Nielsen PRIZM - Lifestyle & Behavior Segmentation System
PRIZM® is a revolutionary new segmentation system that harnesses the power of both household and geographic level data. PRIZM captures the essence of the existing PRIZM and MicroVision systems, while using a patent-pending methodology that marries demographic and lifestyle data to help companies target their customers.
PRIZM has a final schema–and it breaks new industry ground. The final model contains 66 segments consistent at both the household and geodemographic levels. PRIZM marks the first time marketers will have a means of using geodemographic segmentation, where appropriate and household-level segmentation, where appropriate–all using the same system. The 66-segment model resulted from these demographic drivers:
Social Groups - based on an entirely new density model
The 14 Social Groups are classified by are classified by three levels of affluence (low, moderate, high) and by the following four levels of urbanization:
Lifestage Groups – based on age, kids
The 11 Lifestage Groups are classified by three levels of affluence (low, moderate, high) and by one of three primary categories of age-and-children combinations:
PRIZM® is a revolutionary new segmentation system that harnesses the power of both household and geographic level data. PRIZM captures the essence of the existing PRIZM and MicroVision systems, while using a patent-pending methodology that marries demographic and lifestyle data to help companies target their customers.
PRIZM has a final schema–and it breaks new industry ground. The final model contains 66 segments consistent at both the household and geodemographic levels. PRIZM marks the first time marketers will have a means of using geodemographic segmentation, where appropriate and household-level segmentation, where appropriate–all using the same system. The 66-segment model resulted from these demographic drivers:
- Age
- Income
- Presence of Children
- Marital Status
- Homeownership
- Urbanicity
Social Groups - based on an entirely new density model
The 14 Social Groups are classified by are classified by three levels of affluence (low, moderate, high) and by the following four levels of urbanization:
- “Urban”: Mega-cities with density score of 85-99 (on scale of 0 to 99); Urban areas comprise 19% of U.S.
- “2nd City”: Cities and big towns with density scores of 40-85; 2nd Cities comprise 18% of total U.S.
- “Suburban”: Suburbs of Urban and 2nd City areas, with density scores of 40-90; Suburbs comprise 23% of total U.S.
- “Town & Country”: Exurbs and towns with density less than 40; Town & Country comprises 40% of l U.S.
Lifestage Groups – based on age, kids
The 11 Lifestage Groups are classified by three levels of affluence (low, moderate, high) and by one of three primary categories of age-and-children combinations:
- “Younger Years”: Largely under age 35, these households have few–if any–children. Households tend to be singles, although there are also couples that fall into this Lifestage.
- “Family Life”: Households with kids meet the primary criteria for this Lifestage. While the householder age range is broad–25 to 54–and there are some couples that fall into this Lifestage, the vast majority of households have at least one child under 18.
- “Mature Years”: Largely over age 45, these are empty–nest households–mostly couples whose kids have flown the coop.
