When targeting organizations or businesses, you may find that different levels of management have different needs and consequently respond to different stimuli. For instance, if you have a technical product, a department engineer would need different information (stimuli) from the owner/CEO. The engineer would respond well to messages about the specifications of the technology and the needs it addressed, while the owner/CEO would be more interested in how the technology would reduce staff time, expense, etc.

Stakeholders can be as vast as the entirety of your marketplace, or as easy to focus on as a specific supplier or strategic partner. When you have a project that potentially has a vast number of stakeholders, you must look for segments within each of the stakeholder groups and address the needs and expectations of each one.

Consumer markets, because they are so large, can be better managed if segmented into several smaller and more manageable parts.

Business or industrial markets, on the other hand, may be segmented to take advantage of in-place distribution systems, the expertise of distributors or sales reps in a particular vertical market. Sometimes segmentation is used to help create an impression in the mind of the buyer that the seller specializes in their type of industry, and hence is best qualified to serve that market.

Demographic segmentation is also a widely used method. It simply means that markets will be targeted based on age, sex, income, occupation, race, or other such variables. However, use this method cautiously. Demographic characteristics have not proven to be accurate predictors of consumer behavior.

"Half-heavy" operates on the theory that one-half of your customers account for 80 percent of your total business. It would seem logical then, to concentrate efforts on the buying half. The problem is, not all buyers seek the same benefits from a particular product, and a single tactic cannot be employed to reach all these customers.

Segmenting on benefits has been demonstrated to be a better predictor of behavior than demographics or consumption figures. This approach is based on being able to measure consumer value systems in detail. A complex method to employ, it requires a skilled researcher to determine the multidimensional aspects that effect a buyer’s behavior and then relate those ratings to determine which groups share similar degrees of importance regarding the benefits of the product, service, or idea.

As an example of benefit segmentation, let’s examine the options for a supplier of Fuel Cells, a technology that will eliminate the need for home owners to tap into public electric utilities.

One of the Fuel Cell’s biggest benefits, in fact, is its ability to eliminate the need to tap into a public electric utility. One segmentation method would be geographic: identify buildings being built in remote areas with little access to public utilities.

Another benefit offered by the technology is a clean by-product: warm water. All people involved in the "green" movement (who can be identified through mailing lists from particular publications) form another market segment for the Fuel Cell.

And think about that warm water. A second geographic segmentation method might lead you to focus on people in cold climates, where the warm water by-product might be used for heating floors.

A well-strategized and effectively executed marketing program includes a detailed analysis of each market segment including the demographics, psychographics, and other individual factors that affect each segment.

Then, unique marketing communications pieces specifically designed to address the needs of each segment can be designed to support marketing efforts at all levels.

Use the worksheets to help you target your market more effectively.

In this era of world wide competition, giant retailers, and rapidly changing markets, positioning yourself as a unique entity in the marketplace, is essential. Lack of differentiation accounts for up to 88% of the product failures in this country. And if you think about it for a minute, it makes sense. Why would someone change brands, or suppliers of any product or service, if they weren’t going to receive something different or better.

If you assume that your product or service has established competitors, why would someone want to change from an existing relationship to a new, unproven one?

The answer lies in the perceived benefit they might get from making that change. Will they get a better mousetrap? Better service? Personal shopping? What do you (or can you) do different from all your competitors that will make your company and its products unique in the eyes of the marketplace?

Positioning, the battle for the minds of your market, is an extremely important aspect in the new "strategic" marketing approach.

Your "position" in your marketplace must be unique from your competitors. And, to win your positioning battle, you must constantly remind your market of your uniqueness. If you don’t, you’ll become one of the "missing in action" and you’ll miss all the action.

Talk to potential prospects before and during new product R&D. Be sure to really listen -- it's very easy to fall so in love with your idea that you don't hear or respond to potential problems.

Use broadcast fax as a reminder of events and other important dates. One woman started using it to help promote her seminars. She got such an overwhelming response, she filled her programs and started a waiting list to boot!

Resources:
Glossary of Terms
Ad Examples with Analysis
Free Analysis of Your Ads or Brochures
AdFacts Tutorial - online
this runs really slow online unless you have a high speed connection. You can download it below.

Downloadable Files 
( right click and save to your hard drive)

AdFacts (download - rt click)

FREE Downloadable Worksheets 
You MUST sign in to have access to these -- once you've signed in, bookmark the page from which you download to avoid having to sign in every time you access them.

Marketing Plan Worksheet 
Demographic Profile Worksheets
Psychographic Profile Worksheets
Marketing Budgeting Worksheets
Ad / Brochure Development Worksheet
Follow-up Worksheets
Sales Reporting Worksheets
Proofing Checklists
Budgeting Worksheets (Excel)
and many more!