Nielsen Claritas PRIZM

Nielsen Claritas 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.

"Density" refers to the density of population in neighborhoods. At its simplest, this involves dividing the total population of a particular census tract or block group by its land area and creating a density ranking of 0 to 99 (0 least dense, 99 most dense). For the PRIZM model, Claritas' Data Research & Development team devoted extensive resources to creating a more accurate measure and classification of neighborhood density.

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.

MyBestProfiles

Combine PRIZM with thousands of consumer behavior surveys to predict usage, expenditure and market penetration for products, services or activities in any geographical area.

Click here for details.

Census & ZIP Code Boundary Maps

More Information

• Claritas PRIZM Fact Sheet
• Claritas PRIZM Methodology
• Claritas PRIZM Segment Snapshots
• Claritas Data Catalog

PRIZM Appending Services

Append PRIZM segment codes to your client databases.  Click here for details...

PRIZM is a trademark of Nielsen Claritas Inc.