More and more print media titles enter the market every year. This applies to all print media segments: consumer magazines, trade magazines, customer journals and newspapers. With respect to financing and economics viability, all publications depend on advertising revenue, i.e. the selling of advertising space. In addition to circulation numbers, the main selling propositions include a proven readership structure, the target groups, as well as audience penetration and the coverage. The data of the ma (media analysis of the work-group media-analysis e.V. – ag.ma) are generally accepted as the “media coverage currency” in Germany. Therefore, new publications try to be included in the ma list as a basis for consideration in future media planning. This leads to a continuous increase in the number of magazine titles questioned in a ma-interview. Of the 88 consumer journals in the ma in 1980, the number has more than doubled to 183 titles in 2005. In addition to the journals there are also city magazines, TV supplements, religious press and daily newspapers. The proliferation in titles adds to the title load for the respondent and is accompanied by the phenomenon, that the average interview length has remained virtually unchanged at 48 minutes. It is therefore quite possible that both the reliability and the quality of the answers may suffer. To prevent this, new interview concepts are necessary to provide media coverage results for all titles on the one hand and a reduction of the load for the respondent on the other hand.
Symposium: 2005: Prague, Session 5 - Technical Problems and Solutions
Authors: Walter, Michael
Organisations: Gruner + Jahr AG & Co
Topics: Questionnaire Design