I think the key word is "urban." It is a huge generalization that "urban" is inclusive of all African Americans. When I think of the word "urban", I think of very specific demographics, namely young adult, inner-city people of color (but I could be wrong). I'm from Mississippi, where the entire state's population is MUCH less than the population of single cities like Chicago and DC, but where more than 60% of the residents are black . Perhaps with the exception of the state capital, Mississippi doesn't have what you'd call an urban or metro area (it's mostly rural), so does this mean that these companies DO market in these areas?
I plan to pay attention to commercials shown during the broadcasting of black TV shows and on BET. I've noticed that on BET, certain commercials are shown on Sundays (gospel day) that I never see during the week. This suggests to me that businesses are targeting a certain audience. The fact that these so-called "NUD" companies have blacks in their commercials doesn't mean they necessarily care that blacks buy their products or utilize their services; that only suggests that they choose to market to a certain demographic group. Maybe that could be because that group represents their primary consumer. If you're ever home during the weekday, you'll notice that commercials seem to appeal to the housewife and the at-home mom; does this mean those companies don't want single, child-less career women to buy their products? And, you'd probably never see a commercial about Viagra or osteoporosis during an episode of Road Rules, would you?
Fact is, advertising is not cheap. Having said that, and recognizing that "urban" may not include all blacks, my question now is this: Is it really wrong for companies to market/appeal to certain people and not to others? I mean, in essence, isn't it discriminatory to exclude anyone, for whatever reason, when determining marketing strategies? If the commercials have blacks in them and the companies have blacks on the exec board and as stockholders, how do we diffrentiate between marketing resulting from discrimination and marketing based on consumer research findings and demographics buying power?
the411
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Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
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#3 of QUINTESSENCE
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