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34
Marketing
What were you doing on 27 March 2011?
Hopefully, one of the things you were doing
on that day was filling in the 10-yearly
census form that went to every household in
England andWales.
Two years down the line and the numbers
have been crunched and a steady stream of
data has started to flow from the Office for
National Statistics covering everything from
the number, gender and ages of the population
to our living conditions, health, occupations,
whether we have more than one address,
how we travel to work and our educational
qualifications.
But what has this got to do with your
business?
Well, depending on the type of commercial
activity that you undertake, census statistics
can tell you an awful lot about your employees
and customers. And that can help you to arrive
at important decisions about where to locate
your business and how you can develop and
target your products and services.
Major business decisions invariably
carry an element of risk, so anything that
increases confidence and minimises risk is to
be welcomed. Census statistics can inform
growth plans and provide management, board
and investors with reliable evidence and the
confidence to enable them to make those
important decisions. The data can also help
to identify where your business might benefit
from more detailed market research to address
specific business development issues.
One great advantage of census statistics
is that they are available down to very small
geographical areas. So, as well as information
about the population at a national level, you
can drill down to individual local authorities and
Common census
Marketing to older people?
Census data is a mine of information for
businesses and much of it is free.
For businesses providing goods or services to older people, for instance domiciliary care,
mobility aids, specialist holidays or tailored financial products, census statistics offer some
useful insights.
Figures from the 2011 Census reveal that one in six people in England andWales (16.4%) is
over 65.Whilst the overall proportion has changed little since 2001, the general growth in the
population means that the number of over-65s has increased by nearly 900,000 over the decade.
Furthermore, the number of people aged over 90 increased by more than 26% from 340,000 in
2001 to 430,000 in 2011.
Planning to expand?
Effective business development is built on sound
research and intelligence. If your growth plans
include opening new premises, census statistics
can tell you about the numbers, age profile and
levels of educational qualifications of potential
employees in your catchment area. Not only
can this information help to identify the best
place to locate a new facility, but the inclusion
of the most up-to-date data in business plans
can demonstrate the thoroughness of your
research to banks and potential investors.
Already using census
data?
If you are one of the many businesses that
already use census data we would like to
hear from you. Just drop an email to
[email protected] and let us know
how you have used, or plan to use, population
and small area statistics in your company.
even to postcodes.
Another advantage is that census data is
usually free of charge. Only when someone
needs a specific piece of data that does not
form part of the standard range of statistical
output tables will any charge be levied.
Dozens of statistical tables are derived from
the census, so help is available to help you find
the information that you need. Alongside the
statistics themselves, ONS publishes Statistical
Bulletins that summarise the key issues for each
set of figures published. There are also a number
of ‘short stories’ that offer analysis of themes
such as methods of travel to work, the provision
of unpaid care and families and households.
There is even a selection of interactive maps
and graphics that make finding the data you
need easier and more interesting.
To explore the range of census data, visit
the Office for National Statistics website
at
www.ons.gov.uk/census
or contact
Census Customer Services (01329 444972 or