LifeCourse partners with Experian Simmons

Last Updated: Jul. 7, 2014

LifeCourse is pleased to announce a partnership with Experian Simmons in creating a generationally-based marketing product to be offered through the Simmons National Consumer Study. The following is a press release from Experian Simmons:

New York, N.Y., January 9, 2009—Experian® SimmonsSM is partnering with LifeCourse Associates to develop a unique generational marketing system called GEMM (Generational identity, Events, Music and Movies) that will be incorporated into the 60,000+ variables measured by the Simmons National Consumer Study.

"There has been a demand across our client partners for a new generational-focused product, and partnering with LifeCourse Associates, the leading authority in generational theory, enables us to provide our constituents with such a product," says Ken Wollenberg, general manager of Experian Simmons.

"We're partnering with Experian Simmons in order to bring our unique generational perspective to the world of media research," says Neil Howe, co-founder and president of LifeCourse Associates. "The Simmons National Consumer Study is the industry benchmark, and we think this product will really enhance it for marketers and advertisers."

An increasing number of marketers are turning to generational themes, music and imagery to sharpen their messages. Advertisers are sending generational signals, but often have no empirical way of knowing how well these signals are connecting with their intended audience.

GEMM will allow clients to more accurately define the best generationally-based approach through which to reach their customers—whether it be overall generational identification, events, music, or movies.

Generational Signatures will be the main component of the product, and are multidimensional targeting segments that illustrate how individuals connect to their generation. Unique scores based on individual and generational relationships will help to identify dimensions that will represent different modes of connection:

  • Auditory channels—through music
  • Visual channels—through movies
  • Experiential—through events
  • Conceptual—through identification directly with the generational label

A person's generational membership will be assigned using exact year of birth rather than age ranges in order to accurately pinpoint respondents within a specific generation.

By isolating a person's generational membership and then applying unique generational signatures to any product, GEMM will be able to tell a company how its products are appealing to certain generational segments now, and how it can improve its reach in the future. GEMM takes generational marketing from intuition to science.

About Experian Simmons

The Simmons National Consumer Study (NCS) and the Simmons National Hispanic Consumer Study (NHCS) have been chronicling the American consumer for over 50 years. From the products that all Americans buy and the brands they prefer, to their Internet shopping behaviors, attitudes, lifestyles and media that they use, the Simmons studies survey over 30,000 American consumers each year to deliver reliable national and local level data. In 2006, Experian Simmons was ranked the fastest growing market research company by Jack Honomichl, the leading market research industry authority.

About Experian

Experian is a global leader in providing information, analytical and marketing services to organizations and consumers to help manage the risk and reward of commercial and financial decisions.

Combining its unique information tools and deep understanding of individuals, markets and economies, Experian partners with organizations around the world to establish and strengthen customer relationships and provide their businesses with competitive advantage.

For consumers, Experian delivers critical information that enables them to make financial and purchasing decisions with greater control and confidence. Clients include organizations from financial services, retail and catalog, telecommunications, utilities, media, insurance, automotive, leisure, e-commerce, manufacturing, property and government sectors.

Experian plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange (EXPN) and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 index. Experian has corporate headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, and has operational headquarters in Costa Mesa, Calif., and Nottingham, UK. The Group employs approximately 15,500 people in 38 countries worldwide, supporting clients in more than 65 countries around the world. Continuing sales for the year ended March 31, 2008, were in excess of $4 billion.

For more information, visit www.experianplc.com.