Research tools provide Time, Inc. timely research results

By Quirk's Staff | August 1, 1987

Reading time: 4 minutes

Abstract

Time, Inc. has found that timely market research is necessary to stay on top of the highly competitive publishing industry. Senior analyst Bill Protash employs a variety of software tools to analyze and present surveys in an effective and timely manner.

Research Topics:: Data Analysis | Quantitative Research | Software-Automated Reporting | Software-Comprehensive Stat. Pkg. | Software-Data Analysis | Software-Data Tabulation | Software-Survey Design & Analysis
Industry/Market Focus:: Media | Newspapers/Magazines | Publishing
Content Type: Case Study

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In the highly competitive magazine publishing industry, Time, Inc. is one of the undisputed leaders. In the Folio: 400, an annual listing of the top revenue-generating magazines, Time, Inc.'s publications consistently are at the top. For example, in the most recent release of this list, three of the company's magazines - Time, People, and Sports Illustrated - are in the top five of all magazines published. Its other publications - Fortune, Money, Life and Discover - are in the top five of their respective markets.

To help maintain their magazines' leadership positions, Time, Inc.'s publishers and editors keep their fingers on the pulse of their readership. The company's circulation research department assists in this endeavor by conducting more than 50 readership surveys per year. These surveys provide publishers and editors with valuable information to help them continue to make their publications among the best in the industry.

Need for timeliness

According to Bill Protash, senior analyst in Time, Inc.'s circulation research department, "The two key issues in our readership surveys are accuracy and timeliness. Because our surveys generate thousands and thousands of responses, our analyses and reporting tools must be highly efficient."

To analyze and report the results of Time, Inc.'s surveys, Protash uses three major software tools: SPSS-X, SPSS-X Tables, and SPSS Graphics. Time, Inc. runs these packages under the IBM MVS/TSO operating system.

"When I came to Time, Inc. three years ago, the company already had a data analysis package in place," Protash says. "I had had experience with that package, but insisted on bringing in SPSS. The main reason was that it is much faster, provides cleaner results, and requires less time entering commands than the other package."

Survey analysis

Once a request for a survey comes into the circulation research department from a magazine publisher or editor, Protash and his staff design and write a survey that will best answer the questions management has asked.

When the surveys are returned by readers, Protash assigns an outside data entry organization to enter the data into a computer readable format. This data is given to Protash on magnetic tape, and the analysis begins.

"We use a large variety of multivariate procedures in SPSS-X to run our analysis," explains Protash. "We are looking for trends and attitudes among our subscribers to see what factors drive their purchase of magazines. We also look for significant differences among subscriber groups to help us determine what they are looking for in the magazines they read."

So that Time, Inc.'s management can react to these trends in a timely fashion, it is extremely important that the analysis is done rapidly. "We can perform the survey analysis very quickly because the writing of the SPSS-X job is easy and straightforward, and the program itself is quick in processing the information," Protash says.

"Perhaps even more important is the rapid production of preliminary and final reports. To help ensure that publishers and editors can get as much information as possible in a concise way, we prepare reports containing a large number of tables."

To generate these tables, Protash uses SPSS-X Tables. "Before we had that option, table production for reports was the slowest step in the process. Clerical staff would have to type the tables manually into a word processor from the output of the analysis. We would then have to proof-read each table carefully, making sure every last decimal point was accurate. Then, the clerical staff would have to go back into the word processor to make revisions, and we would have to proofread the tables all over again." With SPSS-X Tables, the data is read in directly from SPSS-X, and the tables are formatted quickly. Because Protash is able to generate the tables directly from original data, they are guaranteed to be accurate.

"As an even greater time saver, I can save my tables in an output file, and merge them right away into my word processing software to appear in the appropriate places in the reports that we generate," Protash adds. "Formatting is quick and easy, and the information presented is accurate."

Prior to having this capability, Protash estimates that it took at least 10 to 15 hours just to produce the tables for the reports. With the Tables option, he has reduced the report generation time by at least one-tenth the time it took previously.

Good visual presentation

Perhaps more than anyone, magazine publishers and editors know the importance of good visual presentation. Therefore, Protash relies heavily on graphs and charts to present the survey results in a clear and concise manner.

Protash says, "The graphics component provides some of the best output of any graphics product I have seen. Its three-dimensional effects are excellent, and its type styles and titling capabilities are superior."

In addition, the system offers Protash dramatic time-savings. "A clear advantage of SPSS Graphics is that it can read SPSS-X files," he says. "This eliminates the time-consuming step of typing data into the package. In addition, it guarantees accurate output because there is no risk of entering the data incorrectly."

Timely information

The flexibility and power of SPSS-X, SPSS-X Tables, and SPSS Graphics has allowed Time, Inc.'s publishers and editors to get the information they need about their readership quickly. Its management's commitment to market research has helped keep Time, Inc.'s magazines in industry-leading positions.

Editors note: SPSS-X is a data analysis package that runs on all major mainframes and minicomputers. It contains a comprehensive range of advanced statistical analysis and modeling procedures well-suited to all types of survey analysis. SPSS-X Tables, an option to the SPSS-X system, displays the results of analyses or summarized data in several presentation-quality formats, including complex stub and banner tables. SPSS Graphics is an easy-to-use interactive system for the creation of presentation and business graphics for mainframe and minicomputers. These three major software tools are available through SPSS, Inc., Chicago.