Focus

A few months ago, Professional Roofing hired Readex Research to conduct an independent survey of Professional Roofing readers. The survey asked readers various questions about the topics they would like to see addressed, how they read the magazine and their preferences of roofing industry publications.

The survey results provided important information, and I am happy to report the findings were overwhelmingly positive. Following are some highlights:

• Our readers are highly engaged—the typical reader has read or looked through all four of the past four issues.
• Three in five readers usually share their copies with others; the average pass-along rate is 1.5, which doubles the magazine's reach.
• When asked to rate Professional Roofing overall on a five-point scale, the average rating was 4.1 (5 = excellent and 1 = poor).
• More than 85 percent of respondents believe Professional Roofing is "getting it right" in terms of article complexity and length.
• Professional Roofing is the preferred monthly industry magazine among respondents who receive at least one other industry publication.
• The magazine is an important NRCA member benefit.

Respondents also told us the No. 1 most popular department they read is our New Ideas section, so within the coming months, we will focus more on upgrading this component. In addition, we will continue to focus on the issues our readers say they would like us to cover the most: roofing trends, technical issues and industry news.

In addition, the survey revealed not many of you are taking advantage of our free tablet app. If you have not yet downloaded the app, I encourage you to do so. The electronic version offers a unique magazine experience, including exclusive content, extra photos and links as well as a library of previous issues. You can download the app from Apple's App Store, Google Play and the Windows Store.

To those of you who participated in the survey, thank you. The Professional Roofing staff appreciates the feedback so we can continue producing the roofing industry's most credible and useful publication. And if you did not have the opportunity to complete the survey, we will welcome ideas any time.

Ambika Puniani Bailey is editor of Professional Roofing and NRCA's vice president of communications and production.