The Surprising Value of Targeting the Solo Consumer. An Interview with Canvas’ Mark O'Leary & Stephanie Viganego

I am always intrigued by research that mines the data to form surprising insights. In the case of Canvas, a media marketing agency, it was their ability to delve more deeply into single person households, which they refer to as Solos, to form compelling and original insights into their motivations and behaviors. Such insights can offer advertisers a new way to market for a cohort that represents a not inconsequential population of 36 million Americans.

According to Mark O’Leary, Canvas’ Vice President of Consumer Insights, “Part of our job is looking at the big trends and what's going on in the world. We know things that we're seeing could impact all of our clients or specific clients so we've been doing a lot of target work recently.” As part of this effort, Stephanie Viganego, Strategist Consumer Insights, “happened to find this nugget in terms of thinking about what we do on a normal day to day and how it intersects with our personal life,” he explained.

For a strategist like Viganego, Solos data offers an opportunity to more deeply explore an often overlooked group. “These are things that I think about on a daily basis and I also realized how much I had in common with other Solos who were in completely different life stages than me,” Viganego noted and added, “For example, during the pandemic, I started talking to my grandma more often and it felt like we had a similar type of experience living alone, wanting to socialize. I realized that we had so much more in common than we thought because of our living arrangements. I thought it would be an interesting topic to do research on and write about. A lot of interesting insights came out of the research that we did.”

What Viganego found was that Solos have both commonalities and differences that transcend demographics. “This group could either be single, could be partnered, could it could be widowed, could be divorced or separated. What brings them closer together, what they have in common is that they all live alone. They have a similar living arrangement, lifestyle and the attitudes from the things they experience on a daily basis,” she stated and added, “We really wanted to bring light to this growing audience that we tend to overlook. We wanted to inspire marketers and advertisers to see things from the perspective of a one person household, how to think about this audience when developing marketing strategy and developing product design.”

Opportunities for advertisers span many product categories and product designs. Viganego stated that, “Having the right portions,” is one area to explore. “It's challenging to buy bread when you're not going to finish it and it's going to get moldy. When it comes to household products like toilet paper, there's not enough space. Having products that help with saving space,” would help connect with this cohort.

Solos, according to Viganego, treasure, “independence and autonomy. They are able to choose when to eat, what to watch on TV, how to design their space, how to organize their space, when to socialize. It's a lot of freedom, a lot of autonomy and they also tend to be more social and join different social communities like Meetup, for example. They can also be more spontaneous than other target groups because of fewer commitments, more opportunities to socialize and more flexibility with schedules and planning.” But, she warned, “There are some things that can be seen as challenges for this particular audience compared to other targets. Cost of living expenses, having to pay double for everything. Also, there are some categories that could discriminate based on policies that are that are in place that benefit people that are in more traditional family relationships.”

The pandemic has impacted Solos although the long term impact is still playing out. “The pandemic has pushed people in this group to be more involved with community groups because initially during the pandemic, everything was on zoom. Looking at some of the data, we saw a spike in people joining and hosting Meetup groups. Maybe, potentially, people started enjoying their solitude more and embracing it more,” Viganego noted. While O’Leary believed that, “As it relates to going back to work versus working remotely, I don't think we're ever going to go back to the office full time, or at least not in the foreseeable future, so I think it will continue to strengthen some of those characteristics of Solos because coming out of it, feeling stronger about your choices and how you've survived the pandemic is only going to reinforce some of these beliefs.”

Study results were culled from, “A lot of third party research and looking at annual American time study and  work that's been done by authors like Bella Paolo who has done a lot of specific research about singles in particular,” Viganego stated. Next steps will include further segmentation of Solos. “It would be great to go into more detail with segmenting this group out, celebrating this group and empowering those who live alone by acknowledging how rewarding and liberating it can be and removing that negative stigma associated with living alone,” she stated.

“I would add to that understanding how male and females or how different life stages intersect in terms of the purchase cycle. We're talking about doing a third version of this proprietary study. It's certainly sparked a lot of discussion at the Agency and we're all very proud of it,” O’Leary concluded.

This article first appeared in www.MediaVillage.com

Artwork by Charlene Weisler

 

Understanding the Radio Listener with Megan Lazovick of Edison Research, Lamar Johnson of NPM and Susan Leland of NPR

Understanding the different permutations of an audience – their behaviors and preferences - is pivotal to the success of any venture. That’s why NPR, in partnership with Edison Research, crafted a study designed to fully dimensionalize not only NPR’s audience specifically but the radio audience in general. The result is their recently released Radio: Live on Air and Everywhere which teases out six specific and unique radio audience segments, matching them to NPR, to AM/FM Radio listeners and even to Television.

Why Do the Study?

“We really wanted to take a fresh look at the radio platform and the role it plays in people’s lives, particularly to help media buyers,” explained Susan Leland, NPR's Associate Director of Audience Insights. In an increasingly digital world, it was important to prove out that radio is still very important. And it is.

The current state of radio is robust. Leland shared that, “Radio consistently has the largest reach of any media. It was 88% in the latest Nielsen data, just ahead of smartphone apps. It also counts for the largest share of audio listening and when in the car, radio counts for the majority of listening time.” In addition, Edison Research found that 63% of Americans listen to AM/FM radio each day and 89% listen each week.

For NPR in particular, this study comes at a momentous time. “This spring, NPR celebrated its 50th anniversary. We have a great legacy in the radio space,” explained Lamar Johnson, NPM Vice President, Marketing. “Part of that legacy involves having an understanding of the radio listenership and the audience. It is an ongoing objective for us,” he added.

Radio: Live on Air and Everywhere Methodology

NPR and Edison Research used three studies for this report. “First is share-of-ear which is a diary study of over 4,000 people age 14 and older that we conduct in the U.S. quarterly. We measure the amount of time people are spending with audio. That’s how we identified the growth in time spent with spoken word,” explained Megan Lazovick, Vice President, Edison Research who added, “We followed up on that share-of-ear information by conducting some in-depth interviews via zoom. Things that we learned from those in depth interviews were used to put together an additional survey … a national online survey of 1,000 monthly spoken word audio listeners, which is about 75% of the US population.”

Six Unique Radio Audience Segmentations

One of the major takeaways from this study is the clear delineation of the radio audience into six distinct and unique segmentations, each with their own preferences, demographic skew and behavioral patterns. “One of the interesting things about the six groups and the spectrum is that the more engaged group is, the more open they are to advertising,” stated Leland.

Radio Heads. These super fans essentially use radio for everything. They are more likely to be female under the age of 54 and over-index among African Americans. They listen to all formats on all platforms and spend more time with AM/FM than any other segment. Not only are they advertiser-friendly, they have the money to spend to purchase products and services because they have high employment, higher education and higher average income. Radio Heads represent 9% of all radio listeners.

Connection Seekers use radio as a way to connect and understand. They tend to be older women and are the second heaviest users of the medium. They gravitate to the spoken word, tend to listen at home and are also very advertiser-friendly. They represent 16% of all listeners.

Infomaniacs where listening is driven by news, skews male. They tend to listen in the morning, prefer the spoken word and gravitate to formats such as news, sports, personalities and talk. They index high for NPR listening and are open to advertising and sponsorships. They represent 18% of listeners.

Rhythm Rockers whose listening is driven by music, is heavily younger female, Latinx and of lower incomes. They are more likely to stream, but AM/FM is king in the car. They represent 27% of all listeners.

Laid-back Listeners who listen to radio in the background tend to be age 35+ who are radio-centric, preferring to listen on traditional platforms rather than streaming. More than half of this group listen to ads and prefer music over other formats. They are 17% of all radio listeners.

Habitualists listen to radio when it’s the only option available. They also skew 35+ and are not that interested in audio in general. Yet, more than half say that they listen to ads on radio and still spend three hours listening in an average week and would miss radio if it were no longer available. They prefer to listen on traditional platforms and not on streaming ones and their preferred format is music rather than the spoken word. They represent 13% of all listeners.

NPR Listener Segments

For NPR listeners specifically, “You will find them in every segment, but they are particularly likely to be Infomaniacs, which are news driven users, which makes a lot of sense, and they also tend to be pretty heavy listeners,” noted Leland. They're also more likely to be Radio Heads and Connection Seekers. “Our audience tends to be heavy listeners to radio. It keeps some listeners company throughout the day with the news and especially the conversations. It’s like having a friend in your house who's with you all day,” she added. “The thing the thing that most distinguishes the NPR listener on any platform is that they tend to be really interested in learning and have a sense of real civic engagement and responsibility.”

For Johnson, a notable takeaway from the study was, “the increase in listenership among African American Latino and female women listeners, particularly in the younger 13-34. It's important for us at NPR to attract more diverse and younger audiences. Those are two fairly big takeaways that were pretty eye opening for us.”

Open to Advertising

The heavier the listener, the more receptive they are to advertising but, according to Lazovick, all segments of radio listeners, even those who are less engaged, are open to advertising. “They are getting exposed to advertising. They (may not be) as engaged but they are still there they're still open to the messaging, just not as intensely as other segments. The more engaged a group is with radio, the more likely you can influence them with the advertising.”

She added that, “Most people believe that ads are a fair trade for their listening time. They understand the value that they're getting through radio in exchange for listening to a few ads.” When it comes to NPR, “We asked specific questions to NPR listeners and a final key finding is that NPR listeners are very open to sponsorship members’ messages.”

According to Leland, “We asked people on the survey about actions people have taken as a result of hearing advertising and we saw that the more engaged a listener is, more likely they are to say that they considered a product and purchased a product because of an ad they heard on radio.” Lazovick noted, “And because we know NPR listeners tend to be that more engaged listener, their numbers are higher in terms of those same questions about gathering information about a company product or service, purchasing things, recommending products. They are more likely to have done that than the average AM/FM radio listener. The numbers are high on both sides, but NPR listeners are a bit higher.” Local advertising in particular can benefit from a radio presence.

Radio Compared to Television

When it comes to attracting a focused consumer, advertisers are strongly advised to turn to radio. Even compared to television, radio shows superiority in terms of focusing attention. “When we watch TV, most people these days are doing it while they're distracted with another device. They may be watching streaming that doesn't have any advertising and they may be watching broadcast and avoiding the ads by switching to their smartphone. But when people listen to NPR content, they really are engaged,” stated Leland who added, “We find that people are much less likely to multitask when they're listening to our content in part because they are less likely to multitask with other media. They're going to be multitasking other ways - doing chores, cooking dinner, going for a walk - but they're not going to be trying to listen to a conversation on Fresh Air and watch TV at same time. You need to give you the whole attention of your brain.”

Pandemic Impact

While broadcast radio declined early in the pandemic when lifestyles were disrupted, it has been on the upswing and getting back to normal now. “While we saw people shifting away from broadcast radio, we also saw more people tuning into station streams,” Leland noted. In fact, NPR’s listener hours on streams were up from last year. But, as Leland explained, as Americans get back into their cars and commute, there will be a strong return to AM/FM listenership.

Next Steps

This is the first study of its kind for NPR but not the last. “This study was really enlightening to us in terms of understanding the segments and the behaviors. We'll be talking further about what we might do in this lane in the future,” Johnson concluded.

People Don’t Change and Demographics Don’t Work. An Interview with David Allison, Founder, The Valuegraphics Database

We are who we are, according to David Allison, Founder of The Valuegraphics Database, forming our basic value system in early childhood. His company recently launched a seminal study of how our value systems are impacting our reactions to the pandemic and, in understanding them, finding ways to leverage shared values from very disparate groups, coalesce and go forward.

Weisler: Please give me a short overview of the methodology, sampling etc.

Allison: The values we uncover for a target audience come from our benchmark database of 500,000 surveys and 446 metrics, which is accurate (+/- 3.5%/95% confidence) for 180 countries. It's the world's first database of what everyone cares about. For the pandemic recovery study in particular (as with all the data we pull from the benchmark dataset for any client or question) we identify a statistical representation of a particular population and ask them enough questions for us to extrapolate a profile from the benchmark study. 

Charlene Weisler: Can you trend this study and will it be continued after the pandemic?

David Allison: The study results will not need to be updated. We measure core human values, which are formed during our late childhood/early adolescence, and do not change. Our lives are ruled by what we value: every behavior and emotion we have is a manifestation of some value or set of values. So, understanding the shared values of a target audience (there are only 56 possible values) is akin to having the OS for that group of people. You can unlock incredible passion and power because you know what they care about most.

Weisler: What were the biggest takeaways?

Allison: There are so many. They break into three main categories of findings:

1. Rallying the troops: We were able to identify what aspects of life people want to see recover from the pandemic. Industry sectors, community amenities, and more. We know what the people who are passionate about professional sports teams care about most, for example, so one could solidify that base by talking to them about what they want to hear. We can do the same for tourism, small shops, restaurants, art galleries, etc. Why is this useful? If you are trying to drum up grassroots support for, let's say, the hotel industry...what messages will land best with your supporters, and how can you win others to your cause? As grants, loans, tax abatements and policies are being structured to drive economic growth, the sectors with the most supporters will have the most sway over the decision makers.

2. Taking advantage of new consumer demands: We were able to identify the new pandemically-triggered behaviors that people found they actually enjoyed, and want to keep doing. Each of these (there are four big ones and a few less important ones) represents a new market opportunity for brands to create products and services to satisfy. Further, we know what each segment of consumers values most, so it's easy to see what you'd need to say and do to engage and influence their behavior.

3. Motivating action to save the planet: We identified a segment of the population that was willing to keep up some pandemic behaviors that they found inconvenient as long as they knew those efforts would benefit the planet. In other words, we identified the most likely to take action to help with the environmental crises. And, of course, we can point to what they want to hear...what they are listening for....because we know what they value most of all.

Weisler: How did responses break out by gender, region of the country, age, ethnicity, etc?

Allison: This gets to the crux of Valuegraphics. Demographics are a legacy method of understanding groups of people. Our benchmark study proves conclusively that except for external characteristics, demographic cohorts do not resemble each other in any appreciable way. For example, let's look at age. The following chart shows how much the people within any age category agree with each other about anything we have measured, including our 56 core human values that determine every behavior and emotion. We have 380 OTHER metrics too (for a total of 436) and as you can see the alignment on ANY of these is incredibly low. It's a bit of a cliche, but it's true....nobody acts their age anymore. It's time we stopped using demographic stereotypes to look at the world around us.

It's a bit of a mind-expanding construct the first time anyone encounters Valuegraphics...as it challenges thousands of years of demographic profiling. Demographics as a sortation system are from the olden days....and abandoning the idea that demographics are destiny is the last great disruption required for us to truly move past the stereotypes that cause so much divisiveness and hurt in our world today. Especially now that we have a global database that proves how inefficient they are. Demographics push us apart. Valuegraphics unite us.

Weisler: How do you think these attitudes will play out a year from today? Two years from today?

Allison: They will be exactly the same. We have before/after studies in a few industries that prove this. Our values are forever.

This article first appeared in www.Mediapost.com

 

Identifying COVID Consumer Segments. An Interview with Jamie Baker-Prewitt

As we are in an unusual year, it stands to reason that consumer attitudes and behaviors have shifted. But by how much and is this shift more or less permanent? 

Burke Inc and Seed Strategy launched a study that, according to Chief Research Officer, Jamie Baker-Prewitt, aimed to, “help businesses better understand consumers’ mindsets and evolving behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic.” The study broke down the population into eight distinct segments with different behaviors, attitudes and purchasing patterns.

The eight segments are The Wayfinders (Concerned youth who fear missing out on what they want their life to be today and in the future), The Determined (Young Americans trying to maintain their independence and current lifestyle, despite a setback), The Isolated (Worried seniors who have reluctantly sheltered in place to protect their health), The Frazzled, (Stressed families struggling to juggle work, childcare, and financial obligations), The Enlightened (Secure older adults who use their experience to help others navigate these challenging times), The Protective (Vulnerable family units that are staying safe at home due to health concerns), The Bold (Independent thinkers who want businesses to get back to “normal” despite the risk) and The Empathetic (Thriving households that feel a serious responsibility to care for both their family and their community).

Charlene Weisler: Can you give me a brief overview of the methodology?

Jamie Baker-Prewitt: First, we fielded a 30-minute survey with over 2000 American consumers who shopped in at least three of five major industries or product categories in the previous month.  We balanced the survey sample to the US census on age, gender, income, and ethnicity.  Next, we conducted 30 follow up video interviews with segment members among survey takers and other recruited consumers.  This qualitative research allowed us to hear more detailed descriptions of how people feel and what they’re doing, which creates a rich picture of how they’re coping and adjusting (or not adjusting) their thoughts and behaviors during this time.

Weisler: What were the main takeaways?

Baker-Prewitt: Despite the occurrence of a sweeping, global, historic health crisis, American consumers aren’t experiencing it in the same way.  The variations in experiences relate to life circumstances, including household composition, personal health, age, and other factors, as well as individual belief systems and psychographics. In addition to COVID mindsets—attitudes and behaviors related to the pandemic itself—these thoughts and actions create the differences that underlie the consumer segments we uncovered in this work.

Across these segments, perceptions and behaviors are different, and the stickiness of changes during the pandemic will likely vary based on a number of personal and environmental factors.  Some people will find that their new habits have become their new normal.  For example, online shopping and consumption of entertainment from home might become so routinized that people see no reason to return to their previous ways of living.

While you will find each of our eight segments represented in all parts of the United States, there are some regional nuances.  Where there are contrasts, we see them most pronounced for a couple of segments’ prevalence in rural areas versus large cities.

Weisler: Would you expect these attitudes or behaviors to evolve over time ...or to remain after the vaccine is commonly available?

Baker-Prewitt: We expect the existence of these consumer segments to be stable through the pandemic and even beyond, because they have durable elements underpinning them--life circumstances, core beliefs, and psychographics, for example.  We do expect that the size of the segments will shift, and time will tell how many of the pandemic “induced” behavior changes remain once a vaccine is widely available and societal restrictions subside.

Weisler: How can certain stressed ad sectors such as hospitality/travel use these segments to better target?

Baker-Prewitt: The pandemic has certainly hit some industries hard, and the solution for these categories is not simple.  Innovation and substantial pivots are paramount to persevering through this challenging time.  The restaurants that have made it work are the ones that can reconfigure their physicality and rethink their processes.

Some consumer segments have health risks and health concerns due to age that make them more vulnerable to the virus; others segments do not have these worries.  The travel industry can target younger, healthier travelers as a more receptive target for business. However, given that the airlines in particular are dependent on business travelers, and that activity is largely grounded right now, the travel industry has a long road ahead in terms of its recovery.  And so goes its advertising.

Weisler: What do you recommend as next steps for companies?

Baker-Prewitt: First, understand that the landscape of American consumers is not homogeneous, and learn how it’s segmented. Then zero in on the segments most pertinent to their company’s product offering.  While some brands and companies do appeal to and serve all eight of the segments, most have a subset of segments that they target because of the nature of their products or services.  And even if they would like to sell to a broad range of the segments, our data shows that they are more relevant to and popular among certain segments.

After that, really understand how consumer segments are enduring this pandemic differently. Take a walk in their shoes; empathize with them. Learn who they are in permanent sense and in a “right now” sense in terms of coping. Knowing their core tensions will help brand managers and marketers see what functional and emotional needs consumers have, and that will uncover product and service opportunities, as well as ways to develop effective messaging.

Weisler: Will you repeat this study to see any changes over time?

Baker-Prewitt: The short answer is YES.  In 2021, we will check in with our segments through additional research to understand how the size of the segments might have shifted, what new worries these consumers have, how their behaviors have changed, and how they see the future unfolding.  We’ll do this research to continue to help businesses as they strive to serve consumers and maintain authentic connections with them through an extraordinary time in history, and beyond.

This article first appeared in www.Mediapost.com