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Europe’s elite want the best of both worlds

Despite welcoming digital media with open arms into their busy lifestyles, the business elite in Europe refuse to let old habits die hard and they continue to seek out trusted news and information from traditional TV and print platforms, writes Jenni Baker

The adoption of digital media is becoming an increasingly important part of the European business elite's lifestyle, yet it isn't at the expense of traditional media.

This year’s BE:Europe results show that 95% of business leaders still utilise print and 86% watch TV on a daily basis. Ipsos MediaCT director James Torr confirms that digital is supplementing their use of print and TV. “With the availability of information increasing, the business elite are using digital to help them pool relevant information from numerous sources and keep up-to-date while on the move,” says Torr.

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The Financial Times (FT) maintains the top spot among the dailies with an average issue readership (AIR) of 15%, down just 0.3% from 2010. “The FT has yet again proven to be a crucial source of business news for decision-makers in their regions,” says FT global commercial director and deputy chief executive Ben Hughes.

The Wall Street Journal Europe (WSJE), International Herald Tribune and USA Today follow with AIRs of 2.6%, 1.8% and 1.8% respectively.

“The WSJE's story is one of continued momentum in the region, underlining our strength in global and regional coverage,” says WSJ marketing director for Europe John Illing.

The Economist leads the weeklies with an AIR of 14.1%, up from 13.3%. Time and Newsweek complete the top three.

Harvard Business Review remains the most-read monthly title among the business elite with an AIR of 10.6%. It is followed by National Geographic with an AIR of 9.8%, up from 8.1%. Euromoney, Bloomberg Markets and Scientific American round off the top five with AIRs of 3.5%, 2.9% and 2.0% respectively.

“I see no significant changes in the AIR among international publications,” says National Geographic global media managing director of international advertising Charlie Attenborough. “As information seekers, the business elite trust and respect the editorial in international media beyond any other.”

On the TV front, sport is still a key audience driver. Eurosport holds on to the top spot, with a weekly reach of 20.4%. “I think one of the major findings of the BE:Europe survey is that sport is still the dominant audience driver among business leaders,” says Eurosport head of research Susi Thorimbert. “As with our successes in EMS, Eurosport is leading the pay-TV pack, and is one of the most powerful platforms in which advertisers can reach high earners.”

Sky News’ weekly reach has jumped from 17.3% to 18.9%. CNN International, BBC World News and Discovery Channel follow with a weekly reach of 16.1%, 14.1% and 12.2% respectively.

Linkedin.com and BBC.com emerge as the most popular websites, with a weekly reach of 28.2% and 19.5% respectively. The FT’s online offering (8.0%), Skynews.com (6.2%) and Bloomberg.com (4.1%) complete the top five online destinations.

“Together, the BBC’s TV and digital media reach almost a third of business leaders every month, a group that accounts for $1.6bn or 38% of Europe’s annual business expenditure,” says BBC World News and BBC.com senior audience insight manager, Joe Hall.

Business leaders across Europe continue to stand by their tested and trusted print and TV platforms as their main source of news and information. However, they are also willing to make the most of the new platforms on offer when it comes to keeping up-to-date when they are on the move.

Jenni Baker