Quantitative audience research

What is it?
This is a form of research that is about gathering the opinions of your audience. This can
be done through questioners and surveys. Quantitative research is when media
producers gather information in large amounts. They do this by collecting information
from surveys of large groups, it is usually represented numerically and is often presented
in the form of tables charts and diagrams. Both primary and secondary research
techniques can produce quantitative data. This includes such things as ratings,
circulation figures and market analysis, as well as the counting and measuring of items or
space in a content analysis of a media product. For example if you were a producer for
channel four and they wanted to run a pilot of a new show and it featured a famous actor
for example, you could go and ask for peoples opinions face to face.
Quantitative research is a method use by documentary producers to define their target
audience. This method allows TV producers to define their target audience and allows to
see TV viewing figures.
The techniques used are mail surveys, telephone surveys, internet surveys and face to
face public surveys. You want to profile a target audience by determining what proportion
of the audience has certain behaviours, behavioural intentions, attitudes, and knowledge
related to the health concern, and whether specific determinants predict behaviours at a
statistically significant level.

Pros and cons?

For example, like a qualative research methods, surveys can include more visual
material, for example face to face interviews is more reliable than online, as the person
doesnt have as long to think of a response which means its more reliable. Surveys can
be anonymous, which is useful for sensitive topics. When the survey involves a
statistically valid random sample, the results from the sample can be generalized to the
entire population if the response rate is high enough. Quantitative research is cheap and
easy to distribute and collect data, which helps speed up the researching process.
The cons are that it is sometimes hard to find a significant number of participants in
order to gather enough information.

What type of media producer would produce it?

As I stated above, executive producers would normally use this type of research to help
them get a perspective from the audiences point of view about a television show or film
that is in pre-production.

Qualative audience research

Qualitative research produces information on peoples opinions, views and preferences

about something. Again, both primary and secondary research techniques can produce
qualitative data, and it is often very important within the media industry as it is used to
find out what individuals and groups think and feel about a particular advertisement, fi
lm or television programme, for example. Depending on the nature of the research and
the types of questions asked, it is not always possible to analyse the resulting
information statistically, particularly if the responses are personal and subjective
Qualative research is a great way of gathering information about what people are
thinking and how they feel, but cannot tell you how many of your audience feel or think
that way.
Qualitative research results are considered thought of as themes, they should not be
reported as percentages, subjected to statistical analysis or projected to a broader
population. Thats because the participants do not make up a randomly selected
representative sample, the samples are relatively small, and not all participants are
asked precisely the same questions. Even if you conduct a lot of qualitative research, you
wont get findings that enable you to say that most members of your target audience
understand or feel or experience the same things. For that, you need quantitative
research.

Pros and cons

The pros of qualative research include getting more depth and detail from the public than
quantitative research. Often qualitative research is less expensive than quantitative
research, because you dont need to recruit as many participants or use extensive
methods. Offers flexibility as far as locations and timing, as you dont need to interview a
large number of people at once.
Cannot quantify how many of your audience answer one way or another and cannot
generalize your findings to your broader audience or the public in general.

What type of media producer would produce it?

This is very useful to a media producer as it allows them to find out information about the
publics opinion in more detail. It can also be considered as a safer method for defining
target audience as it gives you more fresh information from the public rather than
answers and figures from books or the internet that could be outdated.

Barb

What are they?

Broadcasters' Audience Research Board known as BARB, are an organisation that
compiles audience measurement and television rating in the Britain.

What do they do?

Television figures are important and, they are useful in assignments, BARB is a company
that tracts viewing figures of each household, they are useful to people and to the
channel company's, this helps the channel know what viewers like and what they dont
like. BARB have approximately 5,100 homes (equating to approximately 11,500
individuals), which mean they get a fair survey of what people watch. There are many
advantages of this system including, reliable data, accurate facts and statistics, a good
variety of people taking part.
Who uses it?
This would help media producers a great deal. Barb allows you to see the rating of any
show on any channel and what time it was broadcast, a producer would be looking for
the most popular channel and the peak time in which it gets many viewers. This would
then help the producer in a better chance of their programme getting more views than
other programmes therefore meaning there show would do better than others.

ABC
What are they?
ABC is the industry body of measurement for the media. ACB is a company that uses its
logo to satisfy viewers, as there logo is seen as a stamp of approval.
What do they do?
ABC are representatives from advertisers, media agencies, media owners and trade
bodies. They represent the differing interests of the media industry and meet regularly to
agree new standards for industry data and processes and to agree the strategy for ABC
as an organisation. They bring the industry together to agree measurement and process
Reporting Standards that define what counts and determine best practice. Reporting
Standards are constantly evolving to keep pace with industry developments. They offer
independent audit and compliance services, delivering certification which verifies that
data and processes meet industry reporting Standards.
Who uses it?
Media producers would use this because if you wanted to advertise have something
broadcast ABC can tell you the best channel it can be broadcast on. ABCs industry
Stamp of Trust underpins the way advertising is traded across the converging media
landscape in the UK and beyond. When you see the ABC logo you know that you are
looking at claims you can trust. They bring the industry together to agree measurement
and process Reporting Standards that define what counts and determine best practice.
Reporting Standards are constantly evolving to keep pace with industry developments.
We offer independent audit and compliance services, delivering certification which
verifies that data and processes meet industry reporting Standards.
http://www.slideshare.net/mattwako/how-media-producers-define-their-target-audience19065036http://www.orau.gov/cdcynergy/soc2web/Content/activeinformation/tools/toolsc
ontent/qualitativemethods.htm http://www.abc.org.uk/About-us/Who-we-are/