Affluent People Prefer Traditional Media
The new Ipsos MediaCT’s 2012 Mendelsohn Affluent Survey, subtitled “The State of the Affluent Consumer,” looked at households with an annual income of USD100,000 or more and their habits and provided some interesting conclusions. Roughly put, the main finding is that these people, the affluents as they are called and the ultra-affluents (those who earn USD250,000 or more per year), prefer printed publications to digital ones.
Speaking in percentages, 82% of those with a $100,000 or higher annual household income are reading more print publications, with women in these households being heavy print consumers.
Other facts resulting from this survey are that luxury segments of many consumer product categories that performed well under the economical situation, and the opportunity for brands generated by the willingness of people in this category to spend more if they see more quality for their money.
The exposure to digital content rose among affluents, more than half now owning a smartphone, 26% personally owning a tablet, and 47% living in a household with such a gadget.
“I think that instead being of satiated, consumers are made more hungry for content. We have yet to see the point that people are tired of it. There’s real growth in interest@ declared Steve Kraus, chief research and insights officer for Ipsos MediaCT’s Audience Measurement Group. It’s a bit like the all-you-can-eat buffet making you hungrier to try something else.”
“There’s this desire for curated content,” he adds. “Of course you can go on the internet and get stuff from anywhere, and you don’t know the source and quality. So people look to brands for a guide. Affluents have a hunger for content synthesized from multiple sources in a thoughtful way, particularly as there is more and more information out there.”
Television advertising is number one when it comes to reach and receptivity among affluents, magazines being ranking second.
Social media networks are also more frequently used by affluents. In fact, 63% of the respondents said they visited Facebook (up from 58% last year), and 18% visited LinkedIn (from 13% in the previous year).
The segmentation from the age point of view shows that the largest group, 39%, is formed by baby boomers, followed by Generation X, with 33%, millennials, with 20% and the elderly, 8%.
The findings of this survey are of the most importance for luxury brands, marketers and agencies working for them as they help them plan a better communication and promotion strategy based on a better understanding of their target audiences.
Most likely, this doesn’t come as a surprise to PR firms who work in this sector, including Alison Brod PR, Ketchum PR or David Milberg, a consultant to the wealthy.
