Spurred in part by the success of numerous do-it-yourself (DIY) TV shows, homeowners across the country are redecorating, remodeling, and rebuilding. Many people are content with superficial changes, such as new paint or new accessories, but some are more ambitious. These homeowners want to move walls, add rooms, redesign kitchens, convert garages to home theaters—the big stuff.

Publishers try to create magazines that appeal to carefully identified groups of potential readers and the advertisers who’d like to reach them. The DIY market is already served by numerous magazines, but you see an opportunity in the homeowners who tackle the heavy-duty projects. Case Tables 10.1 through 10.3 summarize the results of some preliminary research you asked your company’s research staff to conduct.

                                         CASE TABLE 10.1

         ROOMS MOST FREQUENTLY REMODELED BY DIYERS

Room                                                           Percentage of Homeowners

                                                                    Surveyed Who Have Tackled

                                                                    or Plan to Tackle at Least a

                                                                        Partial Remodel

Kitchen ……………………………..............…              60

Bathroom …………………………..........…..              48

Home office/study ……………………......               44

Bedroom ………………………………..........               38

Media room/home theater ……………               31

Den/recreation room …………………….               28

Living room ……………………………........               27

Dining room …………………………….......               12

Sun room/solarium ……………………….                 8

CASE TABLE 10.2

AVERAGE AMOUNT SPENT ON REMODELING PROJECTS

Estimated Amount                Percentage of Surveyed Homeowners

Under $5k………………..                         5

$5k–$10k ………………..                        21

$10k–$20k ………………..                     39

$20k–$50k ………………..                     22

More than $50k …………                    13

CASE TABLE 10.3

TASKS PERFORMED BY HOMEOWNER ON A TYPICAL REMODELING PROJECT

Task                                                    Percentage of Surveyed

                                                                    Homeowners Who

                                                                    Perform or Plan to

                                                                    Perform Most or All

                                                                    of This Task Themselves

Conceptual design ……………………………….                     90

Technical design/architecture ……………………              34

Demolition ………………………………………..                        98

Foundation work ………………………………….                     62

Framing ………………………………………….                           88

Plumbing …………………………………………                          91

Electrical ………………………………………….                          55

Heating/cooling …………………………………..                      22

Finish carpentry …………………………………..                     85

Tile work ………………………………………                              90

Painting ……………………………………….                            100

Interior design ………………………………….                        52

Your task 

You think the data show a real opportunity for a “big projects” DIY magazine, although you’ll need more extensive research to confirm the size of the market and refine the editorial direction of the magazine. Prepare a brief analytical report that presents the data you have, identifies the opportunity or opportunities you’ve found (suggest your own ideas, based on the data in the tables), and requests funding from the editorial board to pursue further research.