Market Segmentation

Why Segmentation?

At first glance, it’s easy to believe that communication would be easier if all people were the same: if they all had exactly the same interests, the same values, the same motives. There would be no need to segment markets, to define audiences, to identify drivers, or to articulate individual messages.

Then again, members of a completely homogeneous market would all be looking for the same message, and once the “perfect message” was devised, all other messages would be second-rate by comparison. Worse yet, organizations would find it impossible to differentiate their products or services from their competition.

Thankfully, we live in a world of diversity – a complex society made up of groups, and each group made of individuals, each with unique lives. The key to market segmentation is to identify relatively homogeneous cohorts that are naturally existing. And once those cohorts are identified, it becomes possible to devise messages that communicate your organization’s special benefits for that unique cohort, and map those messages to each segment of the market.

And as surely as different cohorts of your market will be receptive to different messages, those different cohorts may be reachable through different media. Printed collateral, email, video, viral networking, websites, and all other forms of promotional communication perform differently in differing markets and in differing cohorts.

Today’s organizations need a strategic approach to promotion, with messages and communications vehicles that deliver segment-specific benefits and advance your brand position. MarketPoint leverages decades of segmentation experience to skillfully develop effective messages and recommends promotional strategies appropriate to our clients’ target markets – without preconceived bias toward specific media vehicles or messaging channels.