In the seven months following the introduction of the scheme, which offers a £25 store voucher to every respondent in Greater London, the response rate has increased to 37.7%. In the rest of the country, where financial incentives have not been introduced, the response rate has remained unchanged at about 52%.
The incentives were introduced for London because pressures such as the increase in secure housing, longer working hours and changing social attitudes have made it increasingly difficult to recruit respondents.
The three major stakeholders in the NRS are the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising, the Newspaper Publishers' Association and the Periodical Publishers' Association.
NRS managing director Roger Pratt said it was "an energetic programme designed to enhance and improve the survey over time".
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