The DEATH of the DEMO

It’s time to put the concept of using Broad Demographics as an upstream strategic tool into the history books. If you don’t, everything downstream is flawed

· Are you looking for strategies and concepts that enable you to be relevant with a consumer who increasingly doesn’t use e-mail as it’s too SLOW, rather prefers text and IM? (and OMG

u r rite she does it in “shorthand”)

Demographics should be DEAD, and Specific User targeting ALIVE. Why? Broad demographics date back to the 1950’s and as such do not reflect media consumption, engagement or simultaneous media usage of specific individuals today.

They do not hold up in an environment that the average consumer is using 10 forms of media a day has a 15 second attention span and that’s IF your message can grab them in the first 4 seconds.

Why are they still a core to existing media plans and strategies? THE INSIDER TRUTH”? they make buying, analyzing and comparing price efficiencies on linear media buys easy. They do not help you build effective strategic advertising plans and in fact, might accomplish the opposite today.

Another truth, agencies aren’t structured to deliver strategic segmented user strategies built on a specific consumer users media consumption. It’s too expensive, time consuming and back end intensive. Case in point, I have personally witnessed the SR Planning teams representing two of the largest US advertisers at a Major ad agency literally roll their eyes at the concept of identifying segmented users and creating media plans, strategies and creative that are relevant to them.

Why consider change?

Advertising is about being relevant and quickly “on-point” with a consumer so they’ll give you another 15 seconds. As an example: think about the Media Consumption behavior of the three female targets that are in the popular 25-54 Demographic.

· A working Mom with an 8 and 10 year old children

· A single clubber female

· A stay at home Mom with a 4 year old child

Oh by the way, all three are 33 years old. Each with entirely different media consumption behavior. Since we are “targeting” a 25-54 year old female, we need to add a 27, 40 and 50 year old female to the mix, then throw in different geographies. Using the media consumption of radio for the three individuals.

· The working Mom? drive time is the worst time to engage her as she is not listening and on the phone during commute times, she streams a “stress relieving station” at work, spends several hours Saturday and Sunday listening to terrestrial radio.

· The single female?, her radio prime time is after 8pm primarily in the car to a

and from, eating out, bars, shopping and clubs.

· The stay at Home Mom? she doesn’t control her radio listening Morning and Afternoon drive, her kids do.

Since the 25-54 Demographic spans 3 decades let’s be more strategic with a demographic “target” spanning only 16 years with the much more targeted 18-34 Female Demographic.

o 18 year old is a high School SR

o 33 year old is a working Mom with 2 kids, one is 4 the other 8.
She’s the 18 year olds Math teacher.

Using Demographics for your online buys? Online site demographics are not as important as the content being consumed. The site demographic may be women 25-54 but based on the selected streams, you could be targeting a gay male with a birth control message.