Classifying people: 'Demographics tell me nothing I want to know'

Adam Lury

Argues that traditional classification methods are too rigid and outdated to be useful, following the end of mass production and the emergence of world views other than male white dominance.

'Demographics tell me nothing I want to know'

Adam Lury

Adam Lury has been cocking robust and closely argued snooks at organised classification methods for some time, and does not spare them here. If everything was once quantifiable and interchangeable, the end of the mass production, and the emergence of other world views, have changed everything. Most destructive, particularly of 'life style' segmentation, people are inconsistent. Brands and businesses must be themselves, and let consumers come to them by self-selection. In media selection, programme content and the viewing experience become far more important. Demographics are the horse and cart, in...

WARC subscribers can sign in to keep reading

Not a subscriber?

Schedule your live demo with our team today

WARC helps you to plan, create and deliver more effective marketing

  • Prove your case and back-up your idea

  • Get expert guidance on strategic challenges

  • Tackle current and emerging marketing themes

We’re long-term subscribers to WARC and it’s a tool we use extensively. We use it to source case studies and best practice for the purposes of internal training, as well as for putting persuasive cases to clients. In compiling a recent case for long-term, sustained investment in brand, we were able to support key marketing principles with numerous case studies sourced from WARC. It helped bring what could have been a relatively dry deck to life with recognisable brand successes from across a broad number of categories. It’s incredibly efficient to have such a wealth of insight in one place.

Insights Team
Bray Leino

You’re in good company

We work with 80% of Forbes' most valuable brands* and 80% of the world's top top-of-the-class agencies.

* Top 10 brands