Marketing Segmentation and Product Positioning
By
Marketing Management, MKT 540
Professor Shirley McLaughlin
October 23, 2011

Identify the marketing segment for the product and explain why this segment was selected
When it comes to marketing strategies, most people spontaneously think about the 4P (Product, Price, Place, Promotion) – maybe extended by three more Ps for marketing services (People, Processes, Physical Evidence). Market segmentation and the identification of target markets, are an important element of each strategy. They are the basis for determining any particular marketing mix. The basic steps in any marketing plans are as follows: identification of customers’ needs and market segments and develop profiles of resulting market segments. These two are under Market Segmentation. Second we must identify the targeted marketed; evaluation of attractively of each segment and selection of target segments. Thirdly, you would identify the differential advantages in each segment, development and selection of positioning concepts. Fourth you would develop a marketing mix for each segment according to the chosen position. The method by which whole markets are subdivided into different segments is referred to as the STP process. STP refers to the three activities that should be undertaken, usually sequentially, if segmentation is to be successful. These are segmentation, targeting, and positioning. Key benefits of the STP process include:
• Enhancing a company’s competitive position by providing direction and focus for marketing strategies such as targeted advertising, new product development, and brand differentiation.
• Examining and identifying growth opportunities in the market through the identification of new

customers, growth segments, or new product uses. The division of a market into different homogeneous groups of consumers is known as market segmentation. A market segment should be: measurable, accessible by communication and distribution channels, different in its response to a marketing mix, durable and not changing to quickly and substantial enough to be profitable. A market can be segmented by various bases, and industrial markets are segmented somewhat differently from consumers markets. There are two segments: consumer market segmentation and business market segmentation. A basic for segmentation is a factor that varies among groups within a market, which is consistent within groups. There are four primary bases on which to segment a consumer market: Geographic segmentation which is based on region, climate, population density and population growth rate. Demographic segmentation is based on age, gender, education, occupation, ethnicity, income and family status. Psychographic segmentation is based on values, lifestyle and attitudes. Behavioral segmentation is based on patterns, price sensitivity and brand loyalty.
Many of the consumers market segmentation bases can be applied to businesses and organizations, the different nature of business markets often lead to segmentation on the following bases: Geographic segmentation based on regional variables such as customer concentration, regional industrial growth rate and international macroeconomic factor, customer type based on factors such as the size of the organization and its industry position. Buyer behavior is based factors such as loyalty to suppliers, usage patterns and order size. I choose the consumer segment. The product that I would want to market is hair bows for cheerleaders and the demographic segment would be the better because of the gender. Most cheerleaders are females and they would be the people who would be wearing these hair bows. You have recreations, middle school, high school and all-star cheerleaders who buy these bows to match their uniforms for competitions or simply to cheer at either a football or basketball team. Discuss the target market and why these customers will be targeted.