, Total Rating Points = 8 GRPs.
3. Formula: CPRP = Total Cost / Total Rating Points
4. Calculation: CPRP = $17,000 / 8
5. Result: CPRP = $2,125.
Conclusion: The CPRP based on net cost is $2,125.
Example 5: Full Daypart Schedule
Scenario: An advertiser buys a schedule across an entire daypart (e.g., daytime TV) for $150,000, achieving a total of 600 GRPs.
1. Known Values: Total Cost = $150,000, Total Rating Points = 600 GRPs.
2. Formula: CPRP = Total Cost / Total Rating Points
3. Calculation: CPRP = $150,000 / 600
4. Result: CPRP = $250.
Conclusion: The average CPRP for this daypart schedule is $250.
Example 6: Sports Event Sponsorship
Scenario: Sponsoring a local sports event that includes broadcast ads costs $25,000 and is estimated to deliver 100 GRPs.
1. Known Values: Total Cost = $25,000, Total Rating Points = 100 GRPs.
2. Formula: CPRP = Total Cost / Total Rating Points
3. Calculation: CPRP = $25,000 / 100
4. Result: CPRP = $250.
Conclusion: The CPRP for the broadcast component of the sponsorship is $250.
Example 7: Infomercial Airing
Scenario: An infomercial airing costs $8,000 and generates 1.5 GRPs.
1. Known Values: Total Cost = $8,000, Total Rating Points = 1.5 GRPs.
2. Formula: CPRP = Total Cost / Total Rating Points
3. Calculation: CPRP = $8,000 / 1.5
4. Result: CPRP ≈ $5,333.33.
Conclusion: The CPRP for this infomercial airing is approximately $5,333.
Example 8: Political Campaign Ads
Scenario: A political campaign spends $300,000 on local TV ads that achieve a total of 750 GRPs.
1. Known Values: Total Cost = $300,000, Total Rating Points = 750 GRPs.
2. Formula: CPRP = Total Cost / Total Rating Points
3. Calculation: CPRP = $300,000 / 750
4. Result: CPRP = $400.
Conclusion: The CPRP for these political ads is $400.
Example 9: Cable TV Package
Scenario: An advertiser buys a package of spots on various cable channels for $90,000, estimated to deliver 400 GRPs across the target audience.
1. Known Values: Total Cost = $90,000, Total Rating Points = 400 GRPs.
2. Formula: CPRP = Total Cost / Total Rating Points
3. Calculation: CPRP = $90,000 / 400
4. Result: CPRP = $225.
Conclusion: The CPRP for this cable package is $225.
Example 10: Calculating Cost Needed for GRP Goal
Scenario: An advertiser wants to achieve 500 GRPs and knows the historical CPRP for a specific network is $300.
1. Known Values: Desired GRPs = 500, Target CPRP = $300.
2. Reverse Formula: Total Cost = CPRP * Total Rating Points
3. Calculation: Total Cost = $300 * 500
4. Result: Total Cost = $150,000.
Conclusion: They would need a budget of approximately $150,000 to achieve 500 GRPs at this CPRP.
Frequently Asked Questions about CPRP
1. What does CPRP stand for?
CPRP stands for Cost Per Rating Point.
2. How is CPRP calculated?
The formula is simple: CPRP = Total Cost / Total Rating Points (GRPs).
3. What is a Rating Point (RP) or GRP?
A Rating Point represents 1% of the target audience in a specific market or demographic. GRPs (Gross Rating Points) are the sum of individual rating points for all spots in a campaign.
4. Is a higher or lower CPRP better?
Generally, a lower CPRP is considered better. It indicates that you are paying less to achieve one rating point, suggesting higher cost-efficiency.
5. When is CPRP typically used?
CPRP is most commonly used in planning, buying, and evaluating broadcast media like television and radio, but it can be applied wherever audience ratings are measured.
6. How is CPRP different from CPM?
CPRP measures the cost to reach 1% of the *target audience*. CPM (Cost Per Mille or Cost Per Thousand) measures the cost to reach 1,000 *impressions* (or sometimes 1,000 people) in a specific audience, regardless of the total audience size or rating. CPRP relates directly to rating points (percentage reach), while CPM relates to the raw number of impressions/people.
7. What are the required inputs for this calculator?
You need the Total Cost of the media buy and the Total Rating Points (GRPs) delivered by that buy.
8. Can I calculate CPRP for digital advertising?
While CPRP is traditionally a broadcast metric, the concept can be applied to digital video advertising if audience ratings data is available for the digital platform or content. More often, CPM or CPV (Cost Per View) are used in digital.
9. What if my GRPs are zero?
If the Total Rating Points (GRPs) are zero, the CPRP cannot be calculated as you cannot divide by zero. This indicates the media buy had no measured reach within the target audience according to the rating system used.
10. Can CPRP be used for media negotiation?
Yes, CPRP is a key metric used in negotiations. Buyers often have a target CPRP based on market averages or historical performance, which they use to evaluate offers from media vendors.
