Are You Targeting the Right Groups?
In a recent article for Forbes, Marianne Bickle reports that the percent of consumers who clicked, surfed, or shopped on the Internet increased by nearly 15% during 2012. Not surprisingly, many Internet users are looking not just to purchase merchandise, but to search for information as well.
Age differences of consumers often determine not only how Internet users shop, but also how they react to advertising messages and what products and services they desire. In December of 2012, an annual Media Behavior & Influence Survey by Prosper Insights & Analytics identified three distinct consumer groups:
Baby Boomers – born between 1946 and 1964
Generation X – born between 1965 and 1982
Generation Y – born between 1983 and 1994
Also analyzed were thirteen categories that consumers would seek information about online. Here are just a few of the trends that were discovered:
Maps and directions were important to consumers – 44.4% of Baby Boomers, 47.2% of Gen X and 44.9% of Gen Y users accessed the Internet regularly looking for these.
Clothing and shoes – 35.8% of Gen X and 44.1% of Gen Y users surfed the Internet regularly for clothing and shoe information.
Movies – 24.8% of Baby Boomers, 40.2% of Gen X, and 45.8% of Gen Y users look up movie information online on a regular basis.
Restaurants – 28% of Baby Boomers, 36.8% of Gen X, and 33.2% of Gen Y users check out information on restaurants on a regular basis.
Traveling – 30.3% of Baby Boomers, 33.3% of Gen X, and 26% of Gen Y users go to the Internet to look up information on places to visit, eat, and shop.
The importance of this information is that it allows retailers to carefully cater to the target market, communicating the content, image, and presentation in a way that is best received by that age group.
How can you identify and target specific customers in your business? The right POS software, like NCR’s Counterpoint, has a feature called CustomerConnect that allows you to track and categorize your customers. Your advertising, specials, and Internet offerings can then be geared to the right groups.
If you would like more information about CustomerConnect, call us now at 425-672-4806 or email us. We’re here to answer your questions.