Patty had expected her primary market to be under 25 years old. This report supports that assumption. In the first category, "Age of Householder", she sees that householders under 25 years old have a demographic index of 152. In other words, these households are about 1.5 times more likely to spend on pinball and electronic video games than all households on average. But those are households headed by a person under 25. What about families with children? Patty turned to the category "Household Type" at the bottom of the report. Households made up of married couples with children show an index of 199 - about twice the average of all households in the U.S. And the homes headed by a single parent aren’t far behind, at an index of 171. Clearly the presence of children in the home correlates to spending on pinball and video games, as Patty assumed from the start. These families represent a strong base for Patty’s video arcade business.

But then Patty notices something interesting. In the "Age of Householder" category, there is another spike in the demographic index, even higher than the Under 25 bracket. The 45 to 54 Year Old bracket’s spending index is 164. Patty scans down the page, looking for high index numbers. Under "Household Income" she sees that households earning over $100,000 index at 207, or more than twice the U.S. average in spending on pinball and video games.

A picture begins to form in Patty’s mind; she is imagining her best prospective customers. She sees several members of a middle class family, perhaps the father and one or two sons or daughters. Each enjoys relaxing by playing games in arcades. Do they visit arcades together? They might – and that’s where Patty finds the "spin" for her new marketing strategy. She’ll promote a "family night special" at the arcade, with 2-for-1 game and beverage prices. Once the promotion brings customers into her arcade, she can study their playing behavior. She predicts that the kids will head toward certain favorite games and the parents will choose others, perhaps the vintage games they enjoyed when they were kids. Patty doesn’t really care – as long as they enjoy themselves, she is accomplishing what she set out to do. She is creating happy customers – and loyal customer relationships.