Audience classification: Demographics and Psychographics

The first aspect of the Audience key concept we need to study is how media companies target and classify audiences.

In order to do this, we need to learn about audience demographics and psychographics. These are two crucial aspects of how audiences are classified and identified by media companies. 

Notes from today's lesson on Audience

Demographic classification:

• Age
• Gender
• Education
• Social class
• Race/ethnicity
• Job/profession/earnings
• Home (city/village/countryside)

*Remember our acronym: CAGE

• Class (social)
• Age
• Gender
• Ethnicity 

Social class classification

Advertisers have traditionally classified people into the following groups:

• AB – Managerial and professional 
• C1 – Supervisory and clerical 
• C2 – Skilled manual 
• DE – Unskilled manual and unemployed

Audience profiling

Advertisers these days are interested in more than just a social class classification. Now they try to sell a brand or lifestyle and therefore need to know more about their audience than simply age, gender or where they live.

So we also need to think about the kind of brands audiences are interested in and what this says about their lifestyle and interests. Is this product aimed at people who buy Armani and Porsche? Banana Republic and Apple? John Lewis and The Times? Lush and the Vegan Store? Peppa Pig and Haribo? The brands we buy or like say a lot about our personality and attitudes in life.

Psychographics

Media companies use audience profiling to create a more detailed picture of their audience. This means looking at the audience's personality, interests and the brands and lifestyle they enjoy. Young and Rubicam identified a range of different groups that became known as Psychographics. You can revise the different psychographic groups here.

Demographics and Psychographics: blog tasks

Create a new blogpost called 'Demographics and Psychographics'.

1) How do media companies classify (groups) potential audiences for their products? (think about demographics) 

2) What are the names of the seven different psychographic groups that Young and Rubicam use to profile audiences?

3) What psychographic group or groups do YOU belong in? Think about your own interests and lifestyle and explain your decision. Remember, you may fit into two or three different groups! 

Look at this edition of Heat magazine (one of our named CSP's when we study Magazines)

4) Who are the target demographics for this Heat magazine front cover and why? (CAGE)

5) Which psychographic groups would consume this Heat magazine and write a typical description of who they are and what they enjoy? (PAILS) 

Now watch this trailer of The Great British Bake Off

6) Who are the target demographics for The Great British Bake Off TV show and why? (CAGE)

7) Which psychographic groups would consume this TV show and write a typical description of who they are and what they enjoy? (PAILS) 

In your answers, please ensure that you write any of today's key vocabulary in Purple and any other media terminology in Red.

You can read more about audience targeting on BBC Bitesize here.

Due date: on Show My Homework