ITV Genre Research

ITV

Firstly, conducting research into ITV is something that we wish to look at because this will help us primarily but then we also thought that looking at other channel’s audiences and demographics is vital too because we wish to be diverse, subsequently meaning that combining the features of many channels, we will ultimately have a variety of audience’s to aim at with a range of programming.

Morning on ITV

ITV’s target audience differs massively throughout a day of programming with many different shows. Starting with the morning shows, Good Morning Britain and then Lorraine contain a combination of information and current news as well as trying to keep the audience entertained with comedy, though this is used primarily more with Lorraine rather than GMB – with this show considered to be an exact replica of Good Morning America but for the ITV institution. These shows appeal to a mass audience, with topical information able to be consumed by many people so that they can find out the latest news, though the professional sense of the show is conveyed through the studio initially as it includes the traditional desk with all 4 presenters placed behind this desk in an extremely business-like manner. Therefore, this indicates that during the morning, ITV convey their shows towards a demographic of men and women of a high income due to the sophisticated presentation of the show, as well as a mainstreamer psychographic as it presents this news from across the world. This psychographic will seek assurance from trust and stability, with ITV providing the programming that becomes part of a daily routine, due to it being shown every single weekday.

Midday on ITV

The midday audience then alters from the morning audience, with shows such as 60 minute makeover and Loose Women shown at this time of the day but the audience is no longer businessman and women, due to the fact that ITV realise these people will now be at work and therefore no longer able to see the programming that they offer, so by offering a news show during the early morning it allows them to see the programmes. These two midday shows fundamentally aim towards the lower demographics, potentially people that are unemployed or nearer the 35-40 age range, as these are the kinds of people that will be watching the television at this time because they have no job to occupy themselves with. Furthermore, the single psychographic may also watch these kinds of shows at this time because of a range of circumstances, potentially housewives or mothers with young children would be watching television at this time.

Evening on ITV

Yet again, the night-time audience then subsequently changes again with programmes like Coronation Street and The X Factor being shown at night because these are popular flagship shows that ITV need to show to the audience at a time where the majority of people will watch them so that they can increase their audience figures. These types of programming apply to yet another range of demographics and psychographics because of the fact that older people will be perceived to watch soap operas – appealing to the older generation and also those that will be retired and consequently are sitting down at night to watch some television. Furthermore, the evening programmes also entice people that are younger and middle aged, primarily women because these types of people will be classed as mainstreamers and aspirers, so they will watch the lives of others because they are materialistic and hence will seek the image of others due to soap operas and talent shows.

Dayparting

ITV use scheduling theory within their programming because of the fact that they convey different genres of programming depending on the point of day. This therefore means that they are clearly aiming at different psychographics and demographics at different parts of the day, so that they can signify their programmes to people that will see them as the most appropriate. As I have aforementioned, daytime is specifically aimed at higher demographic audiences because this will typically be the time before they leave for work, then afternoon/midday programming is aimed at lower demographic audiences as these people can perceived to be jobless and therefore will be in the resigned psychographic category due to having nothing to do but to watch midday television.

Dayparting segments:

• Sign-on• Early morning news• Early morning• Late morning• Daytime television• Early fringe• Lunchtime news• Early afternoon• Late afternoon

Early eveningEvening newsPrime timeLate-night newsLate night televisionGraveyard slotSign-off (closedown)Late fringePost late-fringe

ITV Audiences

These shows highlight the fact that ITV have such a broad audience throughout the days of the week and then also the times of the day, connoting that they have to have a range of programming in order to entice the audience towards a diversity of shows and hence keep them interesting in the channel. The indicates the ITV ethos to be followed intrinsically, as they show news programmes which highlights news of importance towards the audience, as well as public importance through talent shows because people seek assurance from celebrities, meaning that talent shows are always a massive flagship for ITV because they draw in so many different types of viewers.

Demographics and Psychographics

Due to our research of ITV and their genre types of programmes, we are able to easily see that a fundamental channel within UK television needs to present a range of genres in order to draw a variety of audience’s – as by enticing many different demographics and psychographics it allows a channel to be more accessible to a much larger group of people rather than simply having one defined genre. However, ITV use their other channels to aim at specific psychographics which means that shows such as Celebrity Juice and The Only Way is Essex are shown on ITV2, because this channel focuses on an audience of 16+, with teenagers highlighted as a dominant audience because they are depicted as more likely to consume a lot of television – though this is a stereotype within itself.

Commercial Broadcaster:

ITV’s entire brand identity and ethos is parallel to the fact that they are a commercial broadcaster, thus meaning that their content has to be suitable in terms of visual aspects in order to appeal to their audiences in a similar way in which advertisements have a clear intention of audience. ITV are funded by advertising money, which therefore has an integral influence upon their programming due to the fact that they must be of mass appeal – in order to subsequently attract the largest audience possible towards their programmes and also advertisements – with this creating more money for ITV’s institution. As I aforementioned, ITV use the different parts of the day to signify different audiences at different times although at night – which is conventionally the time where people watch the most television – a mass audience is attracted to successively engage people to the programming and advertisements.