• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, December 19, 2012

According to a recent Nielsen report, The State of the Asian American Consumer, over the past decade, the Asian American population has grown at double-digit rates in 49 out of the 50 states while population growth in the non-Hispanic White segment is slowing.

The Asian American population is approximately 18.2 million and has increased over 50% since 2000, and is expected to reach 20.9 million in the next five years, the highest growth rate of any multicultural segment in the U.S. This is a consumer base that is growing, affluent, well-educated, geographically concentrated, technologically savvy and has tremendous buying power that continues to soar.

Asian Americans come from dozens of countries, speak a variety of languages and encompass a range of socio-economic characteristics. Asian Americans who originate from China, India, Philippines, Vietnam, Korea and Japan comprise 86% of the total segment population. Chinese represent the largest group at 22%.

With a 51% increase in population since 2000, Asian Americans are experiencing the highest growth rate of any multicultural segment, slightly outpacing the Hispanic population. Whereas U.S. Hispanic growth is fueled by native births, Asian American growth is fueled largely by steady immigration.

The Asian American population is larger than the total populations in 46 of the 50 US states. Only California, Texas, New York and Florida are larger. In 2010, about 430,000 new immigrants entered the U.S. from Asia alone, representing 36% of the total U.S. immigrant population. During the last decade, 3.6 million of the 4.2 million Asians added to the U.S. population were new immigrants.

Asian Americans skew younger than the total U.S. population (41 years vs. 45 years) and have a household size that is slightly larger than the total U.S. population (3.1 vs. 2.6). There are differences though in the foreign-born versus native-born populations. Among adults, native-born Asians are much younger at a median age of 30 compared to 44 for foreign-born Asians. Since they are less likely to be married, their average household size is smaller at 2.6 versus 3.2 for their foreign-born counterparts.

Not only are Asian Americans the fastest growing segment, many are also affluent and educated. Asian American household median income ($63,420) is 28% higher than the total U.S. median ($49,580) in 2012. For marketers trying to reach affluent consumers, the report notes that 28% of Asian American households have incomes greater than $100K compared to 18% of total U.S. households.

Marketers can resonate with Asian Americans through shared culturally relevant themes. The execution of these efforts are tied closely to language and acculturation levels, says the report. Consumption of in-language media varies by Asian country of origin and is impacted by immigration factors and local availability of in-language media, among others.

These consumers still prefer to look for “in-language” and/or “in-culture” media to stay on top of news and current events. The preference is manifested in the staggering growth of Asian media outlets (1115% from 1999 to 2010), says the report, with most of them being in-language media.

While television is still the dominant content medium for Asian American consumers, the digital space is rapidly providing additional touch points for advertisers. Driven by a prolific rise in mobile device ownership and time spent online, Asian Americans are playing a major role in the adoption of new technology.

Asian Americans spend an average of 80 hours surfing the Internet each month. They view 3600 web pages monthly, which is 1000 pages higher than any other demographic group. Asians visit computer and consumer electronics sites 36% more often, spend 72% more time and visit 84% more pages than the total population.

Traditional media is critical in reaching this segment, and television is favored by most Asian Americans. With 74% of Asian Americans being foreign born, many Asian households consume both Asian television as well as mainstream television channels. Asian American television plays a role in delivering news and information specifically relevant to the lifestyle of Asian Americans as well as the culturally relevant entertainment.

When Asian Americans (age 18-49) view mainstream television, the top shows include general dramas, situational comedies, participation variety, general variety and sporting events. Many of these top shows have Asian American actors, indicating that there is a desire among Asian American viewers to see people who resemble them perform on a mainstream platform.

The report concludes by noting that, with the ever-increasing influence of the Asian American population in the U.S., marketers tapping into this demographic with the highest purchasing power per capita, there is an opportunity to offset the decline in growth of the non-Hispanic White population

Steady immigration accentuates the need to understand that Asian American consumer preferences for categories and brands are influenced by homeland experiences. The large foreign-born population also indicates the necessity for a sustainable media industry that caters to Asian linguistic needs and cultural nuances.

For access to the complete PDF report from Nielsen with extensive charts and graphs, please visit here.