NRS Records 20% Increase In London Response Rate

The National Readership Survey has recorded a 20% increase in its London response rate following the introduction of initiatives, such as a scheme of financial incentives for respondents.

Introduced in September 2006, the NRS says that the incentive scheme is designed to help it meet the particular challenges facing major surveys in London, where the increase in secure housing, longer working hours, and changing social attitudes have made it increasingly difficult to recruit respondents.

NRS now gives a store voucher worth £25 to every respondent in Greater London completing the NRS interview. In the seven months following the introduction of incentives (September 2006 – March 2007), the average overall response rate in Greater London was 37.7%, compared to an average of 31.3% in the 12 months preceding the introduction of incentives, an increase of 20%.

In the rest of Great Britain, where no financial incentive has been introduced, the response rate has remained largely unchanged at around 52%.

The three major NRS stakeholders (IPA, NPA and PPA) have approved a programme of response rate initiatives for 2007, such as the London incentive scheme, and a scheme in London and the south-east for mailing a self-completion questionnaire to potential respondents who were not available to complete the standard interview.

Roger Pratt, managing director, NRS Ltd, said: “NRS and our stakeholders have embarked on an energetic programme designed to enhance and improve the survey over time. The results of this latest initiative are a great endorsement of that approach.”

In May, the NRS announced an experimental programme to produce UK audience figures for publishers’ websites (see NRS To Produce Readership Figures For Publishers’ Websites).

NRS: 020 7242 8111 www.nrs.co.uk