5 Truths of the digital African American consumer · The “5 Truths of the digital African American Consumer” reveal where African American online behavior aligns with the general

5 Truths of the digital African American consumer

2 | Source: Google U.S. African Americans, June 2011 OTX

Google U.S. African Americans

Study objectives and methodologyIn March of 2011, Google partnered with GlobalHue to conduct proprietary research in the African American market. As the U.S. leader in African American marketing, GlobalHue worked closely with Google and their supplier Ipsos OTX MediaCT to design and execute a study that looked closely at online consumption patterns.This document provides both direct findings and implications from those findings

There are approximately 27M African Americans online, spending an average of 32% of their time online, second only in media consumption to television at 35%. With a buying power expected to exceed $1 trillion in 2012, it is important for brands and marketers alike to gain a deeper understanding of how the African American demographic interacts with digital media. The “5 Truths of the digital African American Consumer” reveal where African American online behavior aligns with the general population and where there is a clear distinction, unveiling opportunity to create meaningful digital connections with this demographic.

We discovered that the African American demographic actively participates in the digital village, utilizing multiple platforms to research products, connect with other consumers, and create a strong and vocal online community. African Americans are also on the vanguard of digital consumption, using search, mobile, video, and social media more extensively than their general market counterparts. Additionally, this demographic is also overall more receptive to digital marketing.

Within search behavior, we discovered that search engines have a significantly greater impact for African Americans. African Americans are particularly active and successful with the search process and receptive to search results ads, highlighting a key opportunity with this segment. 96% of African Americans are happy with their search results all or most of the time and 92% of this segment prefers using Google. African Americans also use search more frequently than the general market as a means to discover more about the brands they encounter through traditional marketing such as television and outdoor media.

We also discovered key differences within mobile, social media, and online video consumption behaviors. More African Americans own SmartPhones than the general market (51% vs. 45%), and that they are more receptive to and interact more frequently with mobile advertising. African Americans are also more frequent users of social media. Significantly more African Americans use Twitter than the general market, giving them the ability to share their thoughts with each other and brands frequently and with ease. African Americans also make and read comments on video sites and utilize search to prompt further word of mouth engagement about brand, product, or service recommendations. Video sites are used more in learning about or introducing them to products, assisting decision making, and prompting action.

Finally, we discovered that African Americans no longer see the path to purchase as purely linear. This demographic starts researching information for their purchases much earlier in the process, and utilize the Internet throughout. The ease and efficiency of shopping online drives African Americans to look to mobile, social, and search in their pre-purchase decisions. Video sites are utilized more than the general population throughout the purchasing process.

As our research reveals, it is increasingly important to develop a 360 degree digital strategy in order to connect with African American consumers as their digital village continues to grow.

Executive summary

Search engine ads

Click on the ads

Ads useful to their goals

More likely to notice

Notice mobile ads

Rep(n=789) AA(n=4,211)

71%

78%

16%

23%

21%

31%

20%

34%

31%

40%

Receptive to digital marketing

5 digital truths about African Americans

African Americans are ahead of the digital curve, utilizing video, mobile, and other platforms to interact online

African Americans are vocal – digital is their microphone

African Americans are avid searchers

African Americans are more thorough in their pre-purchase research

African Americans are more receptive to digital marketing



All media channels are heavily attended by African Americans and a “360” marketing initiative can be tailor made, perhaps more than any other group.African Americans are very social and community oriented while attending to all forms of media in greater propensity than others.

Key findings and implications

Usage Rep AA Difference

Internet (computer or mobile device with Internet access 100% 100% 0.0%

Search engines 86% 84% -2.0%

Emails or newsletters 66% 69% 3.0%

Retail website 72% 67% -5.0%

Social networking sites 59% 62% 3.0%

Video sharing websites 50% 55% 5.0%

Brand of manufacturer websites 53% 48% -5.0%

Health information websites 48% 46% -2.0%

General consumer 43% 43% 0.0%

Coupon websites 42% 36% -6.0%

Review websites, blogs or message boards 36% 30% -6.0%

Full-length TV programming websites 29% 31% 2.0%

Magazine websites 19% 27% 8.0%

Finance-related websites 22% 21% -1.0%

Smartphone (own) 45% 53% 8.0%

Other 7% 6% -1.0%

Offline-NET 97% 96% -1.0%

Television 73% 81% -2.0%

Friends/Family-NET 76% 74% -2.0%

Family 63% 61% -4.0%

Friends or colleagues 64% 60% 5.0%

In-Store displays 56% 61% 3.0%

Magazines 49% 52% 4.0%

Newspapers 45% 49% 6.0%

Flyers or circulars 43% 49% 3.0%

Radio 36% 39% -1.0%

Sales associate 34% 33% -1.0%

Books 24% 29% 5.0%

Experts 25% 21% -4.0%

1. First TruthAfrican Americans are ahead of the digital curve, utilizing video, mobile, and other platforms to interact online



1. First TruthAfrican Americans are ahead of the digital curve, utilizing video, mobile, and other platforms to interact online

Friend or colleague

Books

NewspapersTelevision

Flyers or circulars

In-store displays

Experts

81% 60% 61% 49%

49% 29% 21%

Word of Mouth (WOM).As marketers look to strike the perfect balance between traditional and digital media investment, it is important to understand the role that conventional channels play for African Americas as they gather information. WOM [Word of Mouth] is the third most important channel (behind television and Internet) for African Americans as they learn about new products and brands.

The research shows that while traditional forms still resonate strongly with African Americans, they also turn online for continued research and validation; thus bridging the gap between traditional and digital media and demonstrating their need for engagement in the digital village.

Lessons learned from the WOM paradigm can be directly applied in the overall media strategy. African Americans frequently bring this WOM behavior online. Instead of just WOM, we now see “word of texts¨, ¨word of video posts¨and ¨word of tweets¨, all of which are digital forms of communicating with trusted friends and colleagues.

This implies that the communication strategy should engage in open dialog with this consumer at all points of the funnel and maintain a two-way conversation across all media channels.



2. Second TruthAfrican Americans are vocal - digital is their microphone

Is your brand a part of the conversation?African Americans do very similar levels of activities on video sites as Rep, although they are more inclined to comment on other people’s videos (66%-60% Rep) and read other people’s comments (33%-30%Rep).

As with Rep, the most common action taken after visiting a video site is spreading word of mouth about what was learned.Course of action taken as a result of visiting an online video site.

Primarily ‘liking’ them African Americans and Rep have the same types of interactions with brands on social networking sites.

y 59% of African Americans are likely to talk to someone about something they learned from searching

y 46% of African Americans recommended a brand, product or service, as an action from search, compared to 44% Rep

y 57 % talked to others about something learned from watching an online video y 39% recommended a brand, product or service to others

Social networking site usageFound information on a brand,

product or service

Recommended a brand, product or service

Liked a brand, company, product or service

‘Followed’ a brand or company

38%

31%

59%

32%

18% 26%

Rep(n=789) AA(n=4,211)



3. Third TruthAfrican Americans are avid searchers

Search Engines have a significantly greater impact for African Americans.African Americans are very digitally connected. When it comes to leveraging the Web in their shopping process, search engines are a powerful tool. In fact, African Americans feel that their searches are more fruitful all or most of the time; well over one third get the results they want everytime. African Americans are also receptive to search results ads, seeing them as a useful source of information, highlighting a key opportunity with this segment. More notice the paid search ads (78% vs. 71% for Rep), more click on the ads (20% vs. 16% for Rep), and many more find those ads useful to their goals (34% vs. 23%).

Sometimes Most of the time All of the time

Rep(n=789)5%

66%

29%

African American(n=4,211)3%

60%

37%

Success of search

African Americans are bigger consumers of the search; almost three quarters use it multiple times a day.

y 72 % African Americans use search on a daily basis versus 66% of Rep



4. Fourth TruthAfrican Americans are more thorough in their pre-purchase research

More steps, more deliberate in purchase process [particularly in auto and technology]. In the past, one argument multicultural marketers have made is that African American consumers are incredibly brand loyal, almost blindly. This research shows that isn’t so. In fact, African Americans are just as brand loyal as Rep. online with the exception of categories such as beauty that address ethnic needs.

The research also suggests that African Americans may be taking more steps than Rep. in their purchase process. For example, African Americans overwhelmingly turn to online videos for testimonials, product demos and to read comments before considering a purchase.

For any category, African Americans are all starting at the same point of the online shopping process by first performing searches. But each category differs in purchase/engagement funnel process. For instance, with the car being a big ticket item, the African American consumer is likely to be very deliberate in their funnel process.

They are likely to do multiple searches at any time in their purchase horizon. They may also change their minds at any time and switch brand intentions if another brand demonstrates a strong competitive advantage.

African Americans more likely to search when exposed on other media. African Americans use search to validate other media platforms .

have searched for something they saw on a TV ad (78% general market)

have searched for something they saw featured in a TV show (62% general market)

have searched online for something they received in the mail (47% general market)

have searched for something they saw in an out of home ad (46% general market)

82%

67%

53%

51%

Social media is changing the way African American approaches the shopping process. Social media allows African Americans to engage in more conversations during the shopping process. While popular sites like Facebook are still on top, they are carrying on additional communications on less popular sites more than Rep.



African Americans rely on smartphones to bridge the gap. Considering their on and offline lives are becoming more blended, smartphones play a critical role in bridging the on and offline shopping process.

Similarly, the smartphone is employed at the same stages of the pruchase path for both groups.

Technology African Americans also have a much longer path to purchase when it comes to technology.

After doing online research (search engine, retail website, brand.com) they may be taking the extra step to check out online videos, more general searches about the brand, looking for promotions/incentives, contacting retailer and then going to the store to make that purchase.

Again, that shows a serious inclination to get that purchase right, be ahead of the tech curve and get the right value for what they buy.

When using smartphone during shopping process

Other 22%10%

35% 33%

94%

10%

1%


Rep(n=789) AA(n=4,211)

Used at the very beginning of my research

Used throughout my decision making process

Used in the middle of my research

Used at the very end of my research

38%

10%4%

50%45%

10%3%

43%

Online video site visitation

It’s no surprise that they use the Internet early and often in their information gathering process.

y 45 % African Americans gravitate towards the Internet early in their shopping and information gathering process while, the general population is more inclined to spread their use throughout the cycle.

They use video sharing websites more to gather information I have “to see it to believe “ Video helps African Americans determine product/brand/service relevance. Videos are relied on to validate and authenticate communications. They look to product reviews from people like them and how-to instructional videos to help determine relevance.



Video sharing sites assist African Americans much more so than Rep across all stages of the product purchase path. They find them more helpful in learning about or introducing them to products, assisting decision making, and prompting action.

As a result of a search, they are also more inclined to visit an online video site, and they spend more minutes per visit on them once there (52 vs. 42 minutes).

While the types of videos watched and activities performed on video sites are similar to Rep, African Americans are more apt to watch feature length films, look up beauty information and comment on others’ videos while visiting.

Regardless of channel, the inclination toward video demonstrates the importance of insuring content is very graphic and visual when developing marketing strategies.

Types of online videos viewed while shopping/making purchasing decisions

Ways online sources helpHelped me learn more

Introduced me to a

product/information I didn’t know

Provided informa-

tion to help me make a

decision

Prompted me to visit a

retailer

Prompted me to

make a purchase in-store

Prompted me to make a purchase

in-store

Prompted me to talk to others

Rep AA Rep AA Rep AA Rep AA Rep AA Rep AA Rep AA

Brand or manufacturer websites 62% 61% 38% 38% 53% 45% 31% 29% 33% 33% 25% 24% 15% 14%

Search engines 77% 79% 40% 39% 55% 51% 30% 28% 23% 21% 28% 26% 16% 16%

Social networking sites 37% 39% 27% 29% 22% 22% 16% 16% 10% 10% 12% 10% 42% 43%

Video sharing websites 46% 53% 28% 37% 25% 31% 9% 15% 8% 12% 10% 14% 21% 23%

Base: Source Users(n varies by types of source Rep: 305-680), African American 2004-3551

Product reviews/ratings from people like me

Product reviews/ratings from experts

How ‘to’ or instructional videos

Informational (e.g., about the product, gift ideas etc.)

Videos from retailers

Retailer advertisements

Testimonials

Other

53%

51%

45%

49%

35%

33%

37%

9%




5. Fifth TruthAfrican Americans are more receptive to digital marketing

Emotional relevance to my life first, rational “nuts & bolts” of product second. In general African Americans are more concerned that ads – whatever their platform or content are relevant to them.

How should marketers speak to the African American community?

African Americans place more importance on general relevance and ethnic diversity than the Rep population. This implies that an ad that merely has African American faces isn’t necessarily going to persuade them to buy.

African Americans (like Rep) place more emphasis on an ad’s personal context relevance [humor content and variety] than simple ethnic acknowledgment.

A very important piece of this research, African Americans are seeking ad content that is truly relevant. [Other published research confirms this same premise.] Therefore, it is critical to develop targeted African American marketing campaigns with relevant messaging insights and content.

One implication is that there is a link between African Americans’ need for advertising relevance and their propensity for online video watching in the shopping process.African Americans look to see how a product can be applied and used in their life first before getting to the nuts and bolts product info that they might find on a website.

Ethnically relevant content is still important for key categories. African Americans are most likely to search for entertainment/media or consumer package goods. Entertainment shows up in research as a “over index” for African Americans in nearly every case. Beauty is a particularly high indexing category for African Americans due to its specific product applications.

one in five African Americans care that ads contain models of their same ethnicity

Roughly half of African Americans find having relevant ads an important factor

during the research process

Searched category related to ethnicity Phrases searched related to ethnicity

African American

Black

People of Color

Afro American

Other

None

Entertainment and media

Automobiles

Financial products

Telecom-wireless or cell phone

Coupons

Travel

Healthcare Items

Retail

Consumer packaged goods

66%61%

57%

46%

44%

29%

27%

25%

24%

20%

13%

10%

50%

5%

7%



Extreme loyal or somewhat loyal (African American)

Low (0-$49k)

Medium ($50-

$100k)

High ($100k+)

All categories 68% 66% 64%

Auto 57% 60% 73%

Tech 75% 74% 69%

QSR 64% 66% 59%

CPG 64% 75% 76%

Two thirds of ethnic based searchs by African Americans use the phrase ‘African American’, while just half use ‘Black’; all other terms are used far less commonly. During the search process, “term search” is a key element in information relevance.

Not every African American is brand loyal in the same way.Although the research indicated that African Americans as a whole were just as likely as Rep to be brand loyal, not all behave the same way. As an example, within the auto category, both lower and medium income groups may be considerably less brand loyal than Rep, while the higher income group could be more. This is why it is important to perform demographic drill downs into the data. The implication is that it is not a one size fits all marketing solution.

Loyalty today doesn’t mean loyalty tomorrow.Often marketers have a “do nothing” approach when it comes to maintaining their success with the African American market. They believe that it doesn’t matter whether they speak to African Americans or not because this group will still buy from them.

However, it is not a one size fits all loyalty solution. As illustrated below, each category demonstrated distinct loyalty patterns.

Although, the research highlighted the key high level online shopping and behavioral differences between African Americans, multivariate analysis uncovered some key findings:

Lower income African Americans are looking for the deal, while greater income can afford to stay with context relevant brands.

Exception: Technology where lower income African Americans are willing to cut back on other things in order to afford latest technology.

Marketing to African Americans requires a more sophisticated approach.The Google/GlobalHue research clearly demonstrates that greater reliance on the Internet, search and video usage specifically, are key differentiators for the African American market.

Their search for relevance and the desire for social connectivity demonstrate the need for marketers to be masters of contextual insights when developing communications platforms.

Category demonstration

5. Fifth TruthAfrican Americans are more receptive to digital marketing

Documents

5 Truths of the digital African American consumer · The “5 Truths of the digital African American Consumer” reveal where African American online behavior aligns with the general