Fulfilled's Other Flavor

Just as public radio's Actualizers come in two flavors, so do public radio's Fulfilled listeners.

Close kin to Actualizer-Fulfilleds are Fulfilled-Actualizers, a VALSä 2 micro-segment similar in age, beliefs and interests -- but with fewer resources.

While Fulfilled-Others are likely to be older, primarily classical music listeners,

any broad characterization of Fulfilleds as 60+ classical music listeners who avoid news would be wrong.

In fact, the listening choices of both Actualizer-Fulfilleds and Fulfilled-Actualizers are virtually identical: They each spend about a third of their public radio listening time to NPR newsmagazines, and about a third listening to classical music.

Fulfilled-Actualizers are less apt to have advanced degrees than Actualizer-Fulfilleds; they also earn a little less. But in the ways that count to public radio – listening and giving behavior – they are more like Actualizer-Fulfilleds than they are like Fulfilled-Others.

Confused? Don't be.

VALS is more nuanced than it first appears, but that's also the source of its great value. Understanding that two respective flavors of Actualizer and Fulfilled share the nexus of public radio’s appeal is a powerful piece of knowledge.

AUDIENCE 98's data about public radio's important VALS segments can help focus programming and fundraising efforts more effectively. The more detailed the information, the sharper the focus – and the more it can help.

– Leslie Peters
AUDIENCE 98 Core Team

 

Audience Research Analysis
Copyright © ARA and CPB.  All rights reserved.
Revised: September 01, 2000 12:38 PM.