Ayibopost has never conducted an audience survey before. But, over time, the number of followers has increased, and its first cohort of bloggers (Yes! Ayibopost was launched as a blog) don’t publish anymore. So, its community has enlarged, and there are undoubtedly new demands and expectations.
There has been massive Haitian migration to Argentina, Brazil, and Chile in the last five years. In addition, many Haitians left the country to the Dominican Republic and Mexico. Thus, while the bulk of the audience remains in the three countries where Haitians usually reside (USA, Canada, France), it has extended to Latin America for the last four years.
The first step in our Membership program is to launch an audience survey. The goal is to identify the expectations from our readers and know how they are willing to contribute financially. This is research to know. The survey will ask question about their satisfaction about our products, their critics and their willingness to contribute to make more valuable contents available for everyone.
These are some of the questions that stem from our discussions: Why are these people following Ayibopost? What do they think about us comparing to the competition? What do they expect from us? Can we convert their appreciation into membership? How much would they donate on a regular basis? Through what canal would they prefer to make their contribution? Do they want the content remain free for everyone even after their contribution?
The survey contains twelve question and is published in three languages: Haitian Creole, English and French. These are the questions it contains:
· In what country are you living?
· How often do you visit Ayibopost per week?
· What type of content did you like the most?
· Should Ayibopost content remain free for everyone?
· Would you support our journalism financially through Membership?
· If yes, why would you want to become a member?
· Should Ayibopost content remain free for everyone despite your contribution?
· Should there be any specific consideration for a member?
· How else could you support Ayibopost?
· Do you have any expectation from Ayibopost?
The Campaign
Ayibopost invited people to fill the forms through Facebook and Twitter. The campaign started with crafted visuals inviting the audience to participate while sipping their coffee in the morning. Later, a second poster made with a local loved-and-disputed food asked the audience to fill the survey while digesting.
Additional visuals were made for instagram in the three different languages: Haitian Creole, English and French.
The Results
More than 350 people have filled the survey as of October 19. We expect to extend the experiment until Sunday, 23. More than 240 people have filled the Haitian Creole form, 81 the French, and 26, the English.