Morphing of America
I recently read an interesting summary in the Wall Street Journal, by authors Dougherty, Rigdon and Overberg, summarizing the changes in American demographics since the last census in 2010. Typically, demographic changes are like glacial movements - slow and not very exciting. But while it’s unlikely these changes will be the subject of the next hit movie, music video or social media meme, there are a couple of items you should sit up and take notice of. Why? Well, ignoring them will send your marketing and sales efforts down a bumpy road with bad suspension.
Key Changes
· The U.S. is still growing, +19MM people, +6%, but not equally everywhere
· The middle of the country is diversifying as jobs pull-in people of different backgrounds. In some locations, the ‘diversity index’ (the chance that two randomly chosen people differ by race or ethnicity) doubled
· Almost 14% of all Americans were born abroad, near 1890 levels, in spite of slowing immigration
· Urban growth is slowing and more African Americans are moving South, from Northern metro areas
· A record low 9.8% of Americans moved in 2019, potentially driven by a growing gap in housing costs
· People are living longer with life expectancy increasing to 78.7 years and record low birth rates (19%) which is ‘graying’ America
· While married couples make up 47.9% of households, down from 51.7% in 2000, married couples with children under 18 years are now just 18.3% of all households
· Texas, Florida, North Carolina all experienced significant growth with new residents, while the Northeast barely grew 1%, and some states even shrinking
So What?
These are just a few of the important changes in the complexion of America, and probably impact the individuals your organization is targeting with marketing and sales efforts. Adjusting for these nuances is key to optimizing your investment traction to effectively reach your best prospects. Organizations cannot afford to market by looking in the rear-view mirror and need this type of good data to make wise, informed business decisions.
Make Change you Friend
We often find great companies using great CRM systems with old customer or prospect data. The net result is a big ‘thud’ on sales and marketing ROI. Especially now, when every dollar counts(and when doesn’t it?), ‘garbage in/garbage out’ couldn’t be more real.
There is so much change as a result of the Corona crisis right now, that if you haven’t updated and re-energized your data, you WILL miss your mark. Now is a great time to recognize the strategic-demographic shift happening in the country, as well as temporary, crisis-driven changes, and put your CRM house in order! Good data has been, and will continue to be, a significant competitive advantage for those organizations using information correctly.
How Brooks Integrated Marketing and ProspectsIM Can Smooth your Road to Success
Brooks Integrated Marketing can perform all levels of hygiene on your data to assure you are using the most accurate data in your sales and marketing efforts. Additionally, ProspectsIM can add incremental customer or prospect demographics that will help you increase your targeting and focus your prospecting even further.
Who are these Guys?
BrooksIM is an integrated marketing firm that specializes in cleaning and appending customer databases, as well as discovering client target markets. We help you succeed by providing quality data analysis and a commitment to listening to our clients’ needs.
Our consultants have decades of experience with seasoned marketing and data knowledge. With our combined experience and expertise, our team is well suited to help you accomplish your business goals.
