THE 

FIRST CULTURE 

Chapter 6 
MARKETING SEGMENTATION AND POSITIONING

1. Market segmentation is the subdividing of a market into distinct and increasingly

homogeneous subgroups of customers, where any subgroup can conceivably be selected as a
target market to be met with a distinct marketing mix.

2. Marketing activity is more effective if groups can be identified and ‘targeted’ according to the
marketing objectives of the company. This process is called market segmentation.

3. Measurability refers to the degree to which a characteristics can be quantified.

4. Accessibility refers to the degree to which the company can focus effectively on the chosen
segments using marketing methods.

5. Substantiality or “sustainability” refers to the degree to which the segments are large enough
to be worth considering for separate marketing cultivation.

6. The marketing budget can be allocated more effectively, according to the needs and the likely
return from each segment.

7. Homogeneous means consisting of parts which are all of the same kind. In marketing it is used
to identify markets which are undifferentiated. Neither by customer nor product. Heterogeneous
means the opposite, where there is a high differentiation in demand or products.

8. A segmentation approach to marketing succeeds when there are identifiable clusters of

consumer wants in the market.

9. Segmentation as strategy is one of the most important marketing tools. Consumer orientation
and the marketing philosophy rests on the recognition that within a particular market there
will be any number of sub-groups with their particular needs and requirements.

10. Segmentation should increase benefits to consumers by providing products, product feature or
attributes more closely matching their identified needs.

11. Segmentation will provide greater customer choice by generation a variety of products within
a particular class from which consumers can choose.

12. A target market is a market or segment selected for special attention by an organization
(possibly served with a distinct marketing mix).

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13. The major disadvantage of differentiated marketing is the additional costs of marketing and
production (more product design and development costs, the loss of economies of scale in
production and storage, additional promotion costs and administrative costs and so on.

14. The major disadvantage of concentrated marketing is the business risk of relying on a single
segment of a single market. On the other hand, specialization in a particular market segment can
give a firm a profitable, although perhaps temporary, competitive edge over rival firms.

15. Segmentation by location can also be feature of international marketing strategy, where
marketing strategy is formulated around needs of various cultures, countries or regions.

16. A role is the sum or ‘system’ of expectations which other people have of an individual in a
particular situation or relationship. Role theory is concerned with the roles that individuals act
out in their lives, and how the assumption of various roles affects their attitudes to other people.

17. Role ambiguity is a term which describes a situation when the individual is not sure what their
role is, or when some members of their role set are not clear what his or her role is.

18. Role conflict occurs when an individual, acting in several roles at the same time, finds that the
roles are incompatible.
19. In practice, class strata or divisions are commonly derived from specific demographic factors
 Wealth/income –economic resources
 Educational attainment
 Occupational status

20. Social mobility is the tendency for individuals to move within the social hierarchy. Generally,
such movement is associated with economic, educational or occupational success (upward
mobility) or failure (downward mobility).

21. Psychographics is a form of consumer research which builds up a psychological profile of

consumers in general, or users (or potential users) of a particular product. It is the main basis of
psychological segmentation of a market, and appropriate product positioning.

22. Psychographics is different from the following:

(a) Demographics consist of quantitative data about population characteristics like age,
income, gender and location (as we have just seen). Psychographics tends to include
qualitative data motives, attitudes and values.

(b) Motivation research. Psychographics includes qualitative factors, like motivation

research, but the latter’s findings are presented as quantified, statistical information in tabular
format. They are also based on larger samples of the population reached through less intensive
techniques like self-administered questionnaires and inventories.

23. Psychographics or lifestyles segmentation is a method which seeks to classify people according
to their values, opinions, personality characteristics, and interests and so on, and by its nature
should be dynamic.

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24. Lifestyle segmentation fits this criterion because it deals with the person as opposed to the
product and attempts to discover the particular unique life style patterns of customers, which will
give a richer insight into their preference for various products and services.

25. Lifestyle refers to distinctive ways of living adopted by particular communities or sub-sections
of society.

26. Lifestyle is a manifestation of a number of behavioral factors, such as motivation, personality

and culture, and depends on accurate description.
27. The green movement has become part of many life-style segments. Companies segment some
clients according to whether they are ‘pale’ or ‘dark’ green in their attitude to the environment
and therefore how significant environmentally friendly product attributes will be to the
purchasing decision.

28. Culture is deeply embedded in everyday behavior, but is susceptible to measurement to some
extent.
(a) Attitude measurement techniques
(b) Projective techniques
(c) Content analysis
(d) Observation
(e) Surveys or ‘value inventories

29. Positioning is the act of designing the company’s offer and image so that it offers a distinct and
valued place in the target customer’s mind.

30. Brands can be positioned in relation to competitive brands on product maps in which relative
positions are defined in terms of how buyers perceive key characteristics.

31. Perceptual maps can also indicate how customers perceive competitive brands performing on
key product user benefits.

32. Re-positioning is the strategy of changing the customers’ perception of a company or brand by
reference to quality and/or price in order to take advantage of a market performance.

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