There are 1,818,900 adult women in Southeast Michigan. Based on research from the Harvard Business Review, as a consumer group, females account for 70-80 percent of all consumer purchasing through a combination of their buying power and influence. According to Nielsen, this will amount to between $57.9 billion and $66.2 billion this year.
Overall, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the US Census Bureau:
- Single women across all income brackets spend, on average, $34,817 on goods and service
- Working married women contribute over a third of their families’ incomes
- Over a quarter (29.4%) of wives earned more than their husbands in 2018, an increase from 15.9% in 1981.
Furthermore, according to research published by Forbes:
- The top homebuyers after married couples are single women (18%, double the percentage for single men at 9%).
- Women are 50% more likely than men to regularly watch online how-to videos.
- 94% of women between the ages of 15-35 spend over an hour per day shopping online.
- 70% of travel consumers are women.
- 85% of women say that if they like a brand, they will remain loyal to it.
For Metro Detroit small business owners to successfully capture a meaningful share of the local female economy requires advertising.
The US Small Business Administration recommends that every Detroit small business advertise consistently.
“Think you have a great product?” asks the SBA. “Unfortunately, no one’s going to know about it unless you advertise.” The SBA goes on to say, “Advertising, if done correctly, can do wonders for your product sales, and you know what that means: more revenue and more success for your business.”
By almost any advertising metric, the best way to reach local, female consumers is on Detroit radio.
Each week, according to Nielsen, more women are reached by Detroit radio than all other local media options.
Even among millennial women, who now account for one-third of local retail spending, Detroit radio reaches significantly more of these consumers than all other local advertising media.
When a Southeast Michigan small business owner invests in advertising, reach is critical to producing a measurable return on investment.
In a study of advertising effectiveness, Nielsen discovered the elements of a campaign that had the most potent effect on purchase behavior. The results indicate that reach (the number of different consumers exposed to a campaign) was responsible for driving more sales for the advertiser than branding, recency, context, or targeting. Only the content of the ad had a greater effect.
There are 33 radio stations that serve local consumers. Despite the immensity of options, though, the average listener will only listen to 3 each week. Here are the types of stations Metro Detroit women choose: