Hitwise Intelligence - Heather Hopkins - UK
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March 22, 2007
Newspaper Audience Comparison Online v Offline - News & Media Report Post 3 of 3
How does the profile of offline readers of newspapers compare with online readers? This is the question I will address in this third of three posts on our recent News and Media Report. First, I will compare the lifestyle profile of visitors to Print Media websites with those that take a broadsheet newspaper on a daily basis offline. Then I will compare the online and offline readers of the top 5 newspaper websites: Telegraph, The Sun, Guardian Unlimited, Times Online and Daily Mail.
The lifestyle data and offline readership data is provided through our partnership with Experian, using MOSAIC profiles. The lifestyle quadrant analysis below illustrates that for the most part, the groups that are most likely to read a broadsheet newspaper offline are also most highly represented on Print Media websites. These groups tend to be the higher income groups without young children.
For example, The group Urban Intelligence makes up a large percentage of visits and are overindexed on print media websites. They are also more likely than the average for the offline population to take a broadsheet daily newspaper. This group represents a strength for print media websites.
The analysis also illustrates that there are opportunities for Print Media websites to diversify their online audience by targeting lower income groups, groups with younger children and those in the Group Rural Isolation group which have a high propensity to read an offline daily broadsheet but that are under-represented on Print Media websites. This insight can help newspapers determine online content and target offline advertising.
Profile of Leading Print Media Websites
For the top 5 Print Media websites, we also compared the online and offline audiences by comparing online index representation and for each group to take the newspaper offline. We found that The Telegraph and Guardian Unlimited websites attract the same readers online as offline whilst those for The Sun, Times Online and Daily Mail attract a much broader online audience.
On the diagram below, the groups above the diagonal line are more likely to read the Telegraph newspaper offline whilst the groups below the line have a higher propensity to read the paper online. The analysis illustrates that the Telegraph's strengths offline and online are with Rural Isolation, Grey Perspectives, Suburban Comfort and Urban Intelligence.
The diagram below plots the same information, but for The Sun - and the difference between the two diagrams is immediately apparent. The Sun, whilst underindexed with some higher income and family segments offline, seems to attract these readers online. In particular, Suburban Comfort, Urban Intelligence and Happy Families are either at the average of 100 or slightly overindexed online, whilst underindexed offline. This indicates that groups that are less likely to pick up The Sun from the newsstand are more likely to visit the website.
A similar pattern is evident with The Times and The Daily Mail, with these newspaper websites attracting a new audience online.
Why the difference?
It seems that The Guardian and Telegraph have loyal readers who follow them online. Also, the political persuasion of these two publications is well known and so consumers might be less likely to change allegiance. I have a hunch, this also has something to do with people not wanting to be seen on the Tube with The Sun, but being happy to enjoy the content (read page 3 girl).
Another theory that was proposed to me is that The Sun is very strong in fantasy football and this may be helping them to reach new audiences. However, our data indicates that visitors to the Fantasy Football area of the site draw from the traditional Sun audience.
Feel free to comment on my theory!
Post 1: Digg Fastest Growing News & Media Website
Posted by Heather Hopkins at 02:21 PM
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Comments
Hi
I sometimes look at the Sun website. Not for the Tits, just to see what it's saying as it's so important. Things like their changing attitude to Race and Gays is interesting as well as what campaigns they're running (same with the Mail).
I'd be 'urban intelligence' (though something about that statement sounds oh so wrong)!
cheers
paul canning
Posted by: paul canning at April 1, 2007 05:54 AM
This grazing behaviour can be explained by visitors taking the best of each product. Although a 'natural' Guardian/Times reader, the Telegraph offers a better news experience in many fields. And no-one does celebrity coverage like the sun!
Posted by: Herrison at April 2, 2007 05:26 AM
