Exceptional People, Exceptional Lifestyles  

Did you know that the disability community is the largest minority population in the country with 56 million people?  Or that the 2005 aggregate income of people with disabilities in the U.S. was estimated at $1 trillion…yes, you read correctly--$1 trillion! How about the fact that the South has the largest population with disabilities in the country -- over 26 million or about 30.8 percent. 
 

Well, these a just a few facts that the U.S. Census has compiled on the disability community and for corporate America, marketers and potential employers, these statistics are nothing to sneeze at.  Millions (49.7) of Americans with disabilities can work and approximately 21.3 million are of working age, but hundreds of thousands don’t have jobs.  In addition, this community is a major consumer of products and services and almost one-third of all families are impacted by a disability. But is anyone really paying attention?

Not really.  Although they think they are, the government, corporate America, even religious institutions need to recognize the void in services and outreach programs for families with special needs children or adult family members.  These families, in many cases as in the case of children and adult diapers, purchase products for a much longer period of time than the typical family. In addition, special services such as estate planning, and other life financial planning products are critical for these families. 

Corporate America needs to recognize the major contributions this emerging and increasingly vocal community and its family network makes towards the U.S. economy. Even as it has now come to recognize and maximize the benefits of reaching out to other cultures, including the African American, Latino, Asian, Gay and Lesbian communities, etc.,  they still have far to go. The disability community is the largest minority population in the nation and is comprised of these and other consumer segments--a truly multicultural community--so what are they waiting for?    

The same manner in which corporate America is seeing the profitability and sales benefits of marketing to the African American, Hispanic and Asian communities, they also need to begin developing and executing targeted outreach programs for the disability community.  What they need to recognize is that in addition to those with actual disabilities or special needs, the family network of this community (primary caregivers, mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, etc.,) is huge—adding millions on top of the 56 million people who make up this population.

This network of family members is paying keen attention to companies that support families who may be care givers and loved ones of children or adults with mental and/or physical challenges, by including the culture in marketing efforts.  This includes providing additional outreach programs in various areas that are pertinent to the community…in addition to Special Olympics.  

It took corporate America more than 40 years to begin seeing the profit-building opportunities of marketing to African Americans, the largest consumer of products and services in the nation, and the largest segment of the disability community (37 %), yet some are still refusing to accept the business building facts surrounding that community.  I can only hope it doesn’t take as long for major businesses to recognize the disability community as the untapped, affluent emerging consumer market that it is. We're ready to see it happen, and those companies with marketing vision and savvy will make sure that it does.