Customer segmentation is an essential axis of business management, particularly its marketing strategy. To conduct effective business operations, it is necessary to segment your customer database to identify precise profiles leading to a more profound knowledge of the customer, his needs, and his buying habits.
Definition Of Segmentation In The Field of Marketing
Segmentation is part of a well-thought-out business and marketing plan, which any company should integrate into its operations to attract new customers and retain its existing customer base. This involves identifying and analyzing the different profiles that make up your target, considering their needs, inclinations, and consumer behaviour. The more precisely these parameters are determined, the better the proposal and the commercial approach will be.
To improve business performance and gain a satisfactory ROI (return on investment) from any marketing approach, you must be able to segment your customer base properly. This consists of:
- Classify and divide your customers according to pre-established parameters
- Establish groups with commonalities
- Create a business proposal in line with these groups
This distribution resulting from precise targeting is done within your CRM, a tool without which companies can neither manage their contacts effectively nor establish a prospecting plan with real added value.
What Are The Main Segmentation Parameters To Remember?
1-The Socio-Demographic Parameter
Socio-demographic targeting plays an essential role in a winning marketing strategy. This type of segmentation then consists of classifying customers according to social parameters while considering properties relating to populations and their dynamics. The criteria mentioned are numerous, and it suffices to choose the most important to carry out a relevant and effective targeting:
- The economic parameter: It considers financial data relating to the target client, namely the profession he exercises, his professional hierarchical level, and the approximate income value.
- The demographic parameter: This involves identifying the personal profile of the ideal client, starting with their gender, age, marital and family status, diplomas, etc.
- The geographical parameter: This criterion makes it possible to locate the target customer, starting with the country in which he resides or works. For a better quality of targeting, it is strongly recommended to go towards more precision: region, city, department, etc.
2-The Psychic And Intellectual Parameter
To improve the performance of your B to C strategy, having a CRM grouping together this type of data, which is often challenging to collect, is a determining factor. Therefore, companies have everything to gain by aiming for targeting that considers psychological factors relating to customers. The product pitch must be oriented toward a clear profile, increasing your chances of making sales.
Once you have studied the socio-demographic data, gathering the elements related to your customers’ personalities is in your interest. But what is character? A comprehensive concept, but you can get by on the essentials:
- The style of life
- Hobbies
- political opinions
- Social ideologies
The above elements make it possible to identify the fundamental factors that can motivate an act of purchase from your customer. Although this information is often confidential, new methods can access it, mainly on the Internet. We will mention, for example, social networks: the most advanced and effective tool for understanding and analyzing the so-called “psychological” profile of consumers.
3-The Behavioral Parameter
This criterion indicates the purchasing behaviour of your targets. An integral part of a B to B and B to C operation, it allows you to build a consistent portfolio by taking into consideration whether the customer buys occasionally or permanently, whether he is targeting promotions, prefers quality or quantity, if he attaches importance to customer follow-up, if he is interested in aesthetics or only in the practical side of the product, etc.