Equine Students-Market segmentation, targeting and positioning

Every company must decide which segment(s) they wish to participate in.  But how do companies decide which segments to target?    Marketing managers have to take into consideration the following factors:

• The size of the segment
• The accessibility of the segment
• The sustainability of the segment
• Actionability

Why should a company spend time on identifying which segment(s) to target? The following are some of the reasons that marketing managers use to justify the time spent segmenting a market.

• Better match customers needs
• Enhanced profitability
• More effective promotional communications
• Opportunity for growth
• Opportunity to dominate the segment

There are four element that marketing managers must consider when devising their segmentation strategy.  These are:

• Performance objectives
• Strategic focus
• Positioning
• Implementation programmes

Once the segment(s) have been identified then next step is to identify which targeting strategy the firm will use.  There are four main targeting strategies.

• Undifferentiated targeting
• Diferentiated targeting
• Focused targeting
• Customised targeting

When the targeting strategy has been chosen time should be spent on the positioning strategy for product or service. How do you want customers to view your product or service?  In order to help the customer position the product or service in their mind it is imperative that a USP or a sustainable differntial advantage is created.
A position strategy has to have four elements:

• Clarity
• Consistency
• Credibility
• Competitiveness

Some companies have to make the decision to reposition their product or service in order to survive.  If this is to be successful, a considerable amount of money will need to be spent on educating the target audience.