As the U.S. becomes increasingly diverse, ethnic markets present new and valuable opportunities for advertisers. With a population of 39 million, now more than ever African Americans are crucial to our consumer economy.

According to the 2007 Selig Center for Economic Growth's report titled “The Multicultural Economy – Minority Buying Power in the New Century,” "The buying power data...and the differences in spending by race and/or ethnicity suggest that as the U.S. consumer market becomes more diverse, advertising, products and media must be tailored to each market segment."

Looking at the numbers, the African-American market is extremely lucrative. The Selig Center projects that the U.S. buying power of African Americans will increase from $318 billion in 1990 to $1.1 trillion in 2012. In addition, the African-American population is growing faster than the total population (27 percent), is younger (31.2 years), is becoming more educated, is increasingly setting cultural trends and is widespread instead of concentrated in a few markets like other ethnic groups.

The Survey of Business Owners by the U.S. Census Bureau in 2002 showed that the number of firms owned by African Americans increased by 45 percent between 1997 and 2002. This is about four and a half times faster than the 10 percent increase for all U.S. businesses.

The spending habits of African Americans as a group are not the same as other ethnic consumers. They tend to spend more on certain products such as phone services, utilities, apparel, footwear and groceries. In addition, African Americans prefer to shop in person rather than online.

Less than 1 percent of U.S. advertising dollars are spent using African-American media. Many advertisers think they can reach African Americans via mainstream media and may think advertising in African-American media is ineffective. Advertisers tend to rely on images of African Americans in the mainstream media to reach them instead.

Jeff Burns, a former vice president of the Johnson Publishing Company, which publishes Ebony magazine, said, "Reaching is not selling. By and large, media buyers do not sit down and think of Black media and may refuse to address the fact the Black consumer has the wherewithal to purchase their products."

Burns adds, "But Black media is a direct invitation from the marketer to the consumer to purchase."

Cynthia Perkins-Roberts, a vice president at Cable Advertising Bureau, said that African-American print media is a major source of information for the community. Credibility is given to African-American print media because it is from "our perspective." According to Perkins-Roberts, African-American newspapers are trusted more than mainstream media—80 percent trust newspapers and 87 percent trust magazines.

Vernon Whitmore, the publisher of The Globe, a free weekly newspaper in Oakland, Calif., said, "The Black press offers insights into African-American society, culture, and history. It acts as a voice of the community and offers key signs of the buying trends."

In addition, Whitmore said, "African Americans trust news from Black media more than general media. They are very brand loyal. That loyalty extends to advertising as well."

Many advertisers need to be educated as to the value of ethnic media. Perkins-Roberts said, "One of the most frustrating marketing practices is underestimating the relevance of Black media. Since it's a given that more Black Americans are using general market media today, it's no wonder that the primary strategy for many marketers is to reach these consumers through general market media vehicles. Like the general market, Black Americans use a wide variety of media, but unlike the general market, they embrace Black media."

As America's ethnic communities continue to grow and their publications multiply, measurement is increasingly important to attract national and regional advertisers. Ethnic media is mostly owned by small, locally owned companies.

According to Whitmore of The Globe, the African-American press has to work even harder. "Whatever it takes to make us credible and reliable, we have to do it."

Editor’s note: Jennifer Armor is the audit manager for Verified Audit Circulation. Prior to joining Verified Audit, she was circulation director for Diabetes Health magazine. For additional information about how to read audit reports, a glossary of terms and other marketing information, contact jarmor@verifiedaudit.com or visit www.verifiedaudit.com.