Christy Ly

It’s a tale of two coasts. Many who live on the East and West Coasts of the United States believe the entire country, if not the world, revolves around the two regions and the vast land between them is simply forgotten territory. However, people who follow this school of thought are discounting more than 230 million Americans.

As one of the 230 million Americans who lived and worked in Middle America (I lived in Texas and Missouri for most of my life), I can safely say that people there worry about all of the “boring” topics of income, health insurance, raising children and mortgage payments. In my days as a television reporter in Missouri, farmers were concerned about the market value of their crops, government subsidies and how much rain would they get that season. It’s not sexy; it’s just reality. People don’t wear Manolo Blahnicks or Prada. They wear khakis and Timberland.

Arkansas-based Wal-Mart is a great example of a company who tapped into Middle America. Last year, 82 percent of American households made at least one purchase at the giant chain. Love it or hate it, Wal-Mart easily figured out what the average American wants and used that to build the world’s largest company, three times the size of its next global competitor, France’s Carrefour. A friend at a media buying company recently told me that they often test products and ads at Wal-Mart. If they don’t test well, it’s back to the drawing board.

What does this mean for PR?
When formulating strategies and tactics, be sure to not only tailor to the specific media you’re pitching, but also to Middle America. In fact, national media outlets target this demographic when producing newscasts or putting newspapers to bed. A prime example was a recent story about a global AIDS organization and its partnership with a well-known hip-hop music producer. We pitched a producer at Good Morning America and he liked the idea, but he needed someone older and mainstream because “Mary” in Kansas wouldn’t know the celebrity.

PR practitioners and companies usually target top-tier publications such as The New York Times or Washington Post. As important and influential as these publications are, those stories may be more relevant in local daily and weekly newspapers. In fact, many national newspapers generate more than 60 percent of their ideas from local newspapers outside the top 50 DMAs!

A quick media analysis of Pier One Imports shows that most of the coverage, while in many local papers, focuses on store openings or real estate news as opposed to helping to brand or position the company. Pier One could capitalize on its geographic reach by leveraging what it does best with its customers when they are in the stores. Store associates take the time to teach customers basics about colors and design, establishing an instant rapport and loyalty among them. That same concept can be applied when pitching the media. One way is to reach out to local features or metro writers with design tips and techniques and to morning shows with a “Trading Spaces” theme for viewers. With the popularity of do-it-yourself shows, home improvement and decoration are hot topics that need an industry leader in front of the consumers.

So how do you know if you company is strategically targeting Middle America?
Consider these initial questions:

• “How much on-message media coverage have you received in markets 50-125 in the past year?”
• “Does your media relations plan include specific messaging for media audiences outside the coasts?”
• “As company sales increase in Middle America, has your media coverage increase in those areas as well?”
• “If company growth is above average in Middle America, have you identified the factors that appeal to this market and use those to formulate your unique story?”
• “Have you identified media influencers in key Middle American markets?”

The lesson? Ignore the fly-over states and you ignore two-thirds of your audience. Next time your CEO tells you that he only wants to appear in the New York and Los Angeles Times, remind him that those boring Midwesterners are a viable—and important—audience.