• by Wayne Friedman , August 3, 2011

You've heard it all before: TV's longtime demographics -- especially key 18-49 viewers -- aren't enough for TV networks and advertisers.

With that in mind, David Poltrack, chief research officer of CBS Corp. and president of CBS Vision, announced at the Television Critics Association meeting that the network has developed a special new survey co-produced with The Nielsen Company that reveals more complex and valuable audience segments and their ratings performances.

The initial research identified six audience groups: TV moderators, media trendsetters, program passionates, streamers, sports enthusiasts, and TV companions. The two biggest categories: media trendsetters comprise 21% of the U.S. population, with program passionates next at 18%.

Media trendsetters skew slightly more male and are early adopters of TV and technology. Program passionates have the highest median income, skew more female, and are likely to own DVRs and have great loyalty to TV shows. More importantly, not only does the last group consume a lot of content, but they talk a lot about media.

"This is what our advertisers want," says Poltrack, referring to the new survey. He went on to say: "What the advertisers are saying is it's about relationships, it's about connectivity. And so they want to know how their programs relate to their products."

For example, he says, two shows can have the same 18-49 viewer ratings, but one type of viewer in one show has a preference for no-name brands and couponing, while another in a different show likes only higher-priced brand-name merchandise -- important distinctions for TV marketers.

The sample looked at media consumption and lifestyle among some 7,000 respondents ages 18-65. They answered a 45-minute 150-question survey, which also covered cross-platform media and technology behavior. Poltrack says the survey fuses research with all Nielsen databases.

Poltrack adds that this is all the more important because the big 18-49 group that TV marketers and networks depend on -- representing over 60% of all TV viewers -- is now at 57%, and will slip to 55% in a year or two.

For years, CBS has pushed TV marketers to consider other audience groups -- particularly older viewers -- when it comes to their media-buying schedules.

Other groups in the survey: TV companions, representing 16% of the population, are those TV watchers who frequently have the TV set on, but mostly in the background as a companion. Sports enthusiasts are 15% of the U.S. viewers who also favor action drama programming. Streamers, also at 15%, are mostly younger viewers who will watch on multiple screens. TV moderators, also at 15%, are those looking to minimize their TV usage.

CBS says for its part that it rated No. 1 for six audience groups. NBC came in at last place in all six. Fox tied CBS in first place for the Streamers and came in second in Sports Enthusiasts, Media Trendsetters and Program Passionates. ABC came in at second place in TV companions and TV moderators.

In an unprecedented move, according to Poltrack, CBS is offering the research to competing TV networks, as well as its TV advertising clients.