What’s in a Postal Code? Apparently a lot more than “What’s in a Name?” Your postal code can depict you age, your income, your education level, and even if you prefer golf over snowboarding – at least that is what the data-based product company Environics Analytics believes. They have come up with an online calculator called the Prizm5 that can determine just which of 68 different lifestyles you belong simply by typing in your postal code.
Using catchy names like “Lunch at Tim’s,” “Boomerang City,” and “Aging in Suburbia,” each lifestyle lookup tells you a neighbourhood’s population, number of households, average income, housing tenure, education level, type of occupation, diversity, and sample social value.
So how accurate is it? To find out, I typed in my own postal code, and was immediately rewarded with the neighbourhood handle “Street Scenes.” It stated I lived on the fringes of downtown in a well-kept aging home and happily opened my wallet for the latest gadgets, music and books. Apparently I am athletic with a hankering for snowboarding and aerobics, enjoy hanging out at bars and nightclubs and indulge in shopping sprees at Mountain Equipment. It finished by stating I support “The Pursuit of Originality,” which I accomplish by acquiring the latest in fashion, food, and wine.
Hmmm . . . I can live with people believing that about me!! Try it yourself at http://www.environicsanalytics.ca/prizm5