Market segmentation - What is it? variables, types, and examples

Market segmentation

The action of dividing a market into specific groups.

What is market segmentation?

The action of dividing a market into specific groups, according to characteristics and needs, is known as market segmentation. The goal of segmentation is to identify a target audience for more effective marketing.

In other words, market segmentation is the process of classifying the market into more homogeneous and smaller groups, in order to carry out more effective marketing.

Market segmentation variables

In order to segment a market into certain homogeneous groups, the following variables are used:

Geographic variables

These take into account the climate, country, city, and region where consumers are located. The size of the place where they live is also considered.

demographic variables

These take into account consumer demographics, such as educational level, religion, nationality, culture, race, family size, age, sexual orientation, gender, occupation, income, among others.

behavioral variables

Behavioral variables are related to consumer behavior and the benefits that they obtain when purchasing a product or service. For example, the expectations that he has when buying.

Psychographic variables

These analyze the attitudes, lifestyle, values, interests, and personality of the client or consumer, with the aim of satisfying their personal tastes.

Types of market segmentation

We can classify market segmentation into the following groups:

• Socioeconomic: those that are divided by lifestyle or income.
• Economic: divided by the type or amount of income of the consumer.
• Business: divided by the type of company, its size, and development.
• Behavioral: takes into account the behaviors, the benefits, and the attitude that the consumer has towards the product.
• Demographic: this divides by gender, life cycle, and age.
• Geographic: divided into cities, neighborhoods, regions, or countries.
• Psychographic: divides according to preferences, personalities, lifestyles, and social class of consumers.

Examples of market segmentation

Here are some examples to better understand market segmentation and how companies use it:

Case 1

A company that makes tools for adventurers who love nature needs to carry out an advertising campaign. For this, the company's marketers should focus their merchandise on these fans and their behavioral variables, through market segmentation.

For advertising to be effective, it should focus on this segmented market, which corresponds to the characteristics of adventurers and carry out campaigns in media related to the subject, such as an adventure magazine.

case 2

A hygienic products company launches a product, especially for women, for which it will be segmenting its market with a demographic variable, sex.

Therefore, the company in question must adapt its marketing strategies to such market segmentation.

Case 3

One of the most present forms of segmentation in recent times is ads on social networks. These allow segmenting an audience according to different variables, such as gender, age, region, interests, etc.

Importance of market segmentation

Market segmentation is essential for there to be efficiency and permanent benefits, since with this it is possible to focus investment towards the attention of a small group, efficiently and objectively to the product.

In addition, it allows sales to be more effective, since you have the opportunity to design and improve campaigns and strategies, according to the consumer or client. All this makes market segmentation a vital process for the optimal functioning of an organization's marketing.

 

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