Our Audience

The Evening Standard reaches an audience that are influential as well as being affluent.
From the corridors of Westminster to the heart of the City, the Evening Standard talks to opinion formers, setting the agenda for the capital, providing insight and comment on national, international and regional news through the focus of London.

The Standard is every Communication Director’s dream…it often sets the agenda for that day’s broadcast bulletins and the next day’s papers…it has a similar influence to Today on Radio 4….both outlets have a virtual monopoly on opinion formers' attention during their time slots

Torin Douglas | BBC Media Correspondent

Read by people in power with power

The ability of the Evening Standard to influence the political community should not be underestimated. The Evening Standard has long been a title associated with reaching people with real power. Data soon to be released will once again confirm the long term trend that in 2007 the Evening Standard is one of the best newspapers to reach Members of Parliament.

What will be the headline in the Standard...?

Jonathan Powell | email to Alastair Campbell relating to the publication of the dossier titled ‘Iraq’s Weapons of Mass Destruction: the assessment of the British Government’

Influence and Authority

In the last year, 13% of the Evening Standard’s AB Business audience have had an article, paper or book published – 21% more likely than the average UK AB Business person

Almost a quarter of our AB Business audience have acted as their company’s official spokesperson.

• The Evening Standard’s ability to attract Senior Business people can be seen by the prominence of the Business section within the newspaper, and is a reflection of the importance Business editorial holds with our readers
• The Evening Standard is the only quality newspaper with a Business section that forms an integral part of the front half, rather than a separate or back half section
• An award winning editorial team comprising of some of the most respected business writers in the industry deliver must read comment and analysis every day of the working week

Everyone in the business community has access to headline news through the Internet. What they don’t have is a wider understanding of the significance of events as they unfold. Our analysis and commentary adds that extra, vital ingredient. We tell readers what matters and why. That is the value we add.

Anthony Hilton

Effective Targeting of Business People

1 in 3 AB adults are Business readers - in national newspapers this is the highest ratio with the exception of the FT, however the Evening Standard reaches more Business People and Company Directors than the FT.

Urban Prosperity

London offers more – more growth, more culture, more opportunity and more wealth – these factors combine to make the city a very attractive place to both live and work.
As London’s population has grown, so has the media that serves it, with Londoners facing more media choice than anywhere else in the country.

Despite the abundance of media choice, the majority of which is free, the Evening Standard delivers a valuable audience that both actively self select it and are willing to pay for it. The Evening Standard’s audience reflect and are part of London’s affluence, a core audience that we have identified as the CACI’s Acorn Urban Prosperity group.
Putting Urban Prosperity into context:

• 1 in 10 of the national population are Urban Prosperity
• 3 in 10 of the London population are Urban Prosperity
• 6 in 10 of Evening Standard purchasers are Urban Prosperity

The Urban Prosperity group are hugely valuable to advertisers as they are educated, prosperous, wealthy, exclusive, professional, cosmopolitan and cultured.

Well educated and mostly prosperous people. They include both older and wealthy people living in the most exclusive parts of London and highly educated younger professionals moving up the corporate ladder.
These people have a cosmopolitan outlook and enjoy the urban lifestyle. They like to eat out in restaurants, go to the theatre and cinema and make the most of the culture and nightlife in the big city.

The Urban Prosperity group

In terms of spending power Urban Prosperity have a higher personal income than any other group, and as the points below highlight they spend more:

• 30% more on clothing
• 50% more on housing
• 30% more on transport
• 30% More on communication
• 25% more on culture

More than any other ACORN group including Wealthy Achievers.

The Evening Standard is read by an audience that are more likely to be in the Urban Prosperity group than any other national newspaper, an audience that earns more, spends more and has a propensity for premium goods, brands and services.


Source: BBS 2005. Premier TGI. MORI December 2005. NRS October 06 – March 07 Urban Prosperity acorn group base all adults. TGI April 06 – March 07 London ISBA. CACI 2006. Base: COICOP spend by ACORN category.