The Galway Advertiser has maintained its position as the most read newspaper in both Galway city and county, according to an independent readership survey carried out in the area in the past few weeks.
The survey, undertaken by top market research company Red C copperfastens the Advertiser's position as the most-read regional newspaper in the city and county. The findings, however, make disturbing reading for local paid-for newspapers as it shows their readership has declined significantly since the last similar poll was carried out five years ago.
In Galway city, 94 per cent of those interviewed by Red C said that they had read the latest edition of the Galway Advertiser, a readership figure well ahead of other free local newspapers and almost twice as high as the readership of local paid-for newspapers in the city.
The surveys have confirmed that paid-for newspapers in Galway City have experienced a significant decline in weekly readership since 2008.
In Galway county, three out of every four of those surveyed said they had read the most recent edition of the Galway Advertiser, well ahead of other local newspapers. In the county, the highest selling paid-for newspaper had less than half the weekly readership of the Galway Advertiser.
Red C previously carried out an intensive survey into local readership behaviour in Galway in 2008 which showed that the Advertiser was the stand-out performer, having one of the highest readership penetrations in the entire country — and the latest findings show that the Advertiser is still by far the most widely read newspaper in both city and county.
The results though show a dramatic fall in readership for paid-for newspapers with thousands of customers opting to no longer pay for a weekly newspaper in the city and county.
The survey findings have been welcomed by Advertiser managing director Peter Timmins who said he wished to thank the people of Galway City and County for their loyalty to The Advertiser over the last number of years. "With a readership of 94 per cent in Galway City, The Galway Advertiser is the most widely read local newspaper in Ireland, and combined with a readership in County Galway of three in every four people, no paper in the country comes close to matching The Advertiser's penetration of the market", Mr Timmins added. Over 220,000 people in Galway City and County read The Advertiser every week, and it remains the paper of choice for the vast majority of those in Galway who wish to keep up to date with what is going on in their communities, and also for those who wish to buy and sell in any business area”
Mr Timmins also thanked the staff of the Galway Advertiser for continuing to provide such a popular publication to the people of Galway.
Respondents to the survey also gave their opinions on various aspects of local newspaper readership and media consumption in the greater Galway area. Since 2008, a higher number of readers have been accessing their local news and information from digital platforms, with the Red C survey showing that a large proportion of readers get their 24/7 breaking news and information from www.advertiser.ie and social media sites such as the Galway Advertiser Facebook page.
This independent survey was conducted by Red C in Galway city and county. The poll used a quantitative telephone methodology among 250 respondents living in Galway. Quotas were set to ensure the sample was representative of the population dynamics of Co Galway by gender, age, and social class while also including the correct proportion of city:county proportions. Quotas were set based on CSO 2011 Data.
In total, 250 people were polled, giving a 6.3 per cent margin of error on the sample. RED C is a member of AIMRO (Association of Irish Market Research Organisations ), ESOMAR (European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research ) and the MRS (Market Research Society ) and abides by the professional guidelines for conducting high quality research and polling set out by all these organisations.
