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Ground Level Blog

A marketer’s view of Baldwin

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When planning for the future of a community it is important to first know who lives in that community. Most of that information is gained from everyday conversation with neighbors or in visioning sessions like the one coming up Tuesday, but it can also be important to know how those outside of Baldwin view the township.

The marketing firm Claritas theorizes that the communities in which people live dramatically affect their purchasing habits and has developed a series of categories they call segments to define different demographic groups. Their website allows you to look up any zip code in the U.S. and find the set of consumers that live there.

What do they have to say about Baldwin? The following are the descriptions for the five segments of people they estimate live in the area:

• The New Homesteaders are "young, upper-middle-class families seeking to escape suburban sprawl [and] find refuge in New Homesteads, a collection of small rustic townships filled with new ranches and Cape Cods." These 25-44 year-olds live in households with kids and lead child-centered lives.

• Fast Track Families have parents age 35-54, with multiple kids living at home. They have "the disposable income and educated sensibility to want the best for their children. They buy the latest technology with impunity: new computers, DVD players, home theater systems, and video games. They take advantage of their rustic locales by camping, boating, and fishing."

• Country Casuals are baby boomers age 46-64 who have older children not living with them. "Most households boast two earners who have well-paying management jobs or own small businesses. Today these Baby-Boom couples have the disposable income to enjoy traveling, owning timeshares, and going out to eat."

• Greenbelt Sports are 55+ with high incomes who thoroughly enjoy the outdoors. "Few segments have higher rates for pursuing outdoor activities such as skiing, canoeing, backpacking, boating, and mountain biking."

• The Mayberry-ville segment is comprised of people 55+ trying to live a simpler life that hearkens back to TV shows, such as Andy Griffith. "In these small towns, upper-middle-class couples like to fish and hunt during the day, and stay home and watch TV at night."

What do you think? Does your household fit any of these descriptions or have they missed the mark? What do you think this says about the types of businesses that would be attracted to the area?