SWINDON has once again been labelled an average town, full of average people.

But this time there is a more positive element to the label than there has been in the past.

Market research companies are rushing to the town because it is full of Mr and Mrs Averages, which makes it the ideal place to test new products to see if they will be a success on a national level.

The latest company to hit the streets of Swindon to gauge the reception to a new product is CouponsNow, which offers free vouchers on the internet. The company carrying out the research for CouponsNow is London-based hubTM.

Director of the company, Tim Routledge, says Swindon is an ideal place to try out new products coming on to the market.

He said: Carrying out research in Swindon gives you a good cross-section of demographics which reflect those across the UK.

"Trying things there gives you a very good picture of the whole of the UK.

Because of where it is, it is not too close to any big cities so it remains untouched by big city influences."

This apparent insular, self-contained town provides the perfect place for market researchers to test their products.

Four years ago the Mondex card a card designed with the intention of replacing cash was tested in Swindon. The card bombed in the town and plans to release it nationwide were shelved.

Deputy leader of the council Derek Benfield (Lab, Covingham and Nythe) takes exception to the town being labelled as average.

He said: People say our town is average because they are ignorant. The term average is wrong, people should be using the term unique to describe Swindon.

This is a town that is setting standards in economic growth.