> How many diaries (or how much of a percentage) is necessary
> in order to get sound, reliable data from RRC/Arbitron for
> non comms?
>
> If you use RRC data, how many diaries did they report to you
> as having been relative to your station?
>
> Is there a suggested minimum number of diary responses a
> station should look for before placing too much trust in the
> research outcome? Or is it "research is research.
> regardless." ??
RRC and Arbitron data are one in the same. RRC only re-distributes information/research that Arbitron has collected. (Could not tell from your post if you were in on that, or whether you thought RRC and Arbitron offered completely different information
.
We use RRC in a mid-sized market and a small market. In the small market, we generally see more success at a minimum of 60 diaries attributed to our station. When there is a ratings period where fewer than 60 mention us, we usually see declines in our numbers. ALTHOUGH, the amount of diaries we get or lack is directly related to response rates.
For example, in our target demo Arbitron had nearly 50% fewer diaries returned to them compared to every other demographic they heard from. Fewer diaries returned meant that we had a smaller chance of doing well simply because the odds of getting equal mentions in our target demo vs. the rest of the age groups went way down.
In our mid-sized market, our diary count fluctuates too but not as drastically as in the small market. No matter how many diaries mention us, our ratings generally stay steady. I'm guessing that's because the sample is so much larger that Arbitron can adjust accordingly when one group or another does not respond at their ideal level.
