Monthly Archives: April 2012

Omaha – Is it “typical America”?

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Let me start this blog off by saying I live in Los Angeles.  Often when talking with my friends or colleagues about new devices and gadgets, I hear someone say “everyone has that” where ”that” is a DVR or iPhone or other new high tech gadget.  Or they talk about a movie or television show and assume everyone has seen it.  My response is – what are people doing in Omaha?  I don’t mean this in a disparaging way – rather for some reason I have classified Omaha as place where people are typical Americans – and the people in LA are not – especially ones working in entertainment.  Many of us surround ourselves with people just like ourselves – and assume everyone else is just like us, which we all inherently know is not right.  Most of my friends have some sort of smartphone.  Almost all have a DVR (including my 92-year-old grandmother – no, she doesn’t have a smartphone though she does have a cell phone).  What does the average American do though?  What are people in Omaha doing?  How “average American” are people in Omaha?

According to the 2010 Census, there are 1,080,375 people living in the Omaha, NE Designated Market Area (DMA), which includes 24 counties; 14 in Nebraska, 9 in Iowa and 1 in Missouri.  What do we know about them?

As a whole, the Omaha DMA population is 49.4% male and 50.6% female.  84.4% of the population identifies themselves as White.  9.1% of the population identifies themselves as Hispanic. The median income in 2010 was $55,142, which is just above the US median income of $54,442.

People in Omaha are “average” Americans in many ways.  Here are some key statistics for the overall Omaha DMA:

Activity Index Average Spend per HH per Year
Watch baseball

99

N/A
Own a DVR

101

N/A
Watch American Idol

98

N/A
Health Insurance Cost

101

$1,888.61
Coffee at Home

97

$62.31

All neighborhoods in Omaha are not the same.  Just like the rest of the US, there is diversity in the area.  Retailers, marketers, distributors, and others who have direct consumers need to know where their customers live – or where the opportunity may lie.  Understanding what activities consumers are engaging in or what they are purchasing is critical to knowing where customers and opportunities lie.

Baseball is one of the key all-American sports.   It is popular with millions of Americans who visit ballparks and watch it on television every year.  Unfortunately for Omaha, it does not have a major league team.  The closest team is the Kansas City Royals – almost 200 miles away.  This means that many Omaha residents who are baseball fans watch it on TV.

Baseball TV Viewing Index by Zip Code

Overall, the city is relatively “average” in terms of its baseball viewing.  Residents in zip codes on the outer edge of the area tend to be less interested in watching on television.  One zip code, though, stands out as having an above average viewing index of 143 meaning residents there are 1.43 times more likely to watch baseball on TV.  The zip code is 68113, which is the location of Offutt Air Force Base.

American Idol is one of the most popular television shows on today with a wide range in its viewing audience from age to demographics.  While it isn’t as popular as it once was, millions are still tuning in to watch and vote every week.  On April 16, 2012, 15.3 million households tuned in to view the results show, according to Nielsen (prior seasons have had 20-30 million viewers per show).  That’s over 13% of all households in the US.  Residents of Omaha are typically American when it comes to American Idol with an index of 98.  Neighborhoods around Omaha do vary.

American Idol Viewing Index by Zip Code

The index of American Idol viewers is similar to that of baseball viewers.  People living closer to the city of the Omaha DMA have average viewing habit and people living near the edges have below average viewing habits, as compared to the typical American.  This may indicate that these are simply the people who watch TV.  The zip code with the highest index (147) is again 68113 indicating that those on The Offutt Air Force Base are much more likely to tune in.

Digital video recorders (DVRs) have made a big impact in the media industry.  Enabling consumers to shift their television viewing from appointment viewing to on-demand has greatly affected how media companies market and distribute their product.  Living in a city where media is one of the main industries and everyone knows someone in the “industry”, there is a skew in the belief about DVRs – that everyone has one.  It’s not quite true – it’s somewhere around 50% of US households.  While this isn’t something to ignore, knowing that half the country still watches TV live (or on VHS tapes) is important and can affect what type of content is developed and how it is distributed.  How does Omaha stack up?

As pointed out above, Omaha is average in terms of households owning a DVR.  It has an index of 101.  Not all areas of Omaha are the same though.

DVR Ownership Index by Zip Code

While overall the city is average in terms of DVR ownership, there are distinct differences in areas around the city.  The zip codes with a high index all have high median incomes – over $65,000.  All of these zip codes are located in or very close to the actual city of Omaha.  The zip codes with lower indices for DVR ownership all primarily away from Omaha and on the outskirts of the Omaha DMA.

Knowing what consumers spend their money on and how much is key to understanding their preferences and what they may or may not buy in the future.  Coffee is a key part of many people’s day.  While many go to Starbucks to consume their favorite caffeinated beverage, many also simply buy it at home and consume it there.  The average American household spends about $64.20 on coffee each year.  The average household in the Omaha DMA spends slightly less – $62.31.

Average HH Annual Coffee Spend at Home by Zip Code

There are just a few neighborhoods in Omaha where, overall, the spending on coffee is either well above or below average.  There are a couple of neighborhoods, though, where either coffeehouses or coffee distributors want to understand their demographics as they are big purchasers of coffee at home.  Three zip codes have an average household spending of coffee of over $100 per year.  They are 68130, 68135, and 68118.  These are all high income zip codes with median incomes over $90,000.  Their dominant tapestry groups are all Boomburbs.  More about tapestry segments and segmentation can be found at www.esri.com/tapestry.

Health insurance is a concern of most Americans.  The average American pays about $1,865 annually for it.  Many factors go into how much one pays including family size, age, health condition, and much more.  It can also vary based on where you live – from the state, city, and even neighborhood.  The average household in Omaha pays slightly more – $1888.61.

Average HH Health Insurance Spend by Zip Code

While it’s difficult to say why one area has higher health insurance than another as there are so many complex factors, we can determine that overall in Omaha, the range that a household pays is “typical”.  That said, there are areas that pay much higher than average.  The top three are the same top three zip codes as the coffee ones – 68130, 68135, and 68118.  This may speak to the fact that these are higher income areas whose residents are able to spend on items they want and need.  Households in these top three zip codes spend, on average, $2,878.09 per year on health insurance.  This is 50% more than the average American household.  This information can help health industry professionals determine what services or clinics may be needed in an area.

What does this all mean in terms of Omaha?  Well, in these criteria, it is fairly “typically American.”  I am sure there are other criteria where it is much different.  It’s important for companies to understand each individual market – and even neighborhood – as there are distinct differences among them.

This is the first in a series about various local markets around the country.

More information about Esri’s data can be found at http://www.esri.com/data or to learn more about Esri in general, go to www.esri.com.

DVD vs. Online Spending – Who is Buying What?

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The home video market for movie studios is rapidly changing.  Consumers are watching content online or subscribing to services like Netflix rather than purchasing DVDs.  IHS Screen Digest predicts that for the first time more movies will be watched online than on DVD in 2012.  That said, people are still buying DVDs.  Who are these consumers, where do they live, and how much do they spend?  Are these the same consumers who are paying for online video or are they different?

Let’s first tackle how much people spend on DVDs.  The average household in the United States spends approximately $50.76 per year on DVDs and video cassettes.  (Going forward we will just refer to DVDs since the VHS market is very small, but the numbers encompass both.)  The zip codes where households spend the most on DVDs live primarily along the eastern seaboard and in some California coastal cities.  The zip codes with the top average household spending on DVDs are:

Zip Code City Average Spent per HH per Year
10007 New York, NY

$146.36
33965 Fort Myers, FL

$145.35
10282 New York, NY

$130.28
22066 Great Falls, VA

$129.60
07078 Short Hills, NJ

$127.46

The online video market is similar to the DVD market in some areas of the country and different than others.  For example, more people in the Midwest spend a higher than average amount on DVDs than on online video.  It’s clear that some people are just simply fanatics about content and will purchase it whatever form is available.  Others prefer one platform over the other.  The top online video markets for spending are:

Zip Code City Average Spent per HH per Year
07078 Short Hills, NJ

$4.70
22066 Great Falls, VA

$4.66
10007 New York, NY

$4.60
10514 Chappaqua, NY

$4.58
60043 Kenilworth, IL

$4.57

Note that 3 of the top 5 zip codes for online video spending are the same as DVD spending. Also, 2 out of 3 of these zip codes have median incomes of over $200,000 (07078 and 22066).

Knowing something about the consumers that spend the most on a product or service can be extremely helpful to marketers, product developers, and distributors.  Esri, a geographic information systems company which also does data analysis, developed a tapestry segmentation that classifies US residential neighborhoods into 65 unique market segments based on socioeconomic and demographic characteristics.  This information combined with consumer spending data can give a very telling picture about consumers.

There are 7 tapestry segments in which at least 75% of the census block groups where the tapestry segment is dominant have an average annual spend of $63.51 or more on DVDs.  This is 1.25 times more than the average US household of $50.76.  The segments with the highest percentage of DVD spenders of $63.51 or more are Top Rung, Suburban Splendor, Connoisseurs, and Boomburbs. Residents of Top Rung neighborhoods are mature, married, highly educated, and wealthy.  Boomburbs residents are a similar segment with busy, affluent, young families.  City Commons residents are very young with an average age of 24.6 years and very ethnically diverse.

The people who are willing to pay for online video are very similar to those willing to pay for DVDs, but there are a few that are different.  The ones that overlap indicate that many of the consumers may be platform agnostic – they just want to consume video wherever they area.  The top segments are for online video spending are Top Rung, Connoisseurs, Suburban Splendor, and Wealthy Seaboard Suburbs – which are all in the top 7 for DVD spenders where 75% or more of the census block groups where the segment is dominant spend $63.96 or more per year. In each of these, over 99.8% of the census block groups dominated by those segments have an average of at least $1.70 spent on online video per household per year – and many have much more.   The amount $1.70 is 1.25 times the amount the average American household is spends of $1.36 per year.

There are a few segments with very different purchasing patterns.  For example 92% block groups with City Lights as the dominant tapestry segment have an index of 125 or greater for spending at least $1.70 for online video.   Only 8% of block groups where City Lights is dominant spend at least $63.51(representing an index of 125) on DVDs each year.  This segment is above average in online video spending but below average in DVD spending.  Residents of City Lights are composed of diverse neighborhoods primarily in the Northeast.   The median age is 38.3 and a median household income of $60,149.

It should be noted that DVD spending is still significantly greater than online video spending, so this analysis focusing on the norm for each distribution mechanism, but displays where opportunity is in the immediate future for content distributors.

More information about Esri’s tapestry segmentation can be found at http://www.esri.com/tapestry or to learn more about Esri in general, go to www.esri.com.

US Car Industry – Who is Buying Domestic vs Imported?

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In 2011, Americans spent $206 billion on new cars.  The big three US Car Manufacturers – General Motors, Chrysler, and Ford were 47% of those sales.  What type of consumer is choosing to buy domestic cars over imported ones?  Is there a difference?

The likelihood of someone owning or leasing a domestic vehicle versus an imported vehicle does vary based on where one lives as well as their socioeconomic status as well as other factors.  This piece details some of those differences.

Consumers living in the Midwest, overall, are more likely to own a domestic vehicle than someone in another part of the country.  Some of the zip codes where people are most likely to own a domestic vehicle are:

  • 66442 – For Riley, KS
  • 62225 – Scott Air Force Base, IL
  • 73503 – Fort Sill, OK
  • 85708 – Tucson, AZ
  • 30905 – Augusta, GA

Each of these zip codes have an index of 151 for domestic car ownership or lease meaning a household is 1.51 times more likely to own or lease a domestic-made vehicle than the average American.

People who live in the western part of the US, on the eastern seaboard, and in Florida ore more likely than people in other parts of the country to own or lease imported cars.  Some of the zip codes with the highest index are:

  • 10514 – Chappaqua, NY
  • 02493 – Weston, MA
  • 90263 – Malibu, CA
  • 60022 – Glencoe, IL
  • 06883 – Weston, CT

Each of these zip codes had an index of 167.  This means that a household in that area is 1.67 times more likely than the average American to own or lease an imported vehicle.

Knowing where people live can live and their tendency to purchase a particular item or type of item can be very helpful to marketers and distributors.  Knowing something about the people can be even more critical and helpful.  Esri, a geographic information systems company which also does data analysis, developed a tapestry segmentation that classifies US residential neighborhoods into 65 unique market segments based on socioeconomic and demographic characteristics.

The tapestry segments that have a high likelihood of owning or leasing a domestic vehicle are much different than ones who own or lease an imported vehicle.  There are four tapestry segments in which 100% of the census block neighborhoods where the segment dominates have an index of at least 125.  This means that people in those neighborhoods are at least 1.25 (some are much more) times more likely than the average American to own or lease a domestic vehicle.  These segments are Green Acres, Military Proximity, Prairie Living, and Salt of the Earth.  These segments are pretty different.  Green Acres neighborhoods are located throughout the country, though they are found primarily in the Midwest and South.  They live in pastoral settings of developing suburban.

There are 16 tapestry segments in which 100% of the census block neighborhoods where the segment dominates and have an index of at least 125 for households owning or leasing an imported vehicle.  These segments include Up and Coming Families, Sophisticated Squires, and Wealthy Seaboard Suburbs.  Like the neighborhoods where a household is more likely to own or lease a domestic vehicle, these neighborhoods vary greatly.  Residents of Up and Coming Families neighborhoods are young, affluent families with younger children.  Wealthy Seaboard Suburbs residents are affluent and are primarily located along the California, New York, New Jersey, and New England coasts.

LifeModes and Urbanization can also be used to classify consumers.  Segments within a LifeMode group share an experience such as being born in the same period or a trait such as affluence.   Interestingly, there are few trends of ownership behavior of domestic and imported vehicles using these metrics.  One note is that 100% of the census block neighborhoods where High Society (a LifeMode segment) residents is dominant have an index of 125 or higher for owning or leasing an imported vehicle.

More information about Esri’s tapestry segmentation can be found at http://www.esri.com/data/esri_data/tapestry.html or to learn more about Esri in general, go to www.esri.com.