THE 6 MOST RELEVANT TYPES OF MARKET SEGMENTATION - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2025

The main types of market segmentation are behavioral, demographic, psychographic, geographical segmentation, which considers the type of industry and which is based on the products or services offered.

Market segmentation is the process by which a large homogeneous market is defined and subdivided into several identifiable segments with similar needs, wants, or demand characteristics.

Its objective is to design a marketing mix that meets the expectations of customers in each segment.

Few companies are large enough to meet the needs of the entire market, so most must divide total demands into segments to choose those in which the company is best equipped to meet.

Market segmentation is also an effective way to discover the best way to reach customers.

By dividing the market into small groups or specific sets of customers, the exact strategies needed to reach each group of customers can be created.

To carry out a good market segmentation it must be possible to measure the group in question, and this must be large enough to make a profit.

In a good segmentation the group must be stable and not disappear over time, and it must be possible to reach potential customers through marketing activities.

The 6 main types of market segmentation

1- Demographic segmentation

Demographic targeting is one of the simplest and probably the most widely used targeting. Most companies use it to get the right population to use their products.

Markets can be segmented into many different characteristics, such as age, income, family size, occupation, religion, nationality, gender, and race, among other criteria.

This type of division allows you to specifically look at the ages of customers, or the ancestry of competitors in a particular industry.

When you group your customers demographically, you can strategize to reach them specifically, since people who belong to particular demographic groups tend to react in the same way to advertising.

This kind of market division is taken into account in almost every industry: from automobiles, beauty products and cell phones to clothing and footwear.

It is based on the premise that customers' buying behavior is influenced by their demographics.

An example of this segmentation can be observed in the automobile market. This market has different price ranges; For example, Maruti makes cheaper cars, so it targets middle-class people.

On the other hand, BMW makes more expensive cars, so its goal will be to attract high-class buyers.

2- Behavioral segmentation

This type of segmentation divides the population based on their behavior and their decision-making pattern.

It is possible to market a product or service based on the behavior of an individual. For example, young people will tend to prefer flavored coffee, or sports fans often use spray deodorants.

Behavior can be a great way to identify loyalty. Generally, a customer's loyalties to a particular brand help advertisers classify them into smaller groups.

An example of this segmentation is advertising during the holidays. At Christmas consumption patterns are different from those seen on other days.

3- Psychographic segmentation

This division defines a market segment through people's lifestyles, activities, interests and opinions.

This segmentation is similar to the behavioral one, but the psychographic one also takes into account the psychological aspects of consumer purchasing behavior.

The audience is divided based on your personality, lifestyle and attitude. This segmentation process is based on the premise that the consumer's shopping compartment can be influenced by their personality and lifestyle.

Personality is the combination of characteristics that make up individual character (habits, attitude, temperament, among other factors) and lifestyle is the way in which a person lives his life.

Using this information you can build a picture of how people enjoy spending their free time and what makes them have a more immediate response.

By defining the activities and interests of the target market, you can develop products and services that are perfectly tailored to meet your needs.

For example, clothing stores like Zara segment their market based on lifestyle: customers who want the latest trends or clothing for certain lifestyles can purchase their clothes there.

4- Geographical segmentation

This type of market segmentation divides people based on their geography. Potential clients have different needs based on the geography in which they are located.

This type of market division is important for companies, as people from different regions may have different requirements.

For example, a company may market heaters in cold countries that have difficult winters, while that same company may market air conditioners in warmer countries or with intense summers.

Today the scope of industries is higher than in the past, but companies continue to use the principles of geographic segmentation when they want to expand the business in more local areas or in international territories.

5- Segmentation by industry

This market is divided into the different industries. For example, the agriculture industry can be defined and can include everything related to that area: from massive food producers to small family farms.

This can be further specified, segmenting by products such as dairy, meats, organic products, fruits, among others. The more specific, the better the probability of defining the consumer market.

6- Segmentation by products or services offered

You can take a broad category, like computers, or choose a specific niche like window shades.

It can also be segmented from a service perspective: from a broad category like auto repair, to a specific item like brakes or injector cleaning.

The more specific the targeting, the more likely that the advertisement, product or service will be successful.

References

1. 7 types of market segmentation (2015). Recovered from blog.udemy.com
2. Market segmentation- definition, basis, types and examples (2017). Recovered from feeddough.com
3. 4 types of market segmentation and how to segment with them (2017). Recovered from marketing91.com
4. Market segmentation. Recovered from businessdictionary.com
5. Market segmentation. Recovered from investopeidia.com