• by Tyler Loechner  @mp_tyler, October 13, 2014

Martini Media on Monday issued the inaugural edition of “The Martini Report,” the first edition of which does a deep dive on the “affluent audience online.” The research was released in conjunction with media research firm Ipsos MediaCT.

The report breaks down the “elite” into four categories: the hyper affluent (household income of at least $250,000), the mass affluent ($100,000 - $249,999), the emerging affluent (aged 18-39 with $75,000 - $99,999 household income) and the aspiring affluent (ages 40+ with $75,000 - $99,999 household income).

The hyper affluent represent 3% of the U.S. population, per the report, and have a median age of 48. The mass affluent represent nearly 25% of the U.S. adult population and have a median age of 45. Martini calls the mass affluent “a crucial target for mainstream and luxury marketers alike.” Emerging affluents represent about 6% of the U.S. population, while the aspiring represent 8%.

The study was conducted online by Ipsos in June 2014, per a release. There were 870 adult respondents with a household income of $75,000+, and the company says the data was weighted to reflect U.S. Census figures.

Over 40% of respondents said they “pay more attention to online ads that appear on sites with a good reputation.” reinforcing the idea that the future of programmatic may be private.

The ads may not need to appear alongside reputable content to draw attention. However; if the ad itself is relevant content, the majority of the audience -- the younger audience, at least -- will pay attention. Martini singles out the “emerging affluents” as most open to native advertising, with two-thirds reporting that they don’t care whether an article was written by a publisher or an advertising if the content is relevant to them.

The company plans to release “The Martini Report” quarterly. The first edition features auto intenders -- noting that digital ads and the Internet are growing in importance as it relates to influencing automobile purchases -- and Martini writes in a release that “future volumes will explore travel, financial services, retail and luxury goods.”

"Audience" image via Shutterstock.