Features like age, gender, nationality or ethnicity don’t carry solid information about customers anymore. We used to profile target group’s interests, values and habits basing on demography. According to Trendwatching Report, that is no longer a case. Nowadays demography doesn’t offer reliable point of reference. For marketers it means big changes in how we shape and address our communication and target customers.
1 Post-demographic consumerism: demography is not a limit
Customers don’t care about how they should behave. In 2012-2013 most rapidly growing group of Twitter users were people between 55 and 64 years old. In Great Britain the biggest group of video gamers are ladies older than 44 years. Ways of spending free time or products we buy are no longer strictly related to our age or gender or financial status.
2 Demographic similarities can mislead
Hannah Webley-Smith from IAB shows why demographic analysis is problematic on example of Prince Charles and Ozzy Osbourne. It turns out that both gentlemen share the same demographic model:
– born in 1948
– twice married
– two children
– wealthy
– like dogs
Do they seem similar to you?
3 New status symbols
Possibilities of self-creation and spending free time were much more restricted by one’s social status and, simply put, money. Today we have outlets, sales, second-hands, and experience-oriented culture, so individual has a lot of resources and opportunities to shape his/her image. Creativity and social recognition are valued much higher than impressive bank account.
4 Society grows older – don’t target by age
There is also more mundane reason for that process: society growing old. E.g. in Great Britain currently live 10 millions of people over 65 years old. By 2050 that number will almost double – to 19 million. Hence age as targeting tool loses point.
5 Let people feel free from demography
Who will benefit from the process? Brands which can capitalize on customers’ need to set themselves free from demographic limitations. An example of such brand can be Uniqlo – fashion store offering minimalist clothes for everybody. It communicates openly that it transcends all boundaries.
Brands should refer to universal values, such as:
- Freedom
- Creativity
- Passion
- Independence
- Individualism
6 Behavioral analysis needed
Behavioral data are much more credible as they indicate actual behavior. Customer nowadays allow you to monitor more and more their behavior (as long as you offer something in return, as personalized service). Take into consideration more sophisticated analysis modes:
-SALESmanago Copernicus – Machine Learning & AI: tracking exactly what customer sees (not only what s/he clicks)
– Beacons for offline tracking
– Monitoring in mobile application
7 Personalization is crucial
For new, post-demographic society individualism is key value. Customers want to be treated as individual, not as an element of target group. Therefore put emphasis on making him/her feel special and unique. Use:
– dynamic contact forms
– personalized banners and content (in real time)
– push notifications triggered by physical localization of customer (near brick and mortar store).
How to use demographic data?
Demographic data don’t become irrelevant – the trend is just about how customers want to perceive themselves. You should still collect them, but carefully choose situations when you use them. Some branches (pharmacy, insurance) demographic remains vital, however we might want to refer to it very vaguely.
Do you agree with Trendwatching experts? Do our demographic data lose meaning?
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