Changing perceptions of black consumers

'The overriding message is to look at the black community as a brand. From that standpoint, you would put in x-amount of dollars, you would do the research, you would make sure that the manner in which you display your product is positive.'

Changing perceptions
of black consumers

Arbitron study tracks demographic's affluence

By Kevin Downey

    When is a dollar not worth a dollar?
    When it’s in the hand of a black consumer.
    At least that’s the impression that advertisers have for years given media sellers with a primarily black audience.
    That often came in the form of “minority discounting,” which forces ad prices down because of a media outlet’s audience. Or, in the case of radio, there are “no urban” dictates from advertisers who want to avoid stations with black audiences.
    “Historically that’s been common, and it continues,” says Julian Davis, director of urban radio marketing services at Arbitron, which recently released a study called “The Arbitron Black Consumer Study.”
    “Sometimes there’s a justification when a product does not target a black consumer. But for 98 percent of all products out there, there is no real justification because black consumers will consume almost any product as long as it could save them time or make them look better or whatever the benefit happens to be.”
    The reasons that advertisers place less value on black consumers have deep historical roots.
    It comes down to the perception that black consumers have little money to spend and, when they do have it, don’t spend it on things that advertisers are trying to sell.
    The Arbitron study tries to prove that those perceptions are outdated.
    “Unfortunately, over time there have been a lot of misperceptions, and people think they shouldn’t advertise because a particular audience may not be able to buy a product,” says Davis.
    Black consumers have $490 billion in buying power and spend about $341 billion on retail products.
    “One concern is that the black community is not stable,” says Davis.
    “One of the benchmarks for stability is home ownership. By comparison to the total population, you’re talking 48 percent to 68 percent. But if you think about all those things that people who want to buy homes encounter, the percentages will be different. Looking within itself, though, about half the community is a homeowner.”
    About 64 percent of black consumers have access to the internet.
    Perhaps the most surprising findings have to do with the education and professional levels achieved by black consumers.
    The number of blacks who hold white-collar jobs, for example, outnumbers those with blue-collar jobs by two-to-one in the biggest urban markets in the country.
    Just about half of blacks in New York, by far the biggest black market with a population of 2.7 million, hold white-collar positions, while just over one-fourth hold blue-collar jobs.
    Moreover, the educational level of blacks is comparable to that of the rest of the population.
    Nearly 38 percent of urban-radio-format listeners have graduated from high school compared to just over 32 percent of the general population. About 46 percent of urban format listeners have gone to college compared to 48 percent of all radio listeners.
   While the numbers are impressive, Davis says one barrier that limits advertiser interest in the black community–and in urban radio formats–involves a fixation on comparing those groups to the rest of the population.
    “The overriding message is to look at the black community as a brand,” says Davis.
    “From that standpoint, you would put in x-amount of dollars, you would do the research, you would make sure that the manner in which you display your product is positive.”

ARBITRON - BLACK CONSUMER STUDY Education Level - Radio Listeners
	Total	Format Listeners
Education Level	Adults 18+	Urban	Urban AC
High School Graduate	32.4	37.8	34.5
Some College	36.1	37.0	40.0
College Graduate	11.7	9.0	11.8
Source: Scarborough, Release 1, 2001

ARBITRON - BLACK CONSUMER STUDY Black Workers - Top-5 Urban Markets
Market	White Collar (%)	Blue Collar (%)
New York	48.2	25.3
Chicago	48.8	22.6
Washington D.C.	61.3	19.3
Atlanta	52.6	28.6
Philadelphia	45.2	26.3
Source: Scarborough, Release 1, 2001

-Kevin Downey is a staff writer for Media Life.

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