Category: Publisher Research Council (PRC)

The Publisher Research Council (PRC) has set aside the afternoon of the 11^th July to spend with members of the industry to explore recent research changes and answer any questions surrounding the Establishment Survey (ES), SEMs (Socio-Economic Measure), their recent READ studies and the role that the PRC has to play.

 “As a JIC (Joint Industry Council) we must have collaborative meetings with agencies and advertisers in our industry. We need an open forum where we can discuss the ES, LSM’s, SEMs and any other queries media planners and clients have in a relaxed open workshop. We want to assist marketers and media planners when it comes to day to day planning,” says Peter Langschmidt, consultant to the PRC.

“The PRC will not only present insights, but more importantly is looking for feedback on how we are doing as an industry body, how useful our research is, what’s working, what’s not and what else can we do to make planner’s lives easier.”

The afternoon will take the format of a workshop, with short presentations on questions received from the industry and include an overview of the PAMS reading currency survey and its release date. Terry Murphy MD of Nielsen Watch will discuss Fusion and the exciting project of fusing Nielsen Consumer Panel FMCG purchase data with PRC surveys.

The era of hub and donor surveys is here, and this opens up many new opportunities in research. In some countries up to 19 surveys are fused into a single customer and market view.

The ‘immersion day’ will be hosted at the Bryanston Country Club from 3pm on the 11^th July, followed by drinks and an informal networking session.

“We’re encouraging all of our industry partners and suppliers to pop in, have a chat, give us feedback, and submit any queries you may have on any research,” concludes Langschmidt.

PRC Workshop E-Invite

The Publisher Research Council’s (PRC) latest South African research – Media View shows that although consumers may not be spending as much time reading as engaging with broadcast media, the time spent reading is more focused and far less distracted. #ReadToRemember

Conducted independently by Kantar TNS, the Media View survey, commissioned and funded by the PRC, is an evaluation of written word media engagement and research to determine the attitudes and perceptions that consumers have of media.

“In keeping with the PRC ethos, we conduct audience and efficacy research on behalf of our members. The Media View survey proves that print media creates quality engagement with consumers and can be used as an effective channel to deliver a return on investment,” says Peter Langschmidt, consultant to the PRC.

This robust random quantitative study included a sample of 2 000 consumers, aged 15+, in the seven major urban areas of Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town, Durban, East London, Port Elizabeth and Bloemfontein.

According to Alison Rice, Head of Brand & Communication at Kantar TNS, “The survey covered ‘engagement’ by including both behavioural (media consumption and attention, quality of attention and information source) and attitudinal variables like satisfaction, depth of information, media and advertising associations.”

Questions included were largely derived from a comprehensive study conducted by Kantar Media overseas.  In this work, they identified six clear strands of engagement and these formed the architecture of the framework for the Media View survey: relevance, trust in the specific media vehicle, mindset and attention given to the medium, perception by consumers that advertising is an integral part of the media experience, the medium prompts action and that the medium fulfils a need state.

Consumers that read are less distracted when reading newspapers or magazines. In fact, over 50% of newspaper readers, and a similarly high number of magazine readers, say they are focused when reading and aren’t doing any other activity simultaneously. “This ‘Quality of Attention’ is an important statistic for advertisers as there is more chance that consumers will pay attention to advertising and remember more as they’re less distracted,” explains Langschmidt. Data shows that consumers are least focused when listening to the radio and seeing outdoor, in fact less than 1 in 5 are concentrating solely on each of these media types.

Metro consumers are “cross-consuming” over five media types on average, with 3 in 10 claiming to consume all the listed media (newspapers, magazines, TV, radio, OOH, internet and social media) on a monthly basis.  Magazine readers however, claim the highest repertoire overall. The data also indicates high cross-usage between print media and internet/social media.

Consumers use newspapers (ranked in importance) for sales and deals, everyday item price comparisons, news, when looking for the best prices on electronics, cellphones and furniture, sport, information about expensive items to purchase and lifestyle information. Magazines on the other hand, are used primarily for lifestyle information, prices on electronics, cellphones and furniture, information about expensive items to purchase, sales and deals, and everyday item price comparisons.

Attitudinal perceptions show us that consumers feel that newspapers are known for (in order of ranking) providing information that is believable, being trusted to provide reliable information, being able to remember things from them, making one better informed and being the best way to learn and remember. Consumers also perceive that magazines are a medium that enables them to remember things from them, provides an environment for learning and remembering, offers information that is believable, provides a good variety of content, gives an opportunity to engage on one’s own time and pace and makes them think and be inspired.

According to Langschmidt, “print media’s relative differentiation sits in a territory related to reliable information, learning and recall. Aligned with this, advertising in print media, including inserts, uniquely occupies the territory of specific information provision and call to action benefits.”

In both perceptual batteries of the Media View research, print media and broadcast media fall into opposing territories, as they are fulfilling different need states. This lends itself to complementary and synergistic media planning with TV filling the entertainment and awareness need and Print providing the requisite decision making information. This has proven to increase advertising recall and hence increase ROI.

This fact was proved by BrandScience and their analysis of 500 European cases studies. When it came to FMCG, TV’s Return on Investment (ROI) increased by 61% when used in combination with print advertising.

“Newspapers are the second media source behind TV for many topics of information, particularly for pricing and store locations; similarly, inserts and pamphlets are seen as the top media (behind TV’s halo) for price comparisons and are differentiated by prompting a call to action,” concludes Langschmidt. “Consumers have come to rely on these information vehicles as critically important sources for purchase decisions.”

For additional information and research on reading visit www.prc.za.com.

There has been a lot of talk in the industry regarding the relevance of LSMs (Living Standard Measure). Kantar TNS was approached by the industry to develop a new socio economic segmentation system to better reflect the South African landscape. 

 Developed by Neil Higgs and his team at Kantar TNS, the new SEM (Socio-Economic Measure) household continuum is a more accurate reflection of South African society in terms of how people live and is not dependent solely on durables.

“SEMs provides a statistical and technical solution to the household continuum and speaks to how South Africans live and not what they have,” says Peter Storrar, Kantar TNS lead on the ES Survey conducted for the industry, funded by the Publisher Research Council (PRC) and the Broadcast Research Council (BRC).

The international measure of income distribution is the Gini coefficient, and South Africa has one of the highest in the world, in other words, we have a very unequal income distribution.  As can be seen in the graph below, the SEM distribution reflects this.

LSM VS SEM PROFILE OF SOUTH AFRICAN HOUSEHOLDS

Source ES: 6 months Jul-Dec 2016

Peter Langschmidt, consultant to the PRC , says, “If only the LSM – almost perfect bell shaped population – distribution were true, we would have a massive middle class, and an income distribution like Canada or Australia. However, we don’t as we are still suffering the after effects of 350 years of colonialism, 50 years of Apartheid and 10 years of corruption, so our Gini coefficient is still incredibly high.”

The LSM shows that only 6% or 1 in 17 houses is in the bottom LSM 1-3 group, the SEM shows that 44% or 1 in 2.3 households are struggling. In terms of the all important LSM 8-10 group, which receives over 70% of advertising spend, the SEM also outperforms the LSM with 19% of household’s vs 14% for the LSM.

In terms of practicality the SEM also has numerous advantages over the LSM’s. With 14 variables, versus the 29 on LSM’s, questionnaires are shorter and easier to administer. SEMs are also more stable due to less reliance on durables and more reliance on household structures and community infrastructure which change more gradually.

The only four durables that have been included in the final variables are deep freezer, microwave oven, floor polisher or vacuum cleaner and washing machine. The others are post office nearby, police station nearby, built-in kitchen sink, home security service, motor car, floor material, water source, type of toilet, roof material and number of sleeping room.

As promised the LSM will be run in parallel with the SEM for a period of two years until 2018.

“If you or your clients believe in fairytale income distribution that goes against all census and Stats SA data and even the Easter Bunny then continue to use the LSM’s; but if you believe in an inequitable distribution and the 17 million life supporting grants that real people receive each month, then you must use SEM’s,” concludes Langschmidt.

For additional information and reading research visit www.prc.za.com.

With the recent launch of the Establishment Survey (ES), the Publisher Research Council (PRC) provides a brief overview.

The Establishment Survey (ES) is a collaborative partnership between the Publisher Research Council (PRC), the Broadcast Research Council (BRC) and the Advertiser Media Forum (AMF) with the BRC and PRC being the funders and owners of the data. The aim is for media owners, marketers, and advertisers to use the survey as a strategic inter-media planning tool.

“ES is a multi-purpose, multi-media survey providing context for all media and all media currencies in South Africa,” explains Peter Langschmidt, Research Consultant to the PRC.  “The hub with donor currencies is based on global best practice and was proposed in 2013 by Kuper research while conducting an AMPS future proofing exercise for SAARF.”

The ES is a central hub with a “democratic sample” that matches population and is linked, via common fusion hooks (like demographics and media consumption), to currency donor research surveys. “These surveys generally match sales, so samples are skewed towards urban areas, we call these ‘monetary or sales samples’,” says Langschmidt. “The first currency to be linked will be TAMS in April, RAMS and PAMS will follow later in the year.”

Any other media owner survey, brand or product usage or survey with sufficient demographic and geographic hooks can be fused with the ES. Companies with large databases can even ‘multi-base’ their customer database with the ES.

The ES measures Reading (not just print and digital), Viewing (not just TV) and Listening (not just radio) which reflects the new reality of how people consume media.  Therefore the ES is completely platform agnostic displaying total audience as well as audience by individual platform. Cinema and On the Go are also included.

The nationally representative probability sample of people aged 15 years and over, with a sample size of 25 000 per annum will be released across two waves (12 500 per wave).  All measures are consistent across all media with the primary questionnaire being designed by a global expert from Kantar Media UK. New measures like time spent with each medium are also included.

The data is consistent and reliable as interviewing is spread over 49 weeks of the year, ensuring that all periods in the year are covered across all provinces and area types. Releases happen twice a year based on six months worth of data.

“After 40 years of using the single source AMPS this new ES hub and currency donor model takes some getting used to. However, working with the data and seeing how each constituency can now get the best of both worlds and control their own sample to match their medium has tremendous benefits, as opposed to everyone being shoe-horned into a single sample.”

The Establishment Survey launch can be classed as a ‘mini-launch’. The primary launch will be happening in September, when the first full year of data, based on the 25 000 sample, will be released. “The new reading currency, PAMS, will be linked to the ES and will be released shortly afterwards,” concludes Langschmidt.

For additional information and reading research visit www.prc.za.com.

Publisher Research Council (PRC) DNA

The Publisher Research Council (PRC) is a non for profit company that represents the interests of both print and online publishers in South Africa and conducts audience and efficacy research on behalf of its members. Primary research is conducted to gain an understanding of the broad media usage in South Africa as well as individual title audiences for member internal use and for advertisers and their agencies.

The PRC is owned by the major publishing houses, and members include Times Media Group, CTP Caxton, Independent Newspapers, Media24, Mail & Guardian and Ramsay Media. Currently the PRC members publish more than 700 newspapers and magazines in four different languages.

The first PAMS (Publisher Audience Measurement Survey) reading research is due for release in October 2017. Conducted by The Publisher Research Council (PRC), it will provide media owners, agencies and marketers with an accurate new reading currency in South Africa for the first time in 40 years.

 The PRC refer to their research as Reading Research, not the traditional Readership Research. “The difference is subtle, yet crucial,” says Peter Langschmidt, Research Consultant to the PRC. Reading is more behavioural, it is platform agnostic and covers all forms of reading on screens and paper – unlike readership which was ink on fingers.”

“AMPS provided us with very ‘enthusiastic’ readership figures,” continues Langschmidt, “Although we do not know what the new PAMS methodology will deliver, it has been designed to address the high Readers per Copy (RPC) figures that were in AMPS. The PRC and its members are fully aware that ‘readership’ figures may show a decline but, whatever the new data reflects, it will be a more accurate reflection of the truth.”

The PRC members and publishers have embraced the need to move away from solely measuring exposure to paper, towards measuring reading on every platform; paper, tablets, phones, computers, even PDF documents, etc. “We will offer agencies and clients audiences to each platforms individually and an unduplicated aggregated audience,” he says.

PAMS results will be fused with the Establishment Survey (ES) which in turn is linked to TAMS and RAMS. This will provide media planers with the ability to compare different media platforms and channels, for example Huisgenoot audiences with radio broadcaster 94.7 Highveld. “As such, by the end of the year we will have what we previously had in AMPS, it will just be conducted in four discrete surveys that are combined after the fact, which is in line with global best practice.”

Nielsen, PRC’s research partner, scoured the world for innovative “Gold Standard” Reader Audience Measurement, and the PAMS questionnaire uses input from The Netherlands, New Zealand and Australia. “We have also made changes that maximize the advantages of tablet interviews and address the uniquely South African heterogeneous readers,” explains Langschmidt.

In order to provide quality data to inform effective advertising investment, the sample is designed around the reader universe, which upweights urban areas and down weights rural ones. This top 60% of the market accounts for over 85% of consumer and advertising spend.

PAMS will be introducing a world first reading research flooding methodology. The sample will comprise of 10 000 core face-to-face interviews supplemented by 10,000 “flooded” interviews with other household members. This combined sample of 20 000, will be larger than the AMPS reader sample. “This is no mean feat,” says Pula Mmesi, researcher at the PRC, “since our member’s revenue is declining but we are able to give advertisers a bigger sample size!”

“It’s not just all about the numbers when planning an advertising campaign.  It’s the ability of the written word, on any platform, to deliver a quality reader and the ability for said reader to recall what’s been read and advertised,” concludes Langschmidt.

The PAMS currency measures will be combined with four other studies that the PRC are conducting this year, which will ensure the most complete measurement of reader audiences, across all platforms, to inform effective advertising investment.

For additional information and reading research visit www.prc.za.com.

The Publisher Research Council (PRC) was created to meet the needs of fast changing reading behaviour across both traditional and digital reading platforms and to provide an innovative “Gold Standard” Reader Audience Measurement founded on global and local best practice, expertise and resources.

The PRC is a not for profit company that represents the interests of both print and online publishers in South Africa. It conducts audience and efficacy research on behalf of members, while providing research on broader media audiences for advertisers and their agencies

“2017 heralds a new dawn of media research in South Africa,” says Peter Langschmidt, General Manager of the PRC. “After 40 years of a single source AMPS, the industry is moving to the global model of a hub Establishment Survey (ES) with linked donor currency surveys and with the PRC being an integral spoke.

“‘Read to Remember’, the PRC slogan, stresses our commitment to researching and better understanding of both the quality and quantity of our audiences – we will get closer to understanding how reading facilitates learning and brand recall better than any other medium.”

The PRC website – www.prc.za.com – has been designed to become the de facto resource for everything reading related, including all primary research resources, white papers, international discussions and best practice.

In keeping with the PRC ethos, projects, studies and upcoming research this year includes Media Synergy, which combines Nielsen Adex data with the GFK consumer scanner panel sales of 3000 representative South African shoppers. This clearly shows that when including print and online in a schedule the actual sales ROI per rand spent is better than TV or radio.

Other upcoming surveys for 2017 include Brand Mapp from WhyFive and Media View by TNS Kantar which will examine the inherent strengths of reading vs other media due for release in April.

Our major study for 2017, will be PAMS, a new reading currency survey in SA conducted by Nielsen, incorporating global best practice, due for release in the Sept 2017.

Based along the lines of similar panels like PAMCO in the UK and EMMA in Australia the PRC will begin development of their own panel in 2017. This mobile panel is envisaged to reach around 16 000 respondents in year one. Results will be calibrated and validated against the traditional PAMS face to face methodology before release.

“Publishers have accepted the need to move away from measuring exposure to paper, towards measuring platform-agnostic reading behaviour which can be seen in the ES and PAMS reading questions,” says Langschmidt. “Most of our research will closely follow the release of the two waves of the ES 2017.”

“We will ensure the most complete measurement of reader audiences, across all platforms, to inform effective advertising investment, unlike in the past, when reader research provided advertisers with only the numbers. In 2017 the PRC will be releasing six different studies that provide the audience numbers; but in addition, many other measures like perception, trust, multiple exposures, brand awareness and recall, and actual ROI per rand spent.”

If advertising return is important to you, just like offers to purchase, contracts, exams, certificates and bank statements, and if you want your target market to notice and respond to your campaign, put it in writing.

For additional information and reading research visit www.prc.za.com.