Internet marketing research firm Jupiter Research issued a report today that it says "reveals growing preference for online news at the expense of TV and newspapers." In a note commenting on his company's report, Jupiter VP and Senior Analyst David Card tells Poynter Online: "I think the interpretation of this data could be pretty positive for local papers. I'd recommend, for instance, that a local paper invest modestly in its online local entertainment coverage as a way to steal young adult market share from TV or the local alternative paper. It's probably more cost effective than launching a free tabloid." When Card says "local papers," we think he means "daily papers." Read the Poynter column here.
Potential advertisers in alternative newsweeklies want to know not only how many people their promotions will reach but what types of people. How old? How educated? How rich? To supply answers, publishers of AAN papers rely on firms that do market comparisons and readership surveys. But, sometimes, research techniques don't quite deliver what publishers are looking for.