Who lives in Murfreesboro, Tennessee

Murfreesboro is a city of about 153,000 at the geographic center of Tennessee, southeast of Nashville and growing fast enough to be one of the state's busiest exurbs. Middle Tennessee State University anchors the population and pulls the age curve young: roughly 18% of residents are 18 to 24 and another 24% are 25 to 34, while the 65-and-older share runs below a fifth. The mean age sits near 43, several years under the national figure.

The loudest signal here is media behavior. About 50% of residents have cut traditional cable, close to 1.5 times the national rate, and tech laggards are roughly half as common as they are nationwide. Podcast habits run the same direction, with the share who listen to none dropping well below average. This is a connected, screen-forward population that has already moved on from old delivery channels.

Personality runs close to the national baseline across most of the Big Five, with two small lifts worth naming: a bit more openness to the new and a bit more sensitivity to stress, both consistent with a young, fast-changing university city. Decision speed is unremarkable in shape, which means careful framing beats pressure.

Where they part from the norm is in how they shop and return. Frequent returners run about 1.6 times the national rate, so a generous, low-friction return policy is not a nicety here but a baseline expectation. Treat the return path as part of the product.

Values sit mostly in line with the country on environmental concern and ethical buying, where the tilts are modest. The one that bends the other way is support for local business: residents are less anchored to buying local than the typical American, with the strong-preference share running below half the national figure. Fast in-migration and a landscape of new chains and developments make that an honest reflection of how the city actually shops.

Streaming and podcasts are the open doors, given how thoroughly this audience has left cable behind. Short video outperforms its national draw, and on social platforms Instagram and TikTok punch above their usual weight while Facebook runs lighter than the national norm. Influencer voices land too, with the trusting share about 1.5 times typical.

One caution: receptivity to advertising skews negative, running roughly 10 points above the national rate on the unfavorable end. Earn attention through useful content and credible creators rather than interruptive placements.

These households buy often. Monthly and weekly purchasers together make up a clear majority, and the rare-buyer group nearly disappears, sitting around 5% against a national figure closer to 14%. Purchase motivation splits along familiar lines, with price and quality leading the way as they do most places.

Saving leans a little softer than average, with more sporadic savers and fewer aggressive ones, which fits a younger population still building income and absorbing the cost of a growing city. Tie spending to clear, near-term value rather than long-horizon payoff.

Health is where daily life clearly diverges. The share of residents indifferent to their health runs about half the national rate, and the proactive group, people who manage wellness ahead of problems rather than after, climbs near 44%. Spending backs it up, with minimal wellness budgets far less common than average.

Openness about mental health is striking. Only about 7% keep it private, well under half the national figure, and roughly a fifth actively advocate for it. Messaging around health and wellbeing can be direct and matter-of-fact here without risking discomfort.