Advertisers Learn to 'Talk' the Talk

The Cabletelevision Advertising Bureau's new Multicultural Marketing Guide and top black network and ad executives make it plain: Advertisers that quit creating distinct marketing campaigns for African-Americans ignore unique cultural distinctions. And that may cause black consumers to hold back their dollars.

The African-American market has nearly $690 billion in spending power, a figure projected to grow 37% by 2008. But Pepper Miller, president of the Hunter-Miller Group, laments that many black consumers say advertisers "aren't talking to us."

African-Americans can have a "protective radar mindset" that senses when advertisers and others are aiming messages "just for us," as Miller puts it, and when the effort isn't genuine.

According to BET Television, Black Family Channel (formerly MBC) and TV One, automotive (General Motors and Daimler Chrysler), packaged-goods (P&G, Coke), retail (Sears, Office Depot) and insurance (Geico) advertisers get it.

Many pharmaceutical and cosmetics companies do not. Despite Halle Berry's promotion of makeup brands, notes one minority cable ad exec, "It's unbelievable [cosmetic manufacturers] don't buy more time on black TV. It's all about getting educated."

Says Miller, "While black Generation Xers created the hip-hop culture, one of the greatest marketing and lifestyle phenomena, not all African-American Generation Xers are hip-hoppers." Her company's research shows older Gen Xers are better-educated and have higher incomes and professional aspirations than their younger, 18-34 counterparts.

Indeed, a recent Yankelovich Monitor study notes that, although one-third of American blacks have household incomes of $50,000 or more, "intrinsic cultural attitudes and values do not change as income levels increase."

The study cautions advertisers: "Marketing based on income level without regard to racial or cultural affiliation will cause you to overlook the nuances of ethnic diversity that are key to developing messaging, marketing strategies and product offerings relevant and attractive to affluent African-Americans."

Raymond Goulbourne, executive vice president of media sales for BET, agrees. He says his network's African-American viewers are "distinctly different from those African-Americans watching broadcast TV. Over 33% of BET viewers have household incomes over $70,000, and over 50% are in the $50,000 bracket. Our viewers are more likely to have a college degree." That, he says, means they make different purchasing decisions than some other black consumers.

Viacom-owned BET, with more than 78 million homes, is the largest of the cable networks targeting African-American viewers. And, according to CMR, it's the only one with trackable national dollars ($160.1 million in the first six months of this year alone).

"We deliver a wide variety of programming for every member of the African-American household," Goulbourne says, "including music, news, sports, comedy, movies and general lifestyle programming. And BET is the only vehicle doing this for almost 25 years."

But it has competition that may be growing. The Word Network touches a segment with gospel music and religious programming. Five years ago, MBC, recently renamed Black Family Channel, debuted. While BET largely targets 18- to 34-year-olds, the new BFC prides itself on targeting the urban family, primarily 18-49s but with programming for kids, too.

"We're not telling advertisers either/or but to use us to augment whatever other buys they're making," says BFC National Ad Sales Manager Ty Johnson.

"A lot of companies are trying to find a new and better way to address the African-American market," says Rick Newberger, BFC's new COO. "As we are available to over 30 million households, we're gaining traction among advertisers to be a more authentic voice."

The network plans more unique and original programming, including, according to Newberger, "a complete retooling of our urban-news format. It will be like nothing else on the air. We won't be just African-American announcers. It will have a very different look and feel." He thinks that the news format and coverage of black-college sports give BFC "a differentiating factor."

Meanwhile, TV One, launched Jan. 19, sees itself as "broader than a niche, which is why we are really seeking analog carriage," says Keith Bowen, executive vice president of sales and marketing.

"If BET is MTV, we're USA," he explains. "They do a great job, [but] we see ourselves as complementing that."

TV One's charter advertisers include Procter & Gamble, General Motors and Sears, but it boasts spots from 15 of the top 20 national advertisers. "We have about 47 total national advertisers." Bowen says. "Not bad after only nine months."