TGI: Cinema going sees rise
Latest data from TGI show that cinema continues to perform well despite the economic slump, with the number of cinema-goers climbing to a new high of 66% of the adult population.
In the past year 32.3 million people went to the cinema at least once, up from 31 million in 2008 and 30.5 million in 2007.
Although the number of heavy cinema-goers (once a month or more) fell slightly to just over six million (12% of adults), the number of medium cinema-goers (twice a year or more) climbed to 15 million, almost a third of adults.
This rise may reflect the diversification of the medium together with the continued strength of content. While people are cutting back on areas of high expenditure, this shows they are making up for it by treating themselves more often to things that are more inexpensive.
The demographic profile of cinema-goers is split fairly evenly between men and women, although there is a slight female skew. Cinema-goers are 25% more likely to be in the 16-24 age group, while heavy cinema-goers are 140% more likely to belong to this age group.
Heavy cinema-goers are a fifth more likely to be in the AB social grades, possibly reflecting the relatively high cost of a single visit. There is also a London bias, with Greater London residents 30% more likely to go to the cinema on a monthly basis.
From an advertiser’s point of view, heavy cinema-goers are a valuable target. They are 40% more likely to have a total family income in excess of £50,000 and over a quarter of a million of them have a personal income above that figure.
They are twice as likely to spend ‘a lot’ on clothes and to buy new products before most of their friends. Forty per cent like to keep up with the latest fashions, and 50% like to listen to new bands. Although leisure is an important part of their lives, they are also ambitious and 75% more likely to want to reach the top in their career.
As well as being active consumers in their own right, heavy cinema-goers are also more likely to communicate commercial messages through word of mouth. They are 75% more likely than the average to have talked to many different people about mobile phones in the past 12 months, and also considerably more likely to have talked to many others about clothes, TV/video/audio, alcoholic drinks, holidays and travel, cars, toiletries, food and financial services. Heavy cinema-goers are also much more confident than the average of their ability to persuade other people about a range of product sectors.
The strategy of film distributors to invest heavily in online advertising is clearly vindicated by the fact that heavy cinema-goers are 45% more likely than the average to be heavy internet users (once a day or more often), and 70% of them say that the internet is their first choice when they need information. They are also twice as likely as the average to be regular social networkers, meaning that the buzz around new films and associated products can quickly take on a life of its own.