On average, advertisers will spend over $1 million for a 30-second spot aired during the men’s tournament championship game.

Because the event is stretched out over a three-week long period and reaches a relatively affluent consumer base, the tournament has broad appeal to advertisers. While perhaps not as impactful as a single sporting event with a much larger audience, such as the Super Bowl, advertisers can still benefit by delivering their message to a healthy-size audience with increased frequency. Based on an analysis of television viewership data tracked by Experian Simmons, the men’s tournament will reach nearly 20% of adults age 18 or over. That’s counting all games over the full length of the tournament.

Several national advertisers targeting men’s tourney viewers can expect to reach a large percentage of their brand users. In fact, the five advertisers with the greatest brand penetration among likely men’s tournament viewers include Coca-Cola (65%), AT&T (50%), Ford (24%), LG (21%) and Honda (15%).

But it isn’t necessarily the biggest brands that reap the greatest reward from advertising during an event with the staying power of March Madness and the NCAA basketball tournament. This is one conclusion from an analysis based on Experian’s Ad Relevancy Score. The score is an estimate of how closely a targeted audience that is exposed to an ad (in this case, the audience that is likely to be viewing the men’s tournament) matches up against the profile of a brand’s existing customer base. A high score indicates that the audience is a strong match and good fit for the brand. In other words, the ad should be particularly relevant to those who are viewing. A low score indicates that the ad could be less relevant because the targeted audience misses the mark relative to the characteristics of the brand’s most likely users. The average Experian Ad Relevancy Score for a brand is set at 100.

When ranking brands based on an analysis of the Experian Ad Relevancy Score for the men’s basketball tournament, we narrowed the advertiser field down to an Elite Eight. Five of the top eight scores are for automotive-related brands. The qualifying brands and their associated scores are as follows:

The NCAA basketball tournament culminates with the men’s and women’s Final Four in New Orleans and Denver respectively. Advertisers can expect a national viewing audience for the men’s championship game in the range of 20 million. In contrast, the 1979 championship game between Michigan State and Indiana State, featuring Magic Johnson versus Larry Bird, drew a record 35 million viewers. The women’s championship game is likely to draw a viewing audience in excess of 4 million.

The size of the cumulative viewing audience for the men’s tournament outnumbers the women’s tournament by a factor of more than 3 to 1.

Based on television viewing statistics compiled by Experian Simmons, the size of the cumulative viewing audience for the men’s tournament outnumbers the women’s tournament by a factor of more than 3 to 1. The variance widens substantially when controlling for such factors as household income and education. Among households with income of $150,000 or more, men’s tournament viewers outnumber women’s tournament viewers by nearly 5 to 1. Adults with college degrees are 32% more likely to watch the men’s tournament compared to the women’s.

Men are 2.5 times more likely than women to say they watch the men’s tournament. Men are also more likely than women to watch the women’s tournament. Still, women account for a larger share of women’s tournament viewers (36%) than men’s tournament viewers (30%).

Television coverage of the men’s tournament should reach deep into the ranks of America’s most prosperous households. This is one key finding from an analysis of the composition of households containing adults who are most likely to be tuning into the action. For example, four of the six most affluent market segments, based on Experian’s Mosaic lifestyle segmentation solution, have a 50% or greater likelihood to be watching the men’s tournament compared to U.S. households overall. Using an index value that measures general level of interest in the tournament (an index of 200 indicates that a particular segment is 2 times more likely to be watching compared to the national average), highly engaged segments include American Royalty (184), Picture Perfect Families (171), Kids and Cabernet (160), and Platinum Prosperity (156). Many from these same households are likely to be watching some portion of the tournament on an iPad. In fact, iPad owners are 54% more likely than adults overall to be men’s tournament viewers.

Visit the blog tomorrow to learn more fast facts!

How to indentify your colleagues streaming the Big Dance at work:

March Madness streamers are a high tech group. Here are other digital activities that they in engage in when they’re not streaming the game:

Your date may be an online streamer if…

But basketball alone doesn’t define the life and times of Hartford-New Haven residents. In honor of UConn closing out the season with 11 consecutive wins culminating in a national championship, here are 11 things you might not have known about the Hartford-New Haven market area. All rankings are based on Experian Simmons analysis of the top 100 Designated Market Areas (DMA).

• The UConn Huskies’ winning recipe included mixing two 20-minute halves of tireless defense with opportunistic play making. Making dinner in 30 minutes should seem like a breeze, especially when you consider that Hartford-area residents enjoy a healthy dose of Rachel Ray. In fact, the market ranks #1 out of the top 100 DMAs for readership (past 6 months) of Every Day with Rachael Ray magazine.
• The Huskies were greeted at the airport the day after their big win by a large contingent of enthusiastic followers. Too bad the weather was wet and drizzly. Not to worry. Hartford-area residents are well equipped to deal with the elements. They rank #2 in buying catalog merchandise from outfitter L.L. Bean.
• Sending both men’s and women’s teams to the Final Four is a big deal. Apparently, people in and around Hartford appreciate other types of deals too. The market ranks second in using the Internet and email as a source for coupons.
• UConn basketball rooters take their sport very seriously. It’s no laughing matter. Unless you consider this: Residents of the Hartford-area rank third in attending a comedy club.
• What better way is there for UConn fans to celebrate than to shop for some NCAA basketball championship souvenirs? But when store shelves go bare, fear not; there’s always the Internet. In fact, Hartford ranks third in making purchases online.
• For all intents and purposes basketball season is over in Husky nation. So now what is there to do? The ocean isn’t far away. That could explain why Hartford-New Haven ranks fourth in visiting an aquarium.
• Located at the confluence of Red Sox and Yankee country, sports fans in Hartford can now turn their attention to another popular pastime. The market ranks fourth in the percentage of adults who say they are very interested in major league baseball.
• The Huskies iced the championship with about three minutes left to play. Hartford-area residents are very comfortable on the ice; the market ranks fourth in participation in ice skating.
• The Huskies went about their business in style. Not to be outdone, Hartford-area residents also have a knack for being stylish. They rank fourth in readership (past 6 months) of InStyle magazine.
• Watching your favorite team as it progresses through the tournament can be tough on the nerves — not to mention causing ulcers and other health related maladies. Perhaps that explains why the Hartford market ranks fifth in online visits (past 30 days) to medical services and information websites.
• Having lost their beloved NHL team (the Whalers) to North Carolina (the Hurricanes), Hartford cannot add a Stanley Cup to the trophy case. But area-residents still have a passion for hockey. In fact, the market ranks eleventh in the percentage of adults who say they frequently watch the NHL playoffs on TV, which get underway right… about… now.

With college hoops in the spotlight over the past several weeks, we wondered about the overall health and interest in the sport as measured by basketball related participation and purchase rates.

According to the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association (SGMA), 67% of core basketball participants are under 25 years old. Basketball far outnumbers baseball as the team sport with the greatest participation rate. SGMA estimates that there are over 26 million people age 6 or over who participate in basketball. Among these, nearly 17 million (frequent or regular participants) are classified as core participants.

Given that core participants are more likely to purchase basketball-related equipment, we compared various basketball-related statistics for the home markets of the Final Four teams using data compiled by Experian Simmons. Ranked by total DMA adult population, the markets and their respective universities are: Indianapolis (Butler), Hartford (Connecticut), Richmond (VCU), and Lexington (Kentucky).

Richmond, Virginia is for (Basketball) Lovers

Analysis of viewing statistics reinforces the famous “Virginia is for Lovers” advertising slogan albeit with a college basketball slant.

About a quarter of the U.S. population has an interest in college basketball. Richmond (26.7%) and Indianapolis (26.3%) are the Final Four markets with the highest level of interest. Lexington and Hartford will need overtime to decide a winner. These markets are tied at 24.3%.

Richmond and Indianapolis also take top honors for following the tournament. Based on viewership data from last year’s tournament, both markets had 15.8% of adults who indicated that they watched either some or all of the tournament games. Hartford was next in line with 14.6% of adults who watched. Lexington (13.5%) ranked fourth.

Rankings for viewing last year’s championship game follow the same order as general viewership of the tournament. Richmond (13.5%) and Indianapolis (13.3%) again claimed the top spots. Hartford and Lexington ranked third and fourth with 12.4% and 10.8% of adults indicating that they watched the game respectively.

Note: Rank among Final Four markets is in parenthesis

Indianapolis ‘Raises the Game’ in Basketball Participation

The Indianapolis tourism slogan “Raising the Game” could also be applied to area resident participation in basketball and sales of basketball related equipment.

Richmond (16.7%), Indianapolis (16.6%), and Lexington (16.4%) are the Final Four markets that have the highest basketball participation rates (played basketball in the past year). Even with the past success of the men’s and women’s college basketball programs at Connecticut, Hartford (14.7%) is a relatively distant fourth.

You are most likely to find true basketball enthusiasts (I personally play basketball “every chance I get”) in Lexington (3.6%), Richmond (3.5%), and Indianapolis (3.4%). As before, Hartford (2.2%) lags behind.

Even though they might not be actively playing the sport quite as much as their Final Four counterparts, you are more likely to find a basketball in the garage or closet of a Hartford area resident compared to the national average. Rankings of having a basketball are Indianapolis (18.4%) in first followed by Hartford (18.2%), Richmond (17.7%), and Lexington (17.6%) respectively.

You are most likely to find true basketball enthusiasts (I personally play basketball “every chance I get”) in Lexington (3.6%), Richmond (3.5%), and Indianapolis (3.4%). As before, Hartford (2.2%) lags behind.

How closely do sales of basketballs and basketball shoes follow each market’s relative participation in the sport? Somewhat surprisingly, purchase rates for basketballs in all four markets are below the national average of 1.8%. Lexington (1.5%), Hartford (1.4%), and Indianapolis (1.3%) are tightly bunched together. The purchase rate in Richmond (0.9%) is the lowest of the Final Four markets.

What Richmond area residents might lack in basketball purchases is made up for in sales of basketball shoes. Richmond area residents rank second in basketball shoe purchases with 6.4% of adults reporting that they made a purchase in the past year. Hartford (5.7%) and Lexington (5.2%) rank third and fourth respectively. That leaves Indianapolis residents (6.8%) as the top basketball shoe purchasers among the Final Four markets.

Note: Rank among Final Four markets is in parenthesis

Do the host cities of these higher profile match-ups have a greater love for the game than the opening round hosts, or are some of them merely leveraging their time in the limelight to generate business for their town? We’ll soon find out, but first here’s a look back at the stats of the top-seeded teams from last week’s bracket where there was some pretty heavy viewership and interest.

Washington, D.C.: #1

• Viewed NCAA Men’s Tournament: 17.5%
• Very interested in men’s basketball: 10.5%
• Any interest in men’s basketball: 28.5%

Denver: #2

• Viewed NCAA Men’s Tournament: 16.2%
• Very interested in men’s basketball: 9.7%
• Any interest in men’s basketball: 27.5%

Charlotte: #3

• Viewed NCAA Men’s Tournament: 15.7%
• Very interested in men’s basketball: 10.2%
• Any interest in men’s basketball: 25.1%

And now for our analysis of the next round host cities:

Anaheim

Anaheim, California, part of the greater Los Angeles Designated Market Area (DMA), is host to the West Regional, tipping off on March 24th at the Honda Center. Compared to all 14 cities that hosted the 2011 men’s tournament, Anaheim is the market with the least interest in college basketball and the least likely to actually watch the men’s tournament. Specifically, just 20.2% of the Anaheim market’s 12.7 million residents say they are interested in college basketball and just 12.1% watched the last men’s tournament. By comparison, 22.1% of Tucson residents, last week’s last place host city, said they were interested in college basketball and 13.3% said they watched the last tournament.

Scoreboard:

• Viewed NCAA Men’s Tournament: 12.1%
• Very interested in men’s basketball: 6.9%
• Any interest in men’s basketball: 20.2%
• Overall rank: #5 this round, 14th overall

San Antonio

The Alamodome hosts the Southwest Regional this year marking the 10th time the venue will hold an NCAA basketball event in the last 15 years. One would think that with such an impressive track record that San Antonians would be mad about college basketball, but not so. Only 12.7% of the area’s 1.7 million adult residents watched the last NCAA men’s tournament. That’s lower than any of the cities that hosted the first, second and third round games and just slightly better than Anaheim. Moreover, just 20.9% of residents say they have any interest in college basketball, a rate also lower than any of the host cities other than Anaheim.

Scoreboard:

• Viewed NCAA Men’s Tournament: 12.7%
• Very interested in men’s basketball: 7.4%
• Any interest in men’s basketball: 20.9%
• Overall rank: #4 this round, 13th overall

Newark

Newark, part of the New York City DMA, may be home of the NBA’s New York Knicks and New Jersey Nets, but college basketball barely registers for many of the area’s 15.9 million residents. In fact, just 13.4% of adults in the Newark market say they watched the last men’s tournament and just 22.4% said they are interested in college basketball. Those stats may put Newark ahead of San Antonio and Anaheim in this current round of play, but compared to the first, second and third round host cities, the host of the East Regional outscores just Tucson.

Scoreboard:

• Viewed NCAA Men’s Tournament: 13.4%
• Very interested in men’s basketball: 8.0%
• Any interest in men’s basketball: 22.4%
• Overall rank: #3 this round, #11 overall

Houston

The 2011 men’s tournament got underway in Dayton, where the First Four games were played to determine the four teams that would make it into the Big Dance. Interestingly, Houston, host of the Final Four, did not score not a single point better than Dayton when it came to area residents’ likelihood to watch the men’s tournament. Specifically, just 14.1% of Houston’s 4.3 million adult residents say they watched some or all of the last NCAA men’s basketball tournament. Area interest in the sport overall outscores only Newark, Anaheim, San Antonio and Tucson. Semifinals are held on April 2 and the Championship game on April 4th at Houston’s Reliant Stadium.

Scoreboard:

• Viewed NCAA Men’s Tournament: 14.1%
• Very interested in men’s basketball: 8.4%
• Any interest in men’s basketball: 22.6%
• Overall rank: #2 this round, #10 overall

New Orleans

New Orleans may be more recently associated in the sporting world with the Saints, victors of the 2010 Super Bowl, but it turns out the area has quite the penchant for college basketball. Among all 14 host cities, New Orleans is high scorer, with the exception of Washington, D.C., when it comes to likelihood of area residents to watch the men’s tournament. Fully 17.2% of the area’s 1.15 million adult residents say they watched the last tournament and 26.9% say they are interested in college basketball. New Orleans hosts the Southeast Regional, which tips off on March 24.

Scoreboard:

• Viewed NCAA Men’s Tournament: 17.2%
• Very interested in men’s basketball: 10.4%
• Any interest in men’s basketball: 26.9%
• Rank: #1 this round; #2 overall

Interestingly, Richmond, VA is the home market for two of the Sweet 16 teams. These are the University of Richmond and VCU. Even more interesting is the fact that these two teams are on a collision course. With wins in the next round they would meet in the Elite 8 for a prized spot in the Final Four.

With their surprise victories in the tournament so far, what these teams have in common is being labeled “bracket busters.” A more extensive market analysis uncovers other similarities, plus some notable differences.

Here are highlights from profiles of the home market areas for this year’s Cinderella teams using data from Experian’s Mosaic consumer lifestyle segmentation system and Experian Simmons market research. The following statistics are based on the home markets of the five Cinderella teams.

• All four Cinderella teams hail from markets with above average interest in college basketball. 
• Milwaukee, home of 11th seeded Marquette, has the highest concentration of adults who are interested in college basketball (28.1%). This is 11 percent relatively higher than percentage for the total U.S. Milwaukee also has the highest percentage of adults who said they watched last year’s men’s NCAA Division I tournament (17.3%). This is a relative six percent higher than the total U.S. 
• The 10th seeded Florida State Seminoles hail from Tallahassee, which has the second highest percentage of adults with an interest in college basketball (26.9%).
• Richmond, where both 11th seeded VCU and 12th seeded Richmond are based, is just behind Tallahassee when it comes to the percentage of adults who are interested in college basketball (26.7%).
• Indianapolis has the lowest percent of residents who are interested in college basketball (26.3%), but that’s still a relative four percent higher than the U.S. as a whole.
• Although interest should be very high this year, Richmond and Indianapolis (15.8% each) have the lowest percentage of adults who watched last year’s tournament.

Cinderella Team Market Snapshots

Richmond, VA
Home market of: Richmond Spiders, VCU Rams
Sweet 16 opponents: Kansas, Florida State

The top two segments in Richmond representing 30% of the market’s households are:

1. Metro Minority Communities (18.1%) comprised of married couples and single-parent minorities earning above average incomes from a mix of service industry and white-collar jobs in transportation, health care, education, and public administration.
2. Urban Commuter Families (11.5%) comprised of upscale, college educated Baby Boomer families and couples living in single detached homes in city neighborhoods on the metropolitan fringe.

Other interesting facts:

• Most over-represented segment is Metro Minority Communities (3.8 times the national average)
• Percent of adults with interest in college basketball is 26.7%
• Percent of adults who watched last year’s men’s college basketball tournament is 15.8%

Tallahassee, FL
Home market of: Florida State Seminoles
Sweet 16 opponent: VCU Rams

Similar to Richmond, the top two segments in Tallahassee are Metro Minority Communities (14.8%) and Urban Commuter Families (6.9%). The two segments that account for the next highest share of households are:

1. Struggling City Centers (6.7%) comprised of young, single and single-parent minority renters living in low-income city neighborhoods.
2. Rural Southern Living (6.5%) comprised of lower-income blue-collar couples and families living in sparsely settled mobile home communities.

Other interesting facts:

• Most over-represented market segment is College Town Communities (6.2 times the national average)
• Percent of adults with interest in college basketball is 26.9%
• Percent of adults who watched last year’s men’s college basketball tournament is 16.8%

Milwaukee, WI
Home market of: Marquette Golden Eagles
Sweet 16 opponent: North Carolina Tarheels

The top segment in Milwaukee representing 11.2% of households is Urban Commuter Families (as described above). The two segments that account for the next highest share of households are:

1. Small-town Success (10.5%) comprised of white collar, college educated, middle-aged working couples living in newly developed subdivisions outside the nation’s beltways.
2. Steadfast Conservative (9.3%) comprised of high-school educated mature singles and couples living in middle-class urban blue-collar neighborhoods.

Other interesting facts:

• Most over-represented market segment is Successful Suburbia (3.6 times the national average)
• Percent of adults with interest in college basketball is 28.1%
• Percent of adults who watched last year’s men’s college basketball tournament is 17.3%

Indianapolis, IN
Home market of: Butler Bulldogs
Sweet 16 opponent: Wisconsin Badgers

There are four equal size segments that account for just over 30% of Indianapolis households. These include Steadfast Conservative (8.9%), Urban Commuter Families (7.8%), and Small-town Success (7.1%). All three of these segments are also among the top five in Richmond, Tallahassee, and Milwaukee.

What makes Indianapolis unique from the other three markets is a higher percentage of New Suburbia Families (7.2%). These are young, affluent working couples with pre-school children concentrated in fast-growing, metro fringe communities.

Other interesting facts:

• Most over-represented market segment is Successful Suburbia (2.8 times the national average)
• Percent of adults with interest in college basketball is 26.3%
• Percent of adults who watched last year’s men’s college basketball tournament is 15.8%

In this latest installment of Experian Marketing Services’ continuing March Madness consumer coverage, we’ll profile the work life of online game streamers. Is there one down the hall or in the next cube? The answer is almost certainly “yes,” but the “who” may surprise you. 

According to Experian Simmons, just over 5% of all U.S. adults and nearly a quarter of adult NCAA men’s tournament viewers (24%) qualify as likely online game streamers. For the purpose of this analysis, likely online game streamers is defined as those U.S. adults who watched the last NCAA men’s basketball tournament who also sought out sports information online or watched online video in the last 30 days. These likely online game streamers must have also visited either cbssports.com or espn.com in the last 30 days.

Fully 79% of likely online game streamers are employed either full-or or part-time, with 59% working 40 or more hours a week.

Department managers and IT staff-have reason to be concerned about a loss in productivity during March Madness: fully 79% of likely online game streamers are employed either full-or or part-time, with 59% working 40 or more hours a week. Don’t be so quick to suspect that colleague who always shows up late and goes home early as a game streamer. A safer bet would be the guy who’s always at his desk when you get in and still there when you head out. In fact, one-in-ten adults who work more than 40 hours a week (11%) are likely online game streamers, meaning they’re more than twice as likely as the average adult to be checking out the game online.

Remote employees who work at home often get a bad rap with office “suits” sometimes assuming their pajama-clad colleagues fall prey to distractions. Actually though, Americans who work from home are no more or less likely to be likely online streamers than those who don’t work from home. Likewise, the self-employed are no more or less likely to be online game streamers than laborers who work for “the man.”

Interestingly, Experian Simmons found a direct correlation between company size and a worker’s chance of being a likely online game streamer. Specifically:

• Those who work in companies with fewer than 100 employees are 17% less likely than the average American worker to be likely online game streamers.
• Those who work in companies with between 100 and 499 employees are just two percent less likely than average to be likely streamers while those employed by companies with between 500 and 999 employees are eight percent more likely to be online game streamers.
• Employees of companies with 1,000 or more employees are the most likely culprits with the group on average being 17% more likely to be likely online game streamers.

As such, it’s no surprise that Fortune 500 companies are the most at risk of having offices full of online streamers during March Madness. Employees of Fortune 500 companies are fully 66% more likely to be online game streamers than those who Americans employed by a non-Fortune 500 company.

Finally, the best insight into whether your office mates are streaming basketball games online instead of working is by looking at their paycheck (not that we encourage that of course). Specifically, as income rises, so does one’s chance of being an online game streamer:

• Employed Americans who personally earn less than $25,000 annually are the least likely to be online game streamers, scoring 50% below average on this metric.
• Those who earn between $25,000 and $49,999 are only 15% less likely to be game streamers.
• If you know or suspect that your colleague earns upwards of $50,000 a year, it’s a good idea to keep an eye on them for the rest of the month; workers with incomes between $50,000 and $74,999 are 33% more likely than average to be likely game streamers and those who earn between $75,000 and $99,999 are 75% more likely to be likely game streamers.
• Your colleagues earning $100,000 or more annually are the most likely to be streaming online, with those personally taking home between $100,000 and $149,000 being a whopping 164% more likely than the average employee to be streaming games online.
• And those earning $150,000 or more annually being fully 176% more likely to be online game streamers. Moreover, one-in-five adults who earn $150,000 a year or more fall into our likely online game streamers segment compared with just 5% of all U.S. adults.

The first match-up to be played during the traditional workday tips off at 12:15 EDT on Thursday March 17th when West Virginia takes on the winner of the second round-one play-in game. Armed with this information, you should be able to catch-or join-your office’s online game streamers in the act.