TARGET MARKET- AMERICAN GURU

Are Asian-Americans a valuable demographic segment to target?

Absolutely, says Ronnie Fok, executive VP of A Partnership, inc., a New York City-based advertising agency.

Marketing to Asians have been a primary focus for the first time, through out the United States, in 2006. And, will continue to be the target for many years to come. Asian-Americans are rapidly moving up the growth curve.

“Although relatively smaller in absolute size, the affluent Asian market offers tremendous opportunity,” says Fok. Asians who represented only 3.6 percent of the U.S. population have the highest median family income of all groups.

Some statistics and census data puts the figure at $51,200, more than $10,000 above the average U.S. household.

Fok’s agency predicts that the Asian population, now at 10.3 million, will reach 40 million by the year 2050.

However, targeting this market might not be an easy task for large and small companies through the United States. It is a very complex group because of its diversity. Asian-Americans come from different countries of origin, and different languages. This group even speaks many different languages within their own individual countries. They live and approach life from different perspectives based on their religions, customs and traditions. No to mention the fact, that, they also come from different social backgrounds and levels of education.

Asian-Americans represent six percent of the American population. They could be segmented as following: China with 21 percent, the Philippines with 18 percent, Vietnam and Korea with 10 percent, Japan with 9 percent and India with 11 percent. The majority of Asian-Americans live in metropolitan areas; such a geographical clustering helps in American companies targeting purposes. Most of the cities, in America, where Asian-Americans live are: Los Angeles, New York, Honolulu, Chicago, New Jersey, and Miami.

Past “wisdom” had marketers treating the Asian-American community as a homogeneous unit and appealing to its shared “American-ness.” New thinking has American companies devising campaigns to address differences. Packaged Facts, a leading marketing research company, says brands are using specialty agencies that “have a firmer grasp on the cultural and linguistic nuances that can make or break an Asian-American campaign.”

Fok says that in order to target and position your company among the Asian-American Market, to do the following: Find the Asian customers who are valuable and worth pursuing. But, do not forget to separate them into homogenous groups. Make sure that you determine reasonable costs. Make campaigns relevant. “Data is meaningless unless you apply the proper marketing strategies, “he says.”

Is it financial rewarding to pursue this complex, yet, fascinating group? Absolutely!
The percentage growth of Asian-American purchase power has jumped 124 percent to $254 billion in 1990 – more than any other minority group, says the University of Georgia-Center of Economic Growth.

During my research, I found that Asian-Americans out-index all other groups when it comes to having a computer in their home, purchasing products on the internet, and using the internet for financial transactions. Asians also continue to out-distance Caucasians and white-Spanish in education. Census indicates that 46 percent of Asian-Americans hold at least a bachelor’s degree, compared to 31 percent of Caucasians and White-Spanish.

It would be a mistake to paint the entire Asian population as rich and well-educated though; many residents are recent immigrants. Sixty-six percent are foreign born, and 63 percent use their native language at home. Twenty-three percent have five or more members in their family, compared to Caucasians and Spanish, says the census.

But in despite of the facts described above, American companies need to pay attention to this group and watch the numbers. They have a great saying, participation and play in our great service oriented industry. Asian-Americans are a minority of relevance in today’s market; nevertheless, a challenging process, it would prove financially rewarding for the large and small American Companies.

Diana Benavides

This article is patented by its author: Diana Benavides