We know you, do you know us?
We have a pretty good picture of who you, our readers, are, but do you know us or your neighbours?
The Springs Advertiser and African Reporter, part of Caxton Local Media, has 12 employees working across the two titles.
Although some of our employees work primarily on one or the other title, the entire team is charged with the well-being of both papers.
The ages and home languages of these 12 employees are as follows:
When we aren’t putting together your favourite weekly papers and websites, the staff enjoy a variety of hobbies, with reading, shopping, gardening, playing netball, listening to good music and watching movies top of their lists.
Spending time with their children and, in one case, watching them sing, is also a cherished pastime.
We know you
But we have some insight into our readers too.
Every three years, Caxton appoints Kantar to conduct independent market research to ensure the company’s papers are offering its readers the right content for the right market.
ROOTS (Readers Opinions, Opportunities, Trends, Shopping) is one of South Africa’s largest and longest-running consumer behaviour surveys.
According to their website kantar.com: “Kantar is home to some of the world’s leading research, data and insights expertise.”
The company does consumer research in over 100 countries worldwide.
In conducting interviews for this research, homes are selected using multi-stage cluster sampling, and purchase decision-makers are randomly selected for interviews.
Reading habits
The results of the most recent ROOTS, released last month, offer very promising news – both from an editorial and advertising perspective.
• 93 per cent of Springsites read the Springs Advertiser, with 78 per cent reading either three or four issues every month.
• 30 per cent of purchase decision-makers read each issue of the paper more than once.
• 83 per cent use adverts in the paper to help make shopping decisions.
• 72 per cent prefer adverting inserts in the paper, with only 28 per cent preferring to receive loose leaflets at home.
• 90 per cent read the inserts delivered in the Springs Advertiser.
• 89 per cent use the paper to plan their weekend shopping choices.
Our community
The majority of our community speaks one of three home languages: Afrikaans (34 per cent), English (32 per cent) and isiZulu (21 per cent).
A large portion of our decision-makers are between 35 and 49, with the age split above and below this age range being fairly balanced.
Like our staff, our readers have diverse interests, with 67 per cent listing at least one interest including gardening (15 per cent), food, cooking and baking (15 per cent), home and decor (14 per cent) and health and fitness (14 per cent).
Sixty-nine per cent consider themselves an expert in at least one of their areas of interest.
This was the first ROOTS survey done since the opening of the Springs Mall and 81 per cent of decision-makers shop at Springs Mall, with 59 per cent listing this as their favourite shopping centre for clothes and shoes.
The Mall@Carnival saw a slight increase in the number of Springsites shopping there (44 per cent), an increase of two per cent since the 2016 survey.
Our readers are prepared to travel only 17 minutes from home to buy a car, 13 minutes for DIY and home goods, 12 minutes for clothes and shoes and to find a good restaurant, and only 11 minutes for groceries.
Pet owners make up 50 per cent of the community, with dogs (47 per cent) preferred over cats (4 per cent) and 49 per cent have taken their pet to a vet in the past 12 months.
Looking good is important to our readers, with 86 per cent of women and 71 per cent of men paying to have their hair styled regularly.
Twenty per cent of men and 72 per cent of women pay to have facials, manicures or beauty treatments done regularly.
Our sales team is equipped with all the ROOTS information, allowing you to gain insight into your target market and make more informed decisions about your local marketing and media strategy.
Also read some of our top read stories over the past six months:
Motorists and pedestrians a target on N12
UPDATE: Girl murdered on Rhodes Street
Springs couple sentenced to 25 years
