Regional Australians are proud of where they live and see a bright future for their resilient communities on the other side of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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That's the encouraging finding of a recent survey of more than 10,000 people by news publisher ACM.
In welcome news for Prime Minister Scott Morrison, most survey respondents think the Federal Government has done a good job of communicating during the nation's continuing coronavirus crisis - almost as good as supermarket giants Coles and Woolworths.
The research, conducted online at the height of the social distancing measures mandated by state and territory governments, asked Australians living in key population centres beyond the mainland metropolitan cities to rate the government information campaigns, corporate marketing messages and news sources they have been consuming in lockdown.
The Regional Australia COVID-19 Survey was conducted from April 7 to 13 by ACM's custom research division, Chi- Squared Research. ACM is the publisher of this newspaper.
Survey respondents were drawn from every state and territory and included readers of publications as geographically and demographically diverse as The Canberra Times in the ACT and the Katherine Times in the Northern Territory, the Newcastle Herald, The Daily Advertiser in Wagga, The Standard in Warnambool, The Examiner and The Advocate in Tasmania, the North West Star in Mount Isa, the Mandurah Mail in Western Australia, the Wimmera Mail-Times in western Victoria and the Victor Harbor Times in South Australia.
So, what have the real Australians from all the best bits of Australia that aren't Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth been doing, thinking and consuming while sheltering safely, as the Prime Minister has so elegantly put it, under the doona?
The upshot: their community spirit is strong, they are coping well with the changes and challenges and they're using trusted regional news media like ACM ahead of TV, radio, metro news media and social media to stay informed and connected.
The COVID-19 report card also reveals how regional Australians have been keeping themselves occupied while staying at home to stop the spread of the virus and what potentially positive outcomes they see on the other side of the lockdown.
Key findings of the survey include:
Community life
- 90 per cent of regional Australians agree their community is a great place to live.
- 81 per cent say their community is coping pretty well with the challenges of the pandemic.
- 77 per cent believe their local community has a bright future.
Government information
- 75 per cent think the Federal Government has provided a "high level" of quality information and support through the COVID-19 crisis so far.
- More older people (aged 45+) thought the government was supplying a "very high level" of information (48 per cent) than younger people aged 18 to 44 (30 per cent).
- Among state governments, residents of Western Australian (92 per cent) and Tasmania (91 per cent) rated their states highly on the quality of public information provided on changes due to COVID-19, ahead of Victoria (86 per cent), NSW (76 per cent), Queensland and South Australia (both 69 per cent).
Attention shoppers
- Grocery giants Woolworths (78 per cent) and Coles (74 per cent) scored the highest of the 20 brands - retailers, banks and telcos - rated by consumers on the quality of information provided during the crisis.
- Asked which banks were doing the best job communicating virus-related changes, the rankings for quality of information provided were: Commonwealth (49 per cent), NAB (42 per cent), Bendigo Bank (41 per cent), Westpac (40 per cent), ANZ (36 per cent) and Suncorp (26 per cent).
Trusted news
- The print and online coverage of regional news media such as ACM has been the most-used media (80 per cent of respondents) ahead of the ABC (76 per cent), free-to-air television (43 per cent) and radio (35 per cent).
- 96 per cent trust regional news media while only 57 per cent trust social media.
Living in lockdown
- Household do-it-yourself projects are the No. 1 way regional Australians have kept themselves occupied while being asked to stay at home. Watching online streaming TV, such as Netflix, was the next most common activity, followed by cooking.
Life after lockdown
- Asked what would be the positive outcomes after the coronavirus lockdown was finally over, the No. 1 response was "a renewed appreciation for the outdoors and life's other simple pleasures".
- In a promising sign for the Australian economy, regional Australians also expressed hope for "a revival in domestic manufacturing" and expected "an increase in domestic tourism".
Survey respondents were sourced from the ACM network's digital subscribers, e-newsletter recipients, website visitors and social media followers as well as ChiSquared Research's own Regional Insights Panel.
ACM Head of Research Karen Rogers said the pride and resilience of regional Australia stood out in every aspect of the survey.
"From their views on the role of community, to the likely positive outcomes of COVID-19 or how well governments and businesses have communicated during the crisis, the positivity of regional Australians is shining strongly," she said.
"Eighty-four per cent said they felt proud to live in their local community and 77 per cent agreed that their community had a bright future, which shows the resilience of regional Australia through the pandemic."
- James Joyce is ACM executive editor.
77 per cent agreed that their community had a bright future, which shows the resilience of regional Australia through the pandemic.
- ACM Head of Research Karen Rogers
