Marketing Strategy and Competitive Positioning pdf ebook

CHAPTER 7 SEGMENTATION AND POSITIONING PRINCIPLES
This analysis may suggest that some market targets are unattractive because they 
have a poor ‘fit’ with the company’s structures and processes, or even that the company 
is not capable of implementing a segmentation-based strategy at the present time, or 
it may identify the areas that need to be changed if the segment target is to be reached 
effectively.
Summary 
In increasingly fragmented markets, marketers in both consumer and business markets 
are turning more and more to segmentation methods to identify prime market targets. In 
approaching market segmentation, companies must confront the sometimes quite sophis-
ticated methodology of segmentation, test the market targets identified and make the stra-
tegic segmentation decision of how to use a segmentation model in developing their market 
strategy. 
This suggests that one of the major decisions faced is ‘what bases to segment on?’. We 
have seen that there are a great many potential bases for segmentation in consumer and 
business markets, and for product and service (and non-profit) marketing. 
Arguably, the segmentation approach closest to extending the marketing concept is use/
benefit segmentation – originally suggested 50 years ago by Haley (1968) . While it does 
require considerable primary investigation, understanding the benefits customers derive in 
buying and/or consuming products and services is central to designing an integrated market-
ing strategy. 
There are substantial potential benefits to be gained from basing marketing strategy on 
rigorous market segmentation. However, the organisational issues impacting on the imple-
mentation of segmentation-based strategies should also be evaluated to test for the internal 
compatibility of segment targets and the costs of organisational change that may be involved 
in segmentation-based marketing strategies. 
The next chapter, on segmentation research, concentrates on the methodology for devel-
oping bases for segmentation.
Summary