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Debut Nears for Electronic Radio Diary

Starting with Arbitron’s Winter 2007 survey, Diary participants will have the option to use an Internet-based eDiary instead of the paper and pencil version.

Arbitron expects that at least one out of every twenty survey participants will chose the Internet-based option over the standard paper and pencil design - mostly younger participants. In the Arbitron tests, the largest demographic group of eDiary keepers was between the age of 25 and 34 while the largest demographic group of paper diary keepers is between the age of 45 and 54. Also, eDiary keepers are more likely to work full-time.

Arbitron’s test also show that there is no significant difference in the number of quarter hours of listening or the number of stations entered into the eDiary versus the paper diary. 

The eDiary is an Internet-based version of the Arbitron paper and pencil diary that consists of five primary types of pages: welcome/introduction pages, an instructions page, radio diary pages, a quick questions page, and a submit page. Additionally, there are various error messages designed to alert respondents to possible inaccuracies and problems in entering data.