Telegraph To Conduct Times Readership Research

The Daily Telegraph is to undertake research into the sectional readership of the Times and the Sunday Times. The study of its rival’s readers’ habits follows the successful survey into readership of the Daily Telegraph‘s own sections earlier this year (see Daily Telegraph To Provide Sections Readership). It is hoped that the results will provide advertisers with more detailed information into Times and Sunday Times readership patterns.

The group plans to repeat research into its own titles to show the effects of seasonal change, and to question Times readers at the same time. It will send out 20,000 questionnaires to two different groups: those who buy three or more copies of the Telegraph or Sunday Telegraph each week and those who buy 3 or more copies of the Times or Sunday Times weekly. Those who buy both newspapers regularly will be filtered out.

When it began its research earlier this year the Telegraph revealed some surprising results about the readership of its sections and questioned the fact that this level of research had not been carried out before. The National Readership Survey (NRS) is still struggling to increase its own supplement research. Although NRS has improved its coverage from nine sections to 21 over the last 18 months, it is still in negotiations to consider how best to expand this figure.

Chris White-Smith, display ad director at the Telegraph said: “The timing is now right to further our research. We received a positive response the first time, with over 40% replying to our questionnaires. Now we are back by popular demand.”

The Telegraph: 0171 538 5000 National Readership Survey: 0171 632 2915