Want to reach the young, smart and affluent with your daily deal offering? Then use LivingSocial instead of Groupon.

According to a survey* by Nielsen Co., LivingSocial buyers are 49 percent more likely than the average American to earn at least $150,000 -- compared to 30 percent for Groupon. LivingSocial users are also more likely to be under 35 years old than Groupon's audience. Also, LivingSocial's users are smarter -- 46 percent of them attended or graduated college, compared with 39 percent for Groupon.

This is a pretty interesting study and could be quite useful. Based on this, an upscale restaurant (should they even offer a deal), might find a better target audience on LivingSocial instead of Groupon, for example. In all, depending on the product or service offered and the intended audience, businesses might find success with a little targeting.

Of course, both LivingSocial and Groupon have bigger things to worry about right now -- the 800 lb. gorilla known as Facebook  Daily Deals.

*Nielsen surveyed a panel of 200,000 Internet users.