Page 717 - Encyclopedia of Business and Finance

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State Societies of CPAs

amount of spending, specific products are marketed University of Michigan Documents Center. (2005). Statistical
directly to them. The same is true of senior citizens, who resources on the web: Demographics and housing. Retrieved
constitute a growing segment of the American population. January 31, 2006, from
http://www.lib.umich.edu/govdocs/stdemog.html
Gender is another demographic variable. In industri-
U.S. Census Bureau. (2005). About metropolitan and micropoli-
alized countries where people are living longer, women
tan statistical areas. Retrieved January 31, 2006, from
generally outnumber men. Therefore, the needs and buy- http://www.census.gov/population/www/estimates/
ing habits of women must be factored into any marketing aboutmetro.html
plan. U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2005).
Urbanization and population mobility are two other Wages by area and occupation. Retrieved January 31, 2006,
from http://www.bls.gov/bls/blswage.htm
factors that are considered in marketing plans. Because it
is easier to market goods and services in highly urbanized
areas, marketing plans are more effective there. Mobility Mary Jean Lush
provides opportunities for national advertising for Val Hinton
regional branding. For example, some products sold in the
northeastern United States have done well in south
Florida because many Northeasterners have migrated to
Florida. STATE SOCIETIES OF
Other variables that affect market segmentation are CPAS
occupation and education. In 1960 approximately 30 per-
Independent professional societies for certified public
cent of women were working outside the home; in the accountants (CPAs) exist in each of the fifty U.S. states
early twenty-first century that number has almost dou-
and in Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands,
bled—and women own more than one in four of U.S.
and Guam. CPAs may choose to join their state’s profes-
businesses with paid employees. Marketing implications
sional organization, generally known as [state’s name]
include work clothes for women, more meals eaten out- Society of CPAs or [state’s name] Association of CPAs.
side the home, and easily prepared convenience food. The Such societies provide CPAs with common interests and
list of demographic and geographic variables and their goals a wide range of professional activities. The societies
marketing implications are infinite.
are also avenues for members to become leaders in their
Using population data, however, has limitations. profession. In the larger states, the state societies are
They may be dated because of the time lag from collection divided into chapters by geographic location. The rela-
to availability; also, census data are collected only every tionships between the state societies and the national
ten years. Some data may be too broad and, thus, hide organization, the American Institute of Certified Public
marketing opportunities. Finally, using demographic and Accountants (AICPA), and also between the state societies
geographic variables, which are easily gleaned from data and the state and national boards of accountancy, are dis-
on MSAs, ignores two very important segmentation vari- cussed briefly in this entry.
ables: psychographic and behavioristic variables. The societies are run by full-time and/or part-time
SEE ALSO Economic Analysis staff as well as a board of directors, with officers elected
from the membership. State societies have executive direc-
tors and finance their operations primarily through mem-
BIBLIOGRAPHY bership dues.
ASDE, Inc. (n.d.). U.S. geographic definitions. Retrieved January
31, 2006, from http://www.surveysampler.com/
Terminology.htm#21 SERVICES
Evans, Joel R., and Berman, Barry (2004). Marketing (9th ed.). State societies sponsor education programs and provide
Cincinnati: Atomic Dog.
resources for members and opportunities for them to net-
Integrated Public Use Microdata Series. (n.d.). Metropolitan work with other professionals. They represent the interests
area. Retrieved January 31, 2006, from of the profession at the state legislative level and have an
http://www.ipums.org/usa/hgeographic/metareaa.html
array of committees that members can join. The societies
Office of Management and Budget. The Executive Office of the provide publications for members and nonmembers, and
President. (1998, December 21). Alternative approaches to frequently sponsor public education sessions.
defining metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas; notice.
Retrieved January 31, 2006, from Frequently state societies offer additional benefits to
http://www.whitehouse.gov/OMB/fedreg/msa.html their members, such as access to insurance plans for pro-
Pride, William M., and Ferrell, O. C. (2004). Marketing looseleaf fessional liability, life, and health insurance. State society
(13th ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin. members often list networking as an important reason to

694 ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BUSINESS AND FINANCE, SECOND EDITION