Market segmentation is an important concept in order to establish a plan to successfully bring a company’s product or service into the hands of their target market. Segmenting the market can be defined as dividing an existing market into sections or segments that may potentially become new niches for a business. There are five main categories to take into consideration when segmenting a market. They are:
1. Demographics
2. Psychographics
3. Lifestyle
4. Belief and Value System
5. Life Stage
Examples of factors taken into considering when looking at the demographics of the consumer are age, sex, race, income, and education.
Psychographics refers to the consumer’s personality. Examples of differences in this category are “Is the consumer a risk-taker? A risk-avoider? An impulsive buyer?”.
By studying a consumer’s lifestyle, the marketing team is focusing on the potential buyer’s hobbies, forms of entertainment and vacation plans.
The belief and value system of the consumer focuses on their religious, political, and cultural views and practices.
The last category mentioned to help in segmenting a market is the consumer’s life stage. A pre-teenager, a teenager, and an empty-nester all have different interests and needs from a product.
Market segmentation is a key strategy used by companies to establish a successful marketing plan by focusing their time and efforts into their company’s niches to bring in the majority of the company’s revenues.
After evaluating its target market, Aldus separated its market into 4 segments. The criteria Aldus used to segment their market involved establishing what computer system the consumer was using (Apple Macintosh or IBM PCAT or compatible) and determining whether the consumer as a business person or a creative graphics professional. The first segment was focused on the consumer who was a graphics professional using a Macintosh system. The...