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Integrated Third-Party Segmentation Schemes Fuse a Wider Variety of Offline Data with Online Consumer Behaviors, Offering Marketers Enhanced Insights Across Industries
RESTON, VA, November 7, 2011 –Comscore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today announced the availability of Segment Metrix 2.0™, the next generation of Comscore’s audience segmentation tool providing actionable insights into the online behaviors of Internet users in specific market segments. Segment Metrix 2.0 adds five industry-leading segmentation approaches from Kantar Shopcom, IXI (an Equifax Company), Infogroup, Bizo, and Catalist to the existing segmentation schemes available from Comscore, Acxiom (PersonicX) and Claritas (PRIZM NE).
“Comscore is very pleased to announce the enhancements to our audience segmentation capabilities in Segment Metrix 2.0, which provides a significantly more powerful interface for analyzing the online behaviors of Internet users across a variety of market segments,” said Jeff Hackett, Comscore Executive Vice President. “We’re excited to be working with prominent industry partners to bring digital marketers a more robust selection of segmentation approaches. Advertisers, agencies, and publishers already using these segments for offline marketing efforts now have a valuable tool for efficiently executing similar marketing strategies online.”
Integrated Data Partners Provide Additional Audience Segmentation Schemes
The release of Comscore Segment Metrix 2.0 incorporates five new third-party segmentation schemes, beginning with data from October 2011. All segmentation schemes are based on completely anonymized data used only for aggregate market research reporting purposes. The following is a complete list of the newly-available segmentation approaches available in Segment Metrix 2.0:
With a broader variety of segmentation approaches catering to various business needs, Comscore Segment Metrix 2.0 offers advertisers, publishers and ad agencies across various industries the ability to better coordinate and integrate their online and offline marketing strategies.
“Marketers have long relied on audience segmentation to efficiently reach defined target audiences across media platforms, but this capability has been lacking for the online world despite its rapidly growing share of total media spend,” said Katie Casavant, Kantar Shopcom CEO. “The combination of Comscore online behavioral data and a wide variety of audience segmentation schemes in Segment Metrix 2.0 helps fill that void, providing marketers with a necessary tool for their cross-media marketing toolkit. The result is a greater ability to link online and offline marketing strategies in a manner that aligns with campaign objectives.”
Segments Help Marketers Align Online Visitation with Offline Purchase Behavior
Below is an illustration of the insights available through the consumer behavioral segmentation approaches available in Segment Metrix 2.0. Using Kantar Shopcom Segments, which provide visibility into the online behaviors of consumers according to their purchase of CPG products, marketers can ascertain where heavy, moderate, and light purchasers of a particular category or brand can be found online. For instance, the table below shows the top properties in the Community category for consumers who are heavy buyers of disposable diapers.
Unsurprisingly, highly-trafficked properties catering to women and mothers comprise a majority of the top ten Community sites. However, a look at the composition of unique visitors from the target audience for each of these sites shows that some have a higher relative representation for the target audience than others. While Glam Media may rank first in terms of audience reach, the iVillage and Scripps Networks Interactive properties exhibit the highest relative representation for the target audience, an indicator that these sites might be able to reach the target more efficiently.
Top Community Sites for Heavy Disposable Diaper PurchasersRanked by Total Unique Visitors (000)September 2011Total U.S. - Home/Work LocationsSource: Comscore Segment Metrix 2.0 - Kantar Shopcom Segments
Target: Heavy Disposable Diaper Purchasers
Total Unique Visitors (000)
Composition Index UV
Glam Media
872
107
iVillage.com: The Womens Network
439
158
Disney Online
334
118
AOL Lifestyle
294
119
Scripps Networks Interactive Inc.
289
134
eHow Lifestyle
282
116
Shine
273
101
CafeMom Network
253
127
Alloy Digital Network
234
111
Reader's Digest Digital Network
231
Financial Segments Link Online Behavior with Key Financial Characteristics
The following illustration highlights insights to be gained from another available segmentation approach. IXI Segments provide marketers with the ability to segment users according to financial attributes beyond the use of traditional household income metrics. The table below shows how the top U.S. retail sites in September 2011 compare in terms of the composition of their audiences according to estimated discretionary spending – a measure of household expenditures excluding fixed expenses. Unlike the household income measure, discretionary spending provides a more direct view of the estimated propensity and ability of audiences to actually spend their income.
The table below shows that Amazon Sites and Apple.com Worldwide Sites – two of the top three U.S. retail sites - share nearly identical audience profiles when segmented by discretionary spending. In comparison, third-ranking retail site Walmart has a lower percentage of its users with at least $75,000 in estimated discretionary spending.
Audience Breakdown for Top Retail Sites by Annual Discretionary SpendingSeptember 2011Total U.S. - Home/Work LocationsSource: Comscore Segment Metrix 2.0 - IXI Digital Segments
Audience Breakdown by Discretionary Spending
Top U.S. Retail Sites
Amazon Sites
Apple.com Worldwide Sites
Walmart
$0 - $29,999
30.4%
29.4%
37.3%
$30,000 - $74,999
59.1%
59.7%
56.1%
$75,000+
10.1%
10.5%
6.2%
About ComscoreComscore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR) is a global leader in measuring the digital world and preferred source of digital business analytics. For more information, please visit www.comscore.com/companyinfo.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, including, but not limited to, expectations regarding the impact and benefits to Comscore of the Comscore Segment Metrix 2.0™, financial or otherwise. These statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially, including, but not limited to: the features and characteristics of the products, the rate of development of the digital marketing intelligence, Internet advertising and e-Commerce markets; the growth of the Internet as a medium for commerce, content, advertising and communications; and the acceptance of new products and methodologies by the industry, including existing and prospective clients.
For a detailed discussion of these and other risk factors, please refer to Comscore's most recent respective Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Annual Reports on Form 10-K and from time to time other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), which are available on the SEC's Web site (http://www.sec.gov).
Stockholders of Comscore are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date such statements are made. Comscore does not undertake any obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements to reflect events, circumstances or new information after the date of this press release, or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
Contact:Carmela AquinoComscore, Inc. press@comscore.com