No range values in future without Net-Metrix
Internet research If the online industry gives Net-Metrix the cold shoulder, it will be sawing off its own branch. Because then it lacks the reach values.
register," Wemf director René Schmutz and Manuel Dähler advertise,
Head of the SRG Research Service (FD), currently responsible for the new
Internet Research.
At an event on June 8 in Zurich, the appeal was further
more insistent: "Let the plane finally take off, we can
afterwards still about the condition of the seat covers and other details
Wemf Director René Schmutz called out to the 50 or so people present.
website operators and other representatives of the online industry. He
invited them to register by June 30 on the Wemf website as a
Participants of Net- Metrix to register. Because after this period
definitely decided whether the plane can take off Net-Metrix, or whether
there is another launch abort - as happened at the end of 2005.
One thing the event in Zurich showed, to which Wemf and FD invited
especially the operators of small websites are affected by the
not at all convinced of participation in Net-Metrix. The problem
is not a lack of will, but two solid reasons: Happy
Additional costs and lack of education.
Speaking of costs, the additional burden for operators of small websites is
actually not to be underestimated. According to the current Wemf offer
for Net-Audit and Net-Profile the following can be roughly said:
A small website that so far collects its hits via Net-Audit
and paid perhaps 10,000 Swiss francs a year for it, must be
In the future, Net-Audit and Net-Profile together will cost around three times the
for the money. And what does it get in return? A measured range, also
for smaller sites, in single currency and in addition
socio-demographic information about the users. Some site operators
However, it does not seem to be clear that this only results from the connection
of Net-Audit and Net-Profile is to be had. There is an either-or
not.
Confusion of terms when it comes to reach
But is the new range worth the extra cost? From the point of view of some
Website operator it is not, as can be seen from some votes on June 8.
clearly emerged. Thus, many a speaker expressed that he felt that the
value Unique Client from the Net-Audit is not only fully satisfactory, but
that he also considers it to be his range. But this also made
clear that there is a confusion of terms in the industry in terms of
range prevails, which could have a fatal effect: Many a
Site operators could be tempted to continue dealing only with
Net Audit and the Unique Client value as the supposed reach to
be content.
This would not only jeopardize new Internet research, but the
site operators will also be of little use. Because from 2007, Wemf will be at
Net-Audit no longer publishes unique clients - in order to avoid the
range salad, as René Schmutz announced.
But what is the confusion of terms? In the fact that the value Unique
Client means only the PCs from which a website is accessed.
will be. However, Net-Audit does not make any statements about the person(s) behind it.
Disclosures. However, since the reach of a website by definition is only
Includes persons who, in a given period of time, have at least one
contact chance with the website in question, it is clear that Unique
client is no good as a range value.
No more MA Comis
In the online sector, there is definitely a valid reach value -
that from the MA Comis. However, this study has the disadvantage of being
is only collected once a year and through surveys. In addition
small sites barely keep up. Add to this the fact that the industry will soon also be
will lose reach value: Wemf has all the
MA-Comis contracts terminated as of the end of March 2006, it will consequently be
no MA Comis 2006 published. "We wanted to set an example with this",
Schmutz says on request. And it was also a matter of
to save clients of MA Comis unnecessary costs.
Unnecessary then, if Net-Metrix comes to fly. But what if this
is not the case? On such a discussion dirt may currently
not get involved. But one thing is clear: The industry would then be completely without
range there, and all bridges would be demolished. This risk are
few are aware of it. Whether it has been communicated sufficiently remains
remains to be seen.
The Net-Metrix model in brief
The Net-Audit web statistics form the basis of the new
Research Model. In Net-Audit, the PC accesses to all the
participating websites measured. However, these data do not allow
Statements about the number of people who use a website, nor about
the profile of the users.
It is precisely this gap that the new Net-Profile Internet study is designed to fill.
can be closed. Net-Profile complements the data measured by Net-Audit
data with an onsite survey to provide sociodemographic information on
the users of the individual websites. Net-Profile will
Reliable reach and structural data for media planning
deliver.
Net-Audit and Net-Profile are complemented by the Net-Tracking module.
Net-Tracking is a panel that tracks the Internet usage of about 3000
Panelists recorded - at home, at work, and elsewhere. The
Data from net tracking can be used strategically to, for example.
identify new trends in Internet use.
Markus Knöpfli
