The ultimate success of a company is determined to a great extent by its customers and that is why organizations levy paramount importance to their clients. Market segmentation is the tactic used in digital marketing to determine the specific niche businesses wish to infiltrate. Businesses can customize their product or service as per the taste and preferences of their customers once they have learned how to properly segment their user base. Some popular examples of digital segmentation are carrying out campaigns based on ages, interests, etc. via Facebook Ads, using the paid advertising Google Ads tool for performing segmentation by keyword research, etc. Marketing segmentation is more than just an interesting tool that is pivotal for a successful marketing strategy. A strong plan can help you gain a greater understanding of the market alongside the target audience set. You can take the example of a pet owner who runs general ads of fluffy kittens but there is an increasing demand for supplies of pet snakes. Market segmentation will help the owner customize her advertisements for catering to this growing segment of customers.
Types Of Market Segmentation
Defining the market is the first step in the creation of an effective market segmentation strategy. Here you need to note your USPs such as whether you provide a high-end product, niche services, etc. After this initial sorting out, marketers can bank on any of the following means of market segmentation:
- Geographic segmenting segregates customers based on their area of residence. The main objective of this segmentation is to cater to the different needs and priorities of customers depending on their geography. Selling flood insurance to the residents of Chicago or heavy winter coats to people residing in LA won’t yield positive results.
- Demographic segmentation allows marketers to organize their potential customers based on data like gender, age, education, income, job, etc. Clients respond differently to communication channels, style, and voice depending on their age. Identifying their annual income helps in qualifying customers according to buyer intent. It also informs businesses whether a certain market is worth investing in and helps in determining the right pricing for different products or services. Though gender has lost its importance in the modern times of dwindling gender roles, it aids in personalizing marketing campaigns and outbound marketing when combined with additional supporting data. Last but not least comes job titles of potential clients which help in identifying prospective ones with the highest purchasing authority. Businesses can bank on this information to personalize campaigns and send tailor-made messages to their customers while selling products having a unique appeal to their clientele.
- The psychographic segmentation divides the market based on values, interests, opinions, and other intrinsic traits of individuals. This type of segmentation is mostly used by digital marketers who wish to design products based on their consumer’s thought processes. For example, an apparel company trying to launch a new line of gym apparel needs to conduct market research on whether their target customers maintain an active lifestyle and engage in exercise.
- Under the behavioral segmentation process, customers are grouped according to their behavior while taking purchase calls. Though this type of segmentation has certain common traits with psychographic segmentation, it mostly focuses on the decision-making process of consumers and their reaction to the information. A common component of this type of segmentation is brand loyalty.
Things To Take Care Of In Market Segmentation
- The sheer power of market segmentation excites digital marketers and often derails them from their target objective. This is why it becomes necessary to maintain the right balance by refraining from diving too far into niche groups.
- It is pretty difficult to find a sizable market segment and even if you do it is essential to consider the appropriate ROI. You can take the example of a pet shop owner who discovers through research that a large university is in the vicinity of her store where a big chunk of students owns pets. Despite having the strength of numbers, this research might not be very realistic as pet supplies are usually pretty expensive and students might not have enough funds to afford the same.
- Speaking to customers on a grass-root level is an unrealized dream of most marketers. Often demands are there for certain products among small segments. But even when marketers come to know about it, catering to the same is unrealistic as the ultimate return will not be worth the investment made.
Conclusion
Digital marketing has evolved into an ingenious means of growing your business. Businesses can directly target their ideal audiences by banking on the wings of digital media as timely messages get conveyed to their target clients. Market segmentation adds greater effectiveness to the digital marketing drive irrespective of the size of your business so that you can reach a greater share of customers without having to shell out a fortune.