Advice | Advertise In Augusta

Advertise In Augusta: The Value of Marketing To College Graduates

Written by Larry Julius | Dec 4, 2019 8:43:17 PM

There's a reason many Central Savannah River Area small business owners target their advertising towards consumers who have completed a four-year college degree. It's because, typically, university graduates earn $29,106 more per year than those with only a high school diploma, according to The Federal Reserve.

There are, according to estimates, 108,911  college graduates living in the Augusta area. In total, this population generates $8.5 billion in annual take-home pay.

To tap into a similar pool of spending power, a marketer would need to reach 188,780 consumers who did not go beyond high school. The problem is, there is only about three-quarters of that number in the CSRA.

The number of people reached by a campaign is, generally, what determines the cost of advertising. So, for a CSRA small business owner operating on a tight marketing budget, spending can be kept in check by targeting those consumers with the most money to spend. In this case, college graduates.

Of all the advertising options available to local business owners, Augusta radio, by far, reaches the most college graduates.

Each week, local radio stations reach 91% of all college grads. This is significantly more than were reached by local TV, newspapers, social media sites like Facebook and Instagram, or streaming audio services like Pandora or Spotify.

The value for CSRA small business owners to ensure their advertising reaches college grads becomes profoundly apparent based on the estimates below.  This shows, compared to high school graduates, local college grads are

  • 17% more likely to use a local tax preparation professional
  • 26%  more likely to invest in home improvements or remodeling
  • 45% more likely to be a small business owner
  • 50% more likely to hire a financial planner
  • 55% more likely to sell a house/condo/coop
  • 67% more likely to use a local travel agent
  • 74% more likely to join a health club
  • 259% more likely to refinance a home

Augusta radio's ability to precisely target those consumers with more money to spend illustrates why Deloitte, the world's largest business consulting firm, recommends that the medium be included in the mix of all companies that buy advertising.

"One might think," says Deloitte, "since radio in North America is popularly perceived to be largely free and ad-supported, that it would appeal mainly to demographics that are of less interest to those who buy advertising. The exact opposite is true."

"The August 2018 Deloitte Global survey found that the percentage of Americans who report listening to live radio is higher for those who are working, those with more education, and those with higher incomes."

More Advice For CSRA Small Business Owners