Textile Services’ Magazine Study Shows Value
TRSA recently received results from the latest online survey of Textile Services readers. The findings underscored the value that this publication provides both to advertisers and the industry at large.
Nearly 160 readers completed the online study conducted by Signet Research, Cliffside Park, NJ. The company’s AdStudy® survey asked readers to comment anonymously on each display ad in the July issue. Specifically, readers were asked if they recalled seeing and/or reading the ad. They then were given an opportunity to comment on the ad itself and the effectiveness of its message.
The survey also asked readers about their positions at textile service companies (only operator subscribers were surveyed) and whether they authorized or recommended purchases of various goods required by commercial laundries. The survey confirmed that 12% of the respondents to this survey identified themselves as “Owner/President/CEO/COO.” Sixteen percent said they were either “Vice President/General Manager,” and 15% said they were “Plant Manager/Production Manager/Director of Operations.” Another 15% described themselves as “Engineer.” Out of the entire pool of respondents, more than 82% said they are involved in recommending, specifying, approving or purchasing a range of goods from machinery to textiles, hangers, carts, chemicals, uniforms, wastewater treatment systems and more.
As they reviewed each ad in July’s issue, many readers also clicked a box that asked for additional information from the vendor who sponsored that ad. This generated a total of 216 leads for advertisers in this latest survey alone. Click here for details. The large number of clicks comes as no surprise since roughly 73% of the survey respondents said they’d taken one or more actions on behalf of their company in the past year as a result of reading an article or ad in Textile Services.
While the survey didn’t address specific articles in the July issue, respondents did get the opportunity to comment on the magazine generally and its value as an educational tool and information source for the textile services industry. These responses were overwhelmingly positive. A typical survey respondent said, “Textile Services is an irreplaceable resource.” Another wrote that, “The articles are a learning guide and the advertisers have saved the company in different ways.”
As we’ve confirmed from previous surveys, readers of Textile Services dedicate significant time to this publication. On average, readers in this latest survey said they spend 41 minutes with each issue. They also “pass along” each issue of the magazine to several colleagues so that, on average, five different people read each copy.
One question that these surveys seek to answer is which ads in a given issue had the greatest impact on readers. Signet Research does this by measuring each ad in terms of its “AdStudy Score.” That figure is determined by adding the combined percentages of respondents who said they either recalled seeing or reading the ad in the July issue prior to taking the survey.
Based on this calculation, the top-scoring ads in the July issue include:
- Brim Laundry Machinery Co. Inc.: 138
- ARCO/Murray National Construction Co. Inc.: 132
- Gurtler Industries Inc.: 125
- Leonard Automatics: 122
- Mountville Mills Inc.: 122
For questions about the AdStudy, or to learn more about Textile Services advertising programs, readers may contact Sr. Editor Jack Morgan at 877.770.9274 or jmorgan@trsa.org. They also may contact their ad representative. If you’re not sure who that is, contact Morgan or TRSA’s Mary Beth Porter at mporter@trsa.org or by using the phone number shown above.
A final note to advertisers: If you didn’t participate in our July survey, don’t worry! Textile Services’ next survey is slated for our February 2015 issue. For that month, Signet will run its AdBrand® study, which will assess the effectiveness of advertising, including reader attitudes toward a company’s brand image. Any advertiser with a full or fractional-page display ad in our February issue will qualify for inclusion in this study.