The Sunday Times

STM Evaluation

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Background

In 2004, after the launch of STM, research was conducted by Synovate to understand reader perceptions of STM and provide guidance for future development of STM.

More recently, STM has been relaunched as a glossy magazine with refreshed design and content.

As such, The Sunday Times were interested in revisiting reader attitudes and perceptions toward the new-look STM magazine.

Additionally in March 2007, the STM brand was extended to include STM Entertainment.

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Objectives – what was the research trying to achieve?

The overall objectives of this research were to: Understand future direction and development of STM. Use information internally to build business cases for potential advertisers and to reaffirm

current advertisers commitment to The Sunday Times.

Specifically, the research sought to answer the following: Understand how readers currently view STM.

Appeal – likes and dislikes. Product attributes. Areas for improvement.

Understand who reads STM.

Establish how readers are using STM. Longevity of magazines – how long does STM remain in the house? Frequency of use – how many times is STM referred back to?

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Methodology

A quantitative telephone survey was conducted for this survey. The survey was conducted with 300 people who read The Sunday Times at least once a

month. These people were classified as either: Regular readers: people who read The Sunday Times every week. Frequent readers: people who read The Sunday Times between 1 and 3 times out of

every 4 weeks.

Interviews were conducted between 8th and 17th of June 2007.

The results were weighted on the basis of gender.

Newspaper Readership

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Readership of The Sunday TimesQ: In the last 12 months, how often have you read The Sunday Times?

% of all respondentsn=570

52

5

7

8

4

4

3

3

14

0 50 100

Every week

3 out of every 4 weeks

2 out of every 4 weeks

1 out of every 4 weeks

Once every 2 months

Once every 3 months

Once every 6 months

Less often

Did not read

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Reasons to Buy/Read The Sunday Times

89

74

61

52

0 25 50 75 100

News

TV Guide

Sport

STM (gloss magazine)

n=300

% of STM readers

The top 4 purchase motivators are: News, TV Guide, Sport and STM

Q: Which of the following sections would you say are reasons for you to buy or read The Sunday Times?

Frequent and Regular Readers

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Readership of STM

Yes, have read it84%

No16%

Every time71%

Three out of four times8%

Two out of four times

12%One out of four times

7%

None2%

Q: Have you ever read STM?

% of all respondentsn=359 n=300

Q: Thinking about the last four times you bought or read The Sunday Times, how often did you read STM?

% of STM readers

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Referring back to STM

42

34

26

17

15

31

6

0 50 100

Feature articles

Donna Hay recipes

People profiles

Horoscopes

Fashion & beauty

Others

Don't know

Those who read STM every week are more likely to refer back to it. Feature articles were most referred back to, followed by the Donna Hay recipes.

n=124

Q: Which parts of STM do you normally refer back to?

% of STM readers who refer back to magazine

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Referring back to STMQ: How long does the copy of STM usually stay around in your home?

11

8

12

23

9

36

0 25 50 75 100

Sunday only (n=32)

Keep for one day ('til Monday)(n=25)

Keep for two-three days ('tilTues or Wed) (n=68)

Keep for four-five days ('tilThurs or Fri) (n=26)

Keep all week until thefollowing weekend (n=110)

Keep longer than a week(n=36)

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Household Readership of STM

22

27

9

16

13

3

28

2

0 50 100

Partner (wife)

Partner (husband)

Other adult male

Other adult female

Teenagers (13-19 years)

Children (under 13 years)

No one else

Don't know/can't say

28

49

15

3

3

<1

<1

0 50 100

1 person

2 people

3 people

4 people

5 people

6 people

7 people

Q: Who else in your household has ever read STM, as far as you know?

% of STM readers

In 72% of households, more than one person reads the STM, typically a partner.

n=300

Q: What is the total number of people in your household who have read STM, as far as you know?

Attitudes and Perceptions of STM

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Attitudes Toward STM

59

56

61

59

78

74

77

0 50 100

% of STM readers

78% believe they can always find something of interest to them in STM, while 59% of people agree that STM is better in a glossy format.

Q: To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statements about STM?

n=300

The style & use of photographs in STM is of a high quality

STM has strong WA content

STM always has something of interest to me

STM is even better now it is a glossy magazine

STM reflects WA's lifestyle

STM is one of my favourite sections of The Sunday Times

STM has relevant stories to me

* Significantly more women than men

Profiling STM Readers

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Profile of STM Readers

94

80

79

78

70

73

54

38

0 25 50 75 100

% of STM readers who agree

I live a full & busy life

I believe quality is more important than price

I am always ready to try new & different products

It is important to have a full social life

STM Readers WA Population

WA Population Source: Roy Morgan Readership Survey, 12 months to March 2007

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Profile of STM Readers

66

55

52

67

55

37

42

35

0 25 50 75 100

% of STM readers who agree

I try to look stylish

I look for new experiences every day

I enjoy clothes shopping

I keep up-to-date with new ideas toImprove my home

STM Readers WA Population

WA Population Source: Roy Morgan Readership Survey, 12 months to March 2007

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Profile of STM Readers

STM’s core demographic is 25-44 year olds

25-44 year olds are more likely to buy The Sunday Times just to get a copy of STM

25-44 year olds spend more time reading STM

25-44 year olds have greater associations with the magazine than those in other age groups

25-44 year olds have a greater overall attachment to the magazine

Conclusions

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STM continues to improve

Since 2004, STM continues to improve in popularity with The Sunday Times readers:

84% have read it (an increase from 40% in 2004).

71% read it the last four times they read The Sunday Times (an increase from 54% in 2004).

56% agree STM is one of their favourite sections of The Sunday Times (an increase from 49% in 2004).

The magazine is perceived as interesting, entertaining and informative.

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Women

Women are more likely to purchase The Sunday Times just to get a copy of STM.

It is one of their favourite sections of the newspaper.

They are more likely to read it every week.

They find the magazine more interesting, relevant and inspirational than men.

Their favourite sections are Feature stories / Articles, Perth Confidential, Donna Hay recipes, Letters and Fashion and Beauty.

The introduction of the Donna Hay revised format recipe section is proving a success:

Apart from Feature articles it is the section most referred back to.

It is the most popular section, read every time by two thirds of all readers (including men).

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It’s hitting the target market (25-44 yr olds)

STM appears to be well marketed to 25-44 year olds :

More likely to read Feature Stories, Donna Hay recipes and Book Extracts (than those who are younger).

More likely to read Fashion and Beauty and Wine Reviews (than those who are older).

More likely to buy The Sunday Times just to get a copy of STM.

Spend more time reading STM.

They have much greater associations with the magazine than those in other age groups.

They are much more attached to the magazine.

The Sunday Times

STM Evaluation

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