Lifestage Segmentation

Portrait of the Lower-Income Mature

Overview

They are over 45 years old, have no children in the house and have an annual household income under $30,000. The Lower-Income Mature (LIM) represent 11 percent of the population. They are less likely to be married than their “Mature” counterparts, but about the same number have grandchildren. Less than half attended college.

Politically they are very similar to the Middle-Income Mature group: basically conservative or middle of the road. Only 14 percent consider themselves moderate/very liberal.

Two-thirds live in a single family home and 68 percent own their own home. While this is the lowest of any of the Mature groups, it is relatively high when compared to other low-income categories, reminding us that [even though it is not stated in the study] these folks might well have homes that are paid for and therefore have more discretionary income that would be supposed based on their household income.

They drive very little. Three-quarter drive fewer than 12,000 miles a year. Seventy-four percent consider themselves Caucasian/Hispanic. Nine percent are Hispanic/Latino, 14 percent are African American/Black.

Newspaper Readership & Newspaper Web Site Usage

These are newspaper readers. Readership numbers, though they fell somewhat, are the smallest loss of any segment. However, in the decade from 1995 to 2005 there was a 12 point drop in the LIM who agree that they “need to get the news every day.”

They are primarily subscribers, and as is the case with all the Mature groups, failure to protect the franchise among them could seriously affect overall circulation numbers. Typically, they purchase the paper more for the news articles and features rather than for the advertising.

They are more likely to spend an hour or more reading the paper than any other segment.

When those who read the newspaper were asked if they had a favorite newspaper section, the response was 1) Local News, 2) Sports, 3) Main News, 4) Comics and 5) Puzzles. They were the only segment to name puzzles. They read the preprints more than other Mature segment.

When it comes to direct actions taken, the group checks local sales, clips coupons, reads a cartoon, checks the weather, and saves articles. Seventy percent say they use the newspaper to compare prices, an activity also found among Middle-Income Families.

The numbers point to readers who consider the newspaper a worthwhile activity and expense: 65 percent say “I feel better informed after reading my newspaper,” 71 percent feel that reading the paper “helps me know more about my community,” and 74 percent say they enjoy reading newspapers. The LIM includes the highest percent of people who feel that reading the paper is a mentally engaging activity.

Though not heavy users of the newspaper Web site, when the Lower-Income Mature go to the site, three-quarters cite local or regional news as the primary driver. National news and weather are the next two reasons given. Their use of the site for sports scores is considerably below average, just edging out the Lower-Income Young for the lowest use.

Their use of almost all information on a newspaper Web site is below average. Two notable exceptions: LIM has the highest percentage of users for columns, blogs, and opinion pieces, and the highest use of reader-submitted information.

Only 4 percent said they cancelled their home delivered subscription because of their use of the Web site. About a quarter of them used the newspaper Web site instead of purchasing a single copy paper.

Internet & Technology Adoption

The LIM are the least aggressive in terms of technology use. While they are growing in their use of the Internet, it is the smallest of any group in the study.

They fall below the average in use of most Internet applications, except in using email and online banking, where they rank average in their use. Even among those who used the Internet in the past 30 days they are the lowest users when it comes to getting news and information online. When they do go online for this information, they use the newspaper Web site less than they use Google, Yahoo and the local TV station site.

They are also the segment least likely to seek local entertainment information online, and the least likely to seek classified information online.

Their adoption of all technology, such as DVD players, digital cameras, cell phones and computers is all below average and in most situations the smallest percentage of adoption among any segment.

Shopping

The Lower-Income Mature had the smallest percentage that shopped for any item in the past seven days and the largest percentage of Monday through Thursday shoppers. They are three times as likely to be Wal-Mart shoppers as Target shoppers.

They are the least likely to be Internet shoppers, falling behind every other segment in the percentage of people that research or purchase products online. When they do research/shop online, they are most likely to go to a store Web site or go to Yahoo. Fewer than one in ten goes to the newspaper Web site for purchasing and research.

Following the pattern found in other groups, those who do go online for research and offline to shop will use the Internet to compare features, compare prices and check availability.

Advertising

Newspaper was the dominant source for advertising in the past seven days for most people, but the highest among the Mature segments. Sixty-three percent of LIM cited the newspaper as the media used to check ads in the past seven days. Direct mail and television both came in far behind. The Internet was almost inconsequential as an ad medium among this group.

Over half used inserts from the newspaper in the past seven days. About a third used circulars from the mail in the same period of time. They also pay attention to the inserts in free publications with nearly half looking at some of the inserts. However, once more their loyalty is to the newspaper. Two-thirds regularly look at the inserts that come with the newspaper.

Among those who use inserts, 90 percent regularly check for Sunday inserts from grocery stores, and over half check for department stores, discount stores, home building centers and drug stores.

Recommendations

The study doesn’t specifically outline strategies for maximizing relationships with this group.

The tactile print product is still a favorite. There has been only slight loss of readership among these people as a segment, which indicates there is a loyalty to the print product and to subscriptions, which brings up the question of what will happen to circulation numbers if too much advertising disappears from the print product. Will their loyalty remain or is there a significant “hit” to be taken?

Strong content that is developed online could well maintain the core relationship even with changing in-paper content. More content online that appeals particularly to this group – puzzles, columns, blogs, and an opportunity to express themselves through reader-generated content – could be an important strategy in an ongoing relationship with the LIM.

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About the Author

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For more information, contact Randy Bennett, NAA vice president, audience and new business development, at randy.bennett@naa.org.