IN an industry that is data-driven and yet operates mostly on guesstimates, there being no Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABC) to provide the necessary data for press advertising, Zus Bureau has come to the rescue with the introduction of a new package aimed at providing the much-needed data for newspaper selection.Tagged Newspaper Popularity Check (NPC), the pilot study focuses on peoples' preferences for newspapers when placing obituary and congratulatory messages.In a chat with journalists, the Chief Executive of Zus Bureau and immediate past chairman of Advertising Practitioners' Council of Nigeria (APCON), Mr. Chris Doghudje, revealed that the pilot study carried out in June 2012 showed the overall popularity ratings of nine newspapers via the number of published insertions of obituary and congratulatory messages for that month. He mentioned the newspapers used to include The Guardian, ThisDay, Punch, Vanguard, Tribune, Sun, Champion, Daily Trust, and The Nation.He pointed out that he coordinated the study because the industry lacked data to provide the much needed information that media planners require to reach out to the correct target audience, he asked: 'Have you ever wondered what peoples' choices of newspapers would be if they had the chance to choose where to place their press insertions' Also have you ever wondered what parameters they would use' Finally, have you ever wondered what lessons the professionals could learn from peoples' choice of newspapers''Doghudje, who is a believer in research-based information for media decisions, said the findings of the maiden edition of the NPC were very revealing as they showed: the favourite newspaper nationally; the favourite newspaper among the Yorubas; the favourite newspaper among the Ibos; the favourite newspaper among the Hausas/Northerners; and the favourite newspaper among the South-Southerners.According to him, the findings reveal that the nationally favourite in quantity of insertions is not necessarily the favourite in all the four zones or tribal/cultural groups. 'It is only the national favourite plus the favourite among people of only one tribal group. This means that it may not be enough to choose only that newspaper to effectively reach the newspaper readers in the country. You would also discover from the findings that the 'old brigade' favourite newspapers in some tribal/zonal areas are not the favourites of today.'He asserted that the findings were not rule of thumb as they were backed by clear facts and figures in simple tables and charts, thus serving as a very reliable newspaper selection guide for newspaper planners and buyers.'For verification purposes, the study has an appendix, which contains details of all the insertions in the study,' he said.If Zus Bureau's claim is correct, the NPC certainly is a must-read and daily companion for advertisers, advertising agencies, media specialist agencies and advertisement managers of newspapers. Others who would find it useful are embassies, high commissions and UN agencies in the country such as UNESCO and UNICEF. Others are the ministries of information and the information attaches in Nigerian embassies.It would be recalled that in 2009, Zus Bureau, in conjunction with other stakeholders, published Newspaper Circulation Check as an alternative to the non-available ABC.Copies of this rare insight into newspaper preferences of the various tribal groups in Nigeria are now available at Zus Bureau Limited, 12, Ilorin Street, off Adelabu Street, Surulere, Lagos.
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