• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, February 20, 2008

According to a recent Packaged Facts study, reported by MarketingCharts, African Americans are crucial to the consumer economy, with a population of 39 million and buying power of $892 billion, and expected to exceed $1.1 trillion in 2012. This represents a cumulative growth of 28.4% during the forecast period.

Additional findings from the study:

54% of African-American buying power lives in the South. Other key buying power segments:

• Residents of central cities ($430 billion, or 48% of the total)
• Married couples ($428 billion or 48% of the total)
• Households with an income of $75,000 or more ($405 billion, or 45% of the total)

There are 2.4 million African-Americans in $75K+ households, and they are:

• More likely than other affluent consumers to spend money on fashionable dress, toiletries and cosmetics, and cruise vacations
• Less likely to use the internet to plan shopping trips, gather information for shopping, or make online purchases

African-American consumers create a wide range of possibilities for marketers in various industries:

• 3.9 million black consumers spend $150 or more per week on groceries.
• 7.6 million African Americans said they exercise regularly at home, which opens up possibilities for marketers of exercise equipment
• African-American men and women represent 22% and 26% of all suit-buyers, respectively
• Approximately 9 million African Americans plan to buy a new vehicle, accounting for more than 9% of all consumers who plan to purchase a new vehicle

Black media continue to offer advertisers access to African-American consumers, who also share many of the mainstream media preferences of other American viewers and readers:

• Television is a top source of media consumption, with 4 in 10 households containing 4 or more televisions.
• Spending on magazines is 6% more than the national average.
• Radio and newspapers are less popular than the average.
• Internet use is still lagging, but by 2012 penetration in the African-American community is expected to reach 62%.

For more from Packaged Facts and Marketing Charts, please visit here.