The United States is becoming increasingly diverse.
Much of this diversity is fueled by immigration and an
increase in ethnic pride and by identification with non-
European heritages among numerous Americans. Most
members of a culture share most of the core values, beliefs,
and behaviors of that culture. However, most individuals
also belong to several subcultures. A subculture
is a segment of a larger culture whose members share
distinguishing patterns of behavior. An array of ethnic,
nationality, religious, and regional subcultures characterizes
American society. The existence of these subcultures
provides marketers with the opportunity to develop
unique marketing programs to match the unique
needs of each.
Ethnic subcultures are defined broadly as those
whose members' unique shared behaviors are based on
a common racial, language, or nationality background.
Non-European ethnic groups constitute a significant and
growing part of the U.S. population, from 24 percent in
1990 to 38 percent by 2020.
African Americans represent a substantial non-European
ethnic group at roughly 13 percent of the U.S. population.
While African Americans are younger and tend
to have lower incomes than the general population, their
rapidly growing education, income, purchasing power,
and cultural influence continues to attract marketers to
this large and diverse subculture.
Hispanics represent the largest and fastest growing
ethnic subculture in the United States. It is currently
slightly larger than the African American segment but
the gap is expected to grow substantially by 2020.
While Hispanics have a variety of national backgrounds
(Mexico, 66 percent; Puerto Rico, 9 percent; Cuba, 4
percent), the Spanish language, a common religion
(Roman Catholic), and national Spanish-language
media and entertainment figures have created a somewhat
homogeneous Hispanic subculture.
Asian Americans are the most diverse of the major
ethnic subcultures. They are characterized by a variety
of nationalities, languages, and religions. From a marketing
perspective, it is not appropriate to consider
Asian Americans as a single group. Instead, Asian
Americans are best approached as a number of nationality
subcultures.
Native Americans, Asian-Indian Americans, and
Arab Americans are smaller but important subcultures.
Each is diverse yet shares enough common values and
behaviors to be approached as a single segment for at
least some products. Geographic concentration and specialized
media allow targeted marketing campaigns.
Although the United States is a relatively secular society,
roughly 80 percent of American adults claim a religious
affiliation and a majority state that religion is important
in their lives. A majority of American adults
identify themselves as Christian although the percentage
has declined over time. And a variety of religious
subcultures exist within both the Christian faiths and the
Jewish, Muslim, and Buddhist faiths. Within each faith,
the largest contrast is the degree of conservatism of the
members.
Regional subcultures arise as a result of climatic conditions,
the natural environment and resources, the characteristics
of the various immigrant groups that have
settled in each region, and significant social and political
events. Regional subcultures affect all aspects of
consumption behavior, and sophisticated marketers recognize
that the United States is composed of numerous
regional markets.
