The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Home & Country Readership Survey Results he Federated Women’s Institutes of Ontario have a membership of apâ€" proximately l6,000. Of these members, 723 returned the Home & Country Reader- ship Survey. This is a return rate of4.5 per cent. While it sounds low, it is actually considered a good response, Reader Profile: Questions 1, 2 and 3 1. What the reader information revealed about where members lived is a bitsurprls- ing. Most members who responded either live on alarm (36.8%) or in a rural non-farm (30.4%) location. And the remaining third live in villages, towns and cities. 2. On the other hand, what the survey re- vealed about Ihe age of members is not surprising. Nearly 90 percent of all respon- dents were over the age of fifty, with three-quarters ofthem falling into the 60-69 (34.5%) and 70+ (37.4%) age groups. 3. What is also not surprising is the fact that most respondents are very communityâ€" minded individuals actively involved in other communityorganizaiions and groups beyond the Women's Institute, Home & Country Information: Questions 4 to 15 4. Over three-quarters of the respondents either read all (29.5%) or most (47.7%) of the articles thoroughly. 5. Almost everyone who returned the survey is very (53.5%) or moderately (429%) sat- isfied with the content of the articles. The reasons most often listed for this level of satisfaction about the content of the ar- ticles included: informative; interesting; of particular interest to WI members; up-to- date and current; short, conclse and to the point; quickly read; full of good ideas and information; and, attractlvely presented. 6. Every respondent. except four, reported the articles easy to read and understand. Amongst the reasons reported for this overwhelmingly positlve response in» cluded: well-written articles; clearly written articles; use of piainlanguage; and.articles are concise and to the point. Others fre- quently reported that the new format and the clean, clear print made the articles easy to read and understand. 7. Question 7 listed the kinds of topics printed in the Home a Country that provide educational material which cultivates knowledgeable citizens and promotes good family life skills, leadership develop- ment and community action. 10 Home & Country, Summer ‘94 10. 11. More than three-quarters of the respon- dents felt that the amount of space allotted to each of the topics listed was about n‘ght. Respondents (responding in a range from 88 to 93 per cent) also overwhelmineg supported the amount of space allotted to the regional articles and profiles. Question 9 listed the kinds of reports printed in the Home & Countrythat provide a ‘ccmmunications link' between all the members of the FWIO. Respondents (responding in a range from 80 to 89 per cent) felt that the amount of space allotted to these reports was about right. However, some (responding in a range from 11 to 17 per cent) felt that stories from the Branches. profiles of WI members, and the Tweedsmuir Curator. Public Ftelations Officer and Program Co- ordinator's reports and information warranted more space. Respondents were also asked whetherthe Home & Country met its objectives as listed in question 10. Readers were generally satisfied that the Home & Country is meeting its objectives (responding in a range from 48 to 64 per cent). There is. however, a large number of readers who were not sure (responding in a range from 30 to 42 per cent), There are also some who feel that the Home a Country provides an inadequate link be- tween the Branches, and therefore does not meet that particular objective. Question it brought forth a multitude of story topic suggestions for the Home & Country A range of story suggestions were noted under the following categorles: Branch, JWIO, FWIO. FWIC, or ACWW related; profiles; marketing; agriculture; business and legal matters; crafts, recipes and household hints; communities; envi- ronment: family; gardening; health; history; how-to articles; Industry; literary tOpics; and, travel. Among those topics most frequently noted include the following: more reports on Branch activities and community involve- ment; more information on the FWIO Headquarters; more ideas to attract new and younger members; more crafts, reciA 13. 14, 15. pes and household hints; and, more pi. ems and humour. Almost everyone who returned the survey is either very (74.0%) or moderately (24,4%) satisfied with the appearance of Home & Country. The reasons most often given for this level of satisfaction included: well laid out; Very attractive; looks interesting; simple, clean and uncluttered; an attractive and inviting first page; the print is clear and easy to read; printed on recycled paper; clear, well chosen photographs; and, like graphics and clip art. The response to whether a number of changes to the appearance of Home a Countryimproved reader appeal was over- whelmingly positive (failing in a range from 72 to 87 per cent). In addition to the overall design and ap pearance, readers liked the nameplate design and the use of colour, large quotes, clip art, graphics and photographs. A num- ber of respondents said that they had no opinion about the use of large quotes (17.1%) and clip art (25.0%), perhaps be- cause they were unsure ot whatthey were, Respondents to question 14 - 652 (98.8%) of 695 members » said they were satisfied with the distribution system of th Home a Country as outlined, PLEASE NOTE: The Editor allows 7 to 10 days prior to the destination deadlines -Jan. 1, Apr, 1,July 1 and Oct. 1 - forthe parcel of newsletters to be delivered. And according to the Post- al Representative a maximum of five days is sufficient to reach anywhere in Ontario. with assurance that "yes" the mail does move on weekends. Because the Editor allows enough time in the Home & Country production schedule (2 to 5 days more than is required) to meet the destination dead: lines as outlined, those few Branches who do not receive them by the first of the month can attribute the delay to Canada Post. Are there any other comments you would like to make? Boy, did readers respond to this question - 15 pages worth, single- spaced, three pages of which were not Home & Country related. Well, I guess for the next survey I'll know better to be more specific and ask: are there any other com- ments you would like to make about the Home & Country) The comments were overwhelmingly positive, some of them funny, most of them constructive. We would like to thank everyone who participated in the Home & Country Head- ershlp survey, and look forward to feedback from members aboul their new latter at any time.