Subcultures
What is a Subculture?
• A distinct cultural group that exists as an
identifiable segment within a larger, more
complex society.
• A homogeneous segment within a
heterogeneous national society.
Relationship Between Culture
and Subculture
Subcultural
Traits of
Hispanic
Americans
Dominant
Cultural
Traits of
U.S.
Citizens
Subcultural
Traits of
Asian
Americans
Major Subculture Categories
Categories
Nationality
Examples
French, Puerto Rican,
Korean
Religion
Catholic, Hindu, Jew
Geographic region South, Midwest, East
Race
African-American,
Caucasian, Asian-American
Age
Teens, Xers, Boomers
Gender
Male, Female
Occupation
Engineer, Cook, Plumber
Social class
Lower, Middle, Upper
Occ u
pat io n
Nationality
• Primary subculture identified on the basis of
nationality in the U.S. is the Hispanic
subculture.
• Identifying Hispanics
– Country of origin
– Self-identification
– Degree of identification
Hispanic Subculture
• 32 million people (2001)
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64% of Mexican origin
10% of Puerto Rican origin
4% of Cuban origin
Remainder from Spain, Central American, or
South America
• “Pan-Hispanic” middle class
Hispanic Market
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Prefer well-known or familiar brands
Buy brands perceived to be prestigious
Fashion-conscious
Prefer to shop at smaller stores
Deliberate buyers
Buy brands advertised by their ethnic-group
stores
• Likely to buy what their parents bought
Hispanic Market, continued
• Tend to be negative about marketing
practices and government intervention in
business
• Less than 1/3 have credit cards
• Only 30% have checking accounts
• Increasingly using coupons
• Very price-sensitive
• Prefer fresh to frozen or prepared items
Marketing to Hispanics
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Use Spanish-language media
Personal, small stores
Emphasize prestigiousness of products
Offer coupons, sales
Advertising should tie in to family
Race
• Major racial subcultures in U.S. are
Caucasian, African-American, and AsianAmericans
African-American Subculture
• 34 million (2001)
– Moving from inner cities to suburbs
– Moving from Northern cities to the South
• Strong middle class
Characteristics of AfricanAmerican Market
• Value-conscious
• Prefer popular or leading brands
• Unlikely to purchase private-label and
generic products
• Brand loyal
• Use fewer coupons than Caucasians
• Read more advertising
Marketing to African-Americans
• Broad appeal ads for products that broadly
appeal to all ethnic groups, including
African-Americans
• Specialized appeals for products
specifically developed for AfricanAmericans
• Preferred mediums are radio, AfricanAmerican magazines, African-American
cable stations
Asian-American Subculture
• 10.9 million (2001)
– Represent more than 29 different countries
– Middle East to Taiwan
• Tendency to live near entry ports;
overwhelmingly urban
• Median household income $40,600 (1995)
– Wealthiest subgroup: Asian Indian
Asian American Market
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Very family oriented
Very industrious
Strive for excellence in education
Strive to achieve higher class
Typically employed in professional,
managerial, or technical occupations
• Consumption decisions tend to be maleoriented
• Likely to patronize Asian shops
• Brand loyal
Marketing to Asian Americans
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Use Asian American models
Use native languages
Niche marketing
Family-based messages
Base message appeals on desire to achieve
Age
• Generation Y
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Born between 1979 and 1994
7-22 year olds
60 million
Echo boomers, Millenium Generation
Indifferent to many well-known brands
Savvy consumers
Internet kids
• Generation X
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Born between 1966-1976
23-33 year olds
46 million
Enjoy life, have flexible lifestyles
Job satisfaction more important than salary
Purchase good brand names, but not necessarily
designer labels
– Low newspaper readership
• Baby Boomers
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Born between 1946-1964
37-55 year olds
76 million (40% of adult population)
Trend-setters
Consumption-oriented
Segment boomers by age: younger and older
Affluent boomers--yuppies
• Mature Adults
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56-65 year olds
Represent 70% of nation’s wealth
Silent generation
Easy to market to--TV, newspapers, radio
• Older Consumers
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65+ age category
Growing segment
Diverse interests, opinions, and activities
Cognitive age vs. chronological age
Characteristics of Older
Consumers
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Price/value conscious
Deal-prone
Like to shop
Tuned in to mass media
Read everything
Use credit cards infrequently relative to
other age groups
Marketing to Older Consumers
• Segment by attitudes or lifestyle issues
• Be careful not to embarrass older
consumers about their age
• Show diversity of age cohort in visual ads
• Avoid stereotypes
• Allow for sensory deficits
– Print size
– High frequency sounds
– More time for information processing
• Use print media
Sex
• Sex roles
– Gender identity
• Working woman
– Segmentation issues
– Shopping patterns