Why is industry market segmentation needed? What is a market segment? Segments of the financial market. Selecting target market segments

Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………….

1. Signs and criteria of market segmentation………………………………...

2. The market is the objective basis of marketing………………………………………………………

3. Quiz: What is a market niche? …………………………………………….

Conclusion………………………………………………………………………….

List of references………………………………………………………………...

Introduction

Market segmentation is considered one of the main elements of modern marketing. It is an analytical process that puts the customer first, helps maximize resources and highlights a business's strengths relative to its competitors. The most vocal proponents of segmentation argue that it opens the way to more effective, targeted marketing programs, less direct competition with market rivals, and more satisfied customers. It is not surprising that the approach has become so popular, covering almost all markets, crossing boundaries between industries and countries. However, along with potentially enormous benefits, it also brings with it changes that may not be feasible in actual practice. The authors' experience with many similar situations in different markets and industries suggests that, in practice, a trade-off must be made between the potential benefits of segmentation and the realities of a well-fortified firm structure, distribution system, and sales force.

Both questions: “signs and criteria for market segmentation” and “the market is the objective basis of marketing” are relevant. Many dissertations, monographs, textbooks, as well as textbooks for universities, domestic and foreign authors are devoted to their study and development.

Objectives of the test: 1) consider the signs and criteria of market segmentation, 2) analyze the market as an objective basis for marketing, 3) solve the test.

1. Signs and criteria for market segmentation

The basis of the entire planning system in market conditions is sales forecasting. Therefore, the first task of the company’s management is to determine the sales volume in accordance with demand, and only on the basis of an assessment of the sales market can one begin to plan the production and financial activities of the company.

Sales market assessment is a set of measures aimed at studying the trade and sales activities of an enterprise, and studying all the factors influencing the process of production and promotion of goods from manufacturer to consumer. Each enterprise realizes that its products cannot be liked by all customers at once, therefore, with the help of marketing, the management of the enterprise, based on information about potential consumers, regions in which there is demand, prices that consumers are willing to pay for the product, distribution channels, and competition, determines sales market segment.

A market segment is a large, clearly defined group of buyers within a market with similar needs and characteristics that are distinct from other target market groups.

The objects of sales market segmentation are:

Consumer groups;

Groups of products (goods, services);

Enterprises (competitors).

Market segmentation by consumer groups is a grouping of consumers according to some characteristics that, to one degree or another, determine the motives for their behavior in the market.

Segmentation by enterprise (competitor) is a grouping of competitors according to competitiveness factors in moving to the market.

Market segmentation is carried out according to criteria and characteristics. A criterion is a way of assessing the choice of a particular market segment for products or an enterprise (competitor). A feature is a way to distinguish a given segment in the market.

The most common segmentation criteria are:

Segment capacity, which will determine the number of potential consumers and, accordingly, the required production capacity;

Channels for distribution and sales of products, allowing to resolve issues regarding the formation of a sales network;

Market stability, allowing you to make a choice about the feasibility of loading the enterprise’s capacity;

Profitability, showing the level of profitability of an enterprise in a given market segment;

Compatibility of a market segment with the market of its main competitors, allowing one to assess the strength or weakness of competitors and make a decision on the feasibility and willingness to make additional costs when targeting such a segment;

Assessing the work experience of specific enterprise personnel (engineering, production or sales) in the selected market segment and taking appropriate measures;

Protection of the selected segment from competition.

The main features of market segmentation by consumer groups are geographical, demographic, economic, psychographic, and behavioral.

Geographical characteristics include identification by regional and administrative sections, by population size and density. Demographic factors include estimates of gender and age family composition. The economic ones include types of professions, educational and qualification-professional levels of workers, characteristics of the economic situation (in the country, region, at enterprises), the privatization process and the composition of forms of ownership, structural adjustment, financial solvency of employers, etc. Psychographic characteristics include lifestyle , personal qualities, belonging to certain social strata and strata, etc. Behavioral signs record employment motivation, status, degree of need (for work or employee), emotional attitude, etc. Within each group, it is necessary to estimate the most common values ​​of the variables.

A market segment by consumer group is determined by the coincidence of several characteristics among certain consumer groups.

The main features of market segmentation by product groups are functional and technical parameters, price, etc.

The main features of market segmentation by enterprise (competitor) are the quality indicators of the product, price, sales channels, and promotion of the product on the market.

Market segmentation by consumers, segmentation by products and competitors complement each other and all the results obtained are considered in a comprehensive manner, which allows you to correctly select the most effective market segment.

Market segmentation by product groups is a derivative of market segmentation by consumer groups and takes into account the needs and preferences of consumers regarding the quality characteristics of the product (goods, services).

Market segmentation by consumer groups is carried out in accordance with the characteristics given in Table 1.

Table 1.

The main signs of market segmentation by consumer groups.

By the coincidence of several variable values ​​among certain groups of consumers, we can conclude that there is a certain market segment.

Types of market segmentation

To increase competitiveness and correctly determine the market capacity, in addition to segmenting the market by consumer groups, the market is segmented by product, that is, by the most important parameters for its promotion in the market, using the method of drawing up functional maps (double segmentation method). The essence of the method is that based on selected market segments by consumer groups and comparing them with various values ​​of factors (functional and technical parameters of the product) selected for analysis, it is determined which parameters are most suitable for the selected group of consumers. The most common parameters for assessing the market for a product are: price, sales channels, technical characteristics. The results of the analysis using the double segmentation method are presented in the form of a matrix, the rows of which show the value of the factor, and the columns show market segments by consumer.

Market segmentation by product assumes that at the stage of developing new products for each product model:

All factors are taken into account that reflect the system of consumer preferences and at the same time the technical parameters of the new product that satisfy the needs of consumers (selecting a market segment by product parameter);

Consumer groups are identified, each with their own set of requests and preferences (psychographic segmentation);

All selected factors are ranked in order of importance for each group of consumers (market segments).

All of these variables are included in a multifactor product market segmentation model. The multifactor model allows us to determine bottlenecks when developing a product and influence them through incentives for the common interest of all services of the enterprise in gaining market share.

Market segmentation by main competitors is carried out based on an assessment of the competitiveness of your enterprise relative to competitors. The data necessary for this type of analysis must be provided by the economic services of the enterprise management apparatus, and the ratings given must be consistent with the opinion of the specialists of these services.

During the analysis process, it is important to provide a detailed semantic description or explanation of why a particular variable in the table is assigned a given rating. Only in this case, the overall result of the table (sum of points) will show the true position of the enterprise in relation to its main competitors in the market. You can also sum up the values ​​of the assessments for the main factors and compare these data with the overall result, which will allow the management of the enterprise to find out which factors need to be used to increase competitiveness.

The method of segmenting competitors by business profile allows an enterprise to quickly move from the stage of market introduction to market expansion, and increase the efficiency of promoting its products on the market.

Market segmentation by competitors, consumers, and products complement each other, and all the results obtained are considered and evaluated in a comprehensive manner. Only in this case will the enterprise management be able to correctly select exactly the market segment where the enterprise can best use its comparative advantages.

To segment the market for industrial goods, you can use the same characteristics as for segmenting by consumer groups (except for demographic ones). But the market for cars and devices depends less on consumption conditions. Here are the main factors:

Production and economic: customer capabilities, industry, specifics of the organization, procurement, development prospects;

Organizational: form of relationship with the supplier, payment terms, technical requirements;

Psychographic: composition of the group making purchasing decisions, personal characteristics of the group, quality of contacts with management.

Coursework:

Market segmentation

Introduction

One of the main areas of marketing activity is market segmentation, which allows an enterprise to accumulate funds in a certain area of ​​its business. To date, the economic literature has quite clearly defined the concepts of target market and target segment, the identification of which is the main goal of market segmentation. Market segmentation is necessary in the market oriented companies for the following main reasons: Different groups of people have different needs and therefore the company needs to tailor the product for each group. The company must position its products in a specific way for each group. The company must choose the appropriate price for each of the groups. Some groups may require dedicated sales channels. For the service industry, adapting a product for each consumer group is a fairly easy task. However, it is impossible to adapt the service to each consumer, so it is necessary to combine them into groups that are homogeneous according to their needs. At the same time, all the other listed reasons lead to the need to divide into groups that are homogeneous from the point of view of perception of the entire marketing complex.

To be successful in the market, a company needs to know “its” customers. This can be achieved through market segmentation. Then the organization carries out marketing in a more targeted manner, saving money, time, and effort.

The purpose of this course work: to reveal the basic concepts associated with market segmentation and to trace the segmentation process for a specific product group.

To write this course work, teaching aids and teaching aids were used.

Market segmentation

1.1 Segmentation goals

Market segmentation is the process of dividing a market into distinct groups of consumers, each of which may require separate marketing mixes.

A segment is a group of consumers that is identified during segmentation.

The target segment is the most suitable and profitable group of consumers for the company with which the company begins to work.

The consumer segment in the product market is characterized by similar needs, behavioral or motivational characteristics, which creates favorable marketing opportunities for the enterprise.

The main goal of segmentation is to ensure the targeting of the product being developed, produced and sold. As a result of segmentation, the basic principle of marketing is implemented - consumer orientation.

The first step in segmentation is the selection of characteristics - indicators of how to distinguish a given segment in the market. Signs of segmentation of markets for consumer goods, industrial and technical products and services can vary significantly.

There is a distinction between demand and supply segmentation. Demand segmentation is a concept that describes the variety of demand, while supply segmentation is a concept that describes the variety of supply. Demand segmentation is based on the variety of needs of potential buyers who represent the market, and supply segmentation is based on the variety of products, if these products (segments), from the point of view of buyers, represent a different solution to their problems.

1.2 Prerequisites for market segmentation

The fundamental premise of market segmentation is that not all buyers have needs for the same product or service. For this reason, it is rarely possible to apply a single marketing or sales program to attract all potential buyers at once.

Market segmentation allows you to find a balance between the heterogeneity of buyers on the one hand and the limited resources of suppliers on the other. This is possible due to the fact that buyers with generally similar needs and purchasing behavior regarding products or brands, may be combined, or grouped, into one market segment. Buyers within one segment tend to have homogeneous consumption patterns and attitudes toward a product that differ from those of other segments.

Most companies recognize the existence of customer segments with similar needs and promote multiple products in hopes of reaching more than one consumer group. Many thriving companies attribute their success to the fact that they were able to identify and satisfy the needs of a certain type of customer. However, few companies have the resources to offer different products to all segments of a given market. Instead, they focus on the most attractive or profitable segments.

This is the essence of market segmentation: subgroups of buyers with similar needs are identified, some of these groups are selected for further promotion and are offered carefully designed sales and marketing programs that emphasize a distinctive product image or brand positioning.

1.3 The importance of market segmentation for a company

Companies reviewing their segmentation strategies may do so as a separate study or as part of a business or marketing plan. As a rule, companies approach such analysis with a fair amount of optimism. The research process may well reveal new ways of grouping buyers with similar needs. Needs are constantly evolving and changing and are influenced by general market trends, offers from the company and its competitors, as well as the opinions of other buyers. In most cases, overestimation market segments gives positive results: better product orientation and a deeper and more accurate understanding of needs plus insights for developing sustainable competitive advantage.

Unfortunately, the optimism that is so characteristic at the beginning of the process completely dissolves towards the end. For successful implementation segmentation, potential obstacles must be identified in advance. What are these “pitfalls”? The company may initially misunderstand the purpose of the segmentation process and may not fully understand the possible results. Further, she may not understand the process itself, that is, the stages that need to be completed to identify new scheme segments. Finally, many obstacles will be understood and overcome, the company must succeed and reap all the benefits that segmentation brings.

2. Market segmentation process

2.1 Stages of market segmentation

A deep understanding of the different needs and demands of different customers is the fundamental basis of marketing. Companies can understand these needs in their full breadth, but it is usually not possible to develop products for each customer individually. The shift from mass marketing to market segmentation, where the target is a specific group (or groups) of buyers, is becoming an increasingly popular way of finding compromises between the diverse needs of the consumer.

Many companies believe that marketing success depends on how well their customers are segmented. This is because through segmentation they are able to satisfy different needs and achieve certain economies of scale. The process begins with grouping consumers with similar needs and purchasing characteristics. Next, the organization selects the group(s) to target with its sales and marketing efforts. The marketing program is designed to take into account the specific needs and characteristics of the target group(s), or segment(s), of buyers. Its goal is to position a product or service directly among the target clientele. When positioning, offers from competing organizations operating in the same segment are also taken into account. The process of market segmentation contains many different useful aspects. This includes a deeper understanding of customer needs and desires, from which accurate and effective marketing programs can be created, an understanding of the competitive situation, which helps in creating and maintaining a distinctive advantage, and a more efficient allocation of resources. It is rare to be able to serve 100% of the market, which is why focusing on specific segments allows an organization to achieve greater efficiency.

Every market segmentation program consists of three stages. They need to be carefully studied before making any decisions about segmentation methods.

In general, the basic principle of all three stages is that “similar” buyers can be grouped together. For example, if you ask 100 managers what their favorite car is, you might get 100 different answers. However, some will want the benefits of a sports car, others will want an all-wheel drive SUV, and others will be better off with a luxury car. If there are a sufficient number of such “similar” consumers, there is obvious potential for companies wishing to serve the corresponding segment.

3. Dividing the market into segments

3.1 Features used for segmentation

Main stages.

Dividing the market into segments, or combining buyers into groups, can be divided into two main stages.

No market is homogeneous. Of course, one might think that all consumers are the same, but even the most superficial reflection shows that this is not the case. Some people love sweets, others are indifferent to them; some people strive to buy a car, others tend to refuse it; Some people have children, other people don't. We could give a lot more examples that would show in what situations consumers behave differently, but perhaps the ones given are enough.

Studying the question of whether a product is needed on the market or not, one must begin with an understanding of the essence of the process, i.e., with whether this product is needed by an individual consumer? This type of research establishes the habits, tastes and reactions of people living within a given market. It helps answer questions regarding the behavior of these people as buyers: who? What? Where? When? How? Why? How many?

The essence of segmentation is very successful, and marketing research outlined by R. Kipling in one of his poems:

Consumer research helps the manager responsible for promoting products to the market to establish:

• 1) who are the people who make up his market;
• 2) what they want to buy;
• 3) what they need and use;
• 4) where they buy the products they need;
• 5) in what quantity the products are purchased;
• 6) when they buy;
• 7) how often they buy;
• 8) how they use the products they buy.

To take into account this “stratification” in the market, marketers resort to such an operation as segmentation. Market segmentation- this is the division of a specific market into parts (segments) or groups of consumers who have a stable demand for a certain product, the implementation of which depends on how each of these parts reacts to the product offer, taking into account the activity of marketing means of promotion (advertising, sales forms and etc.).

There are several main types of segmentation. Traditionally, marketing differs:

• 1) macro-segmentation - dividing the market into segments by region, country, level of development, etc.;
• 2) micro-segmentation - a more granular division of the market than macro-segmentation depending on private parameters (characteristics of consumers by income level, age, marital status, etc.).

Market segmentation involves identifying groups that differ from each other in their behavior. At the same time, a market segment is a fairly large part of it; in reality, an enterprise can focus on an even smaller group of consumers. In this case, the following concepts are used.

• 1. Market niche- a subgroup of consumers within a segment. Although some aspects make it possible to identify these people with other consumers belonging to the same segment, they are still characterized by some additional characteristics.
• 2. An even narrower concept - local group. By focusing on a local group, the enterprise seeks to take into account the differences in interests and needs that are typical for residents of a particular locality, city, village, district, or even visitors to a particular store. The concept of “local group” is especially important when an enterprise cannot satisfy the needs of the market for a particular product as a whole, and therefore the natural decision is to limit its activities to a specific territory.
• 3. Individual Marketing involves the desire to take into account the interests of one specific buyer. In fact, individual marketing takes place in the activities of a tailor who sews clothes to order. In this case, the tailor strives to take into account as many characteristics of his customer as possible: height, volume, his aesthetic preferences, intentions regarding the use of the clothes that will be sewn, etc.

An individual consumer is, by and large, the limit of market segmentation, since further division is simply impossible. There is an opinion that modern production and associated with the desire to develop it technical progress strive precisely for this limit.

Some businesses are forced to choose one-to-one marketing because their markets include only a few or even one consumer. In particular, aircraft manufacturers are forced to choose this strategy, since a very small number of organizations and people purchase their products. In conditions of mass production, one regularity should be taken into account, which applies with one exception: the narrower the group that the enterprise is targeting, the more expensive the product turns out to be.

Naturally, this generally does not apply to a small enterprise, which has limited production volumes due to limited capacity and resources. However, on a larger scale, attempts to accommodate private interests lead to a noticeable increase in production costs. For example, in order to bake a thousand identical loaves of bread, certain costs are required; however, in this case the production will run continuously since all the buns are the same. When a manufacturer seeks to take into account the interests of customers (for example, begins to bake three types of loaves of bread that differ in size), there is a need to reconfigure equipment, use different baking forms, etc. As a result, more demands are placed on workers; conveyor production must, at least at least rebuild twice.

It makes sense to distinguish between preliminary and final segmentation. When planning to enter the market with a new product, experts make some assumptions about why this particular product will be purchased by consumers belonging to a particular group. Such assumptions have the nature of hypotheses - provisions that must be tested in the process of marketing research. These provisions are usually called preliminary segmentation.

Unlike pre-segmentation, final segmentation presupposes precise knowledge of consumer preferences and more accurate assumptions about the success or failure of the project, based on data from marketing research. It is advisable to distinguish between preliminary and final segmentation because our assumptions and assumptions do not always correspond to reality, and therefore they always need to be verified.

In marketing practice, it is customary to distinguish between segmentation of the consumer market and segmentation of the market of organized consumers.

1. Segmentation of the end-consumer market is aimed at identifying factors that are significant from the point of view of ordinary consumers - individuals and families. Inclusion in this series of families is due to the fact that a person’s needs are not determined solely individually; belonging to a family imposes important restrictions on his behavior. In particular, a person who does not have a family can spend money solely on meeting personal needs and entertainment. A person who has a family acquires a number of responsibilities, in particular, the responsibility to feed, clothe, and teach his children.

Segmentation of the end consumer market. It is carried out according to a number of characteristics, which are presented in table. 6. There are quite a lot of these signs, so usually marketers choose only a few as a basis, those that are the most significant; there cannot be any single basis for all cases. In practice, marketers have to determine the most important criteria based on the specific situation, that is, on the characteristics of the product and the characteristics of consumers who may be interested in it.

Basis for market segmentation

The more attributes a marketer uses to segment the market, the more segments are obtained. This has both advantages and disadvantages. The main advantage is that as the number of parameters and segments increases, the accuracy of predictions increases. However, this increases the amount of information you have to deal with and therefore makes it more difficult to analyze. In addition, excessive detail makes it difficult to select a large enough segment that would fully meet the interests of the enterprise.

Therefore, it is not at all necessary to segment the market according to all possible criteria; it is necessary to select the most significant of them. The main task of the marketer in this case is to obtain exactly the information that is most important. And in many cases, it is enough to take into account only three or four criteria.

2. The market of organized consumers is a market of a wide variety of companies, firms and other organizations. In addition, this market also includes numerous trade organizations that mediate connections between the manufacturer and end consumers. Its differences from the end-consumer market are very significant; first of all, they relate to the goods that are purchased in this market, as well as the volume of purchases. There are also differences in segmentation.

Successful market segmentation can be considered the goal of any enterprise. In conditions modern economy There are too few monopoly markets; in the vast majority of cases, competition is developed to one degree or another in the markets. The fact is that consumers who buy a certain product of a particular brand, as a whole, form a market segment identified on a special basis. It is quite natural that an enterprise should strive to ensure that its market segment is larger.

Obviously, market segmentation and the search for an unexploited segment should be resorted to only if the market as a whole has already been at least partially developed, so developed that there is no shortage in it. In a situation of shortage, consumers are ready to buy any product, and it may have qualities that do not fully satisfy consumers. Then mass marketing turns out to be much more effective.

In this case, the most important indicators are those that relate not to the characteristics of individual consumers, but to complex organizations that purchase goods or services to satisfy their own needs. It is clear that the needs of organizations are qualitatively different from the needs of people.

The most important parameters for the market of organized consumers are the following:

• 1) industry sector, field of activity of the company (usually in this case they say three areas: technology, marketing and financial sector);
• 2) company size: there are large, medium and small companies;
• 4) geographical region;
• 5) technologies used by the company;
• 6) the volume of goods and services that the consumer needs: it can be large or small;
• 7) features of the size and frequency of orders: non-periodic small, non-periodic large, periodic large, periodic small;
• 8) qualities and characteristics of goods and services necessary for the company: price, quality, service, the possibility of systematic procurement, mandatory (non-obligatory) urgent deliveries;
• 9) features of the current use of goods and services: they can be used widely, limitedly or not used at all; Accordingly, a distinction is made between active users of the product, inactive users of the product and potential (possible) users.

There are two reasons for market segmentation, which are directly related to the product and its qualities.

• 1) the benefit that the buyer is looking for. Different consumers may purchase the same product for different reasons. For some, the price is important, for others - the fact that other people buy this product, for others the most important thing is quality, for others - some special quality associated with the specifics of the product. Thus, according to research conducted by marketer R. Haley, there are four main consumer groups of toothpaste buyers: for the first group, cost savings comes first, for the second - the therapeutic effect, for the third - the ability of toothpaste to whiten teeth, for the fourth - taste;
• 2) commitment to the product (brand). A buyer who is committed to a certain product, or more precisely, to a brand of product, is ready to purchase it at a higher price; if one store is out of stock of that brand, he is usually willing to go to another.

Naturally, only approximate division bases are given here: in reality they can be different, more or less detailed, fractional. When determining the basis for division, it is necessary to proceed, first of all, from what features will be truly significant, and to avoid excessively fractional division. The first requirement is clear in itself: incorrect market segmentation will lead to marketing strategy the enterprise will be ineffective, all efforts will be in vain.

As for the second requirement, it is due to the fact that too much fragmentation of the market as a result of research provides too much diverse information that is difficult to organize and generalize. Usually, when starting segmentation, specialists have some assumptions about what exactly interests them and have information about what resources the enterprise has at its disposal. Therefore, whenever possible, market segmentation should be aimed at ensuring that it is proportionate to the real needs of the enterprise.

There is one important recommendation to make here. When segmenting a market, it is not always necessary to rely on standard, already existing grounds. As noted researcher Majaro pointed out, a marketer who is able to discover a new basis for market segmentation can avoid intense competition. This means that the most profitable basis for an enterprise is such a basis for segmentation that is not used by other enterprises operating in the same market.

Let's say that there is a book publishing house that focuses on producing cheap products accessible to a wide range of readers. A natural but wrong solution for another book publishing house there would be a focus on the production of expensive book products (for example, gift books). However, in reality, the second publishing house will benefit much more if it starts publishing, for example, books for children and does not play by the rules that are ultimately set by the competitor.

We should not forget about searching for “market windows”. This is the name for a market segment that, for some reason, has remained untapped by other manufacturers of the same type of product. As a rule, “market windows” occur when a new product appears that is simply not able to satisfy the needs of a certain part of the population.

For example, copying equipment was initially created by analogy with printing equipment, and therefore only expensive and large equipment was available on the market. Several Japanese companies took advantage of this by starting to produce inexpensive and less powerful equipment that they could use small firms and individual consumers. A similar situation was observed in the market for shampoos and pet food. The thing is that traditionally they were washed with the same thing that people themselves washed with, and they were fed with ordinary food.

One of the main areas of marketing activity is market segmentation, which allows an enterprise to accumulate funds in a certain area of ​​its business. To date, the economic literature has quite clearly defined the concepts of target market and target segment, the identification of which is the main goal of market segmentation. Target market is a firm's potential market, which is determined by a population of people with similar needs for a particular product or service, sufficient resources, and the willingness and ability to buy [I]. A target segment is a homogeneous group of consumers in a company's target market that has similar needs and purchasing habits in relation to the company's product.

Thus, market segmentation– this is an activity to identify potential groups of consumers of a specific product of an enterprise.

Market segmentation scheme

The general scheme of market segmentation is presented in Fig. 1.

A similar market segmentation scheme is general character and can be used when planning various areas of marketing activities.

Note that the above market segmentation scheme corresponds to the approach proposed by Lambin and takes into account macro-segmentation to identify the base (otherwise, target) market and micro-segmentation to determine the target segment of the enterprise. This scheme, in turn, is a development of segmentation schemes proposed in other studies.

Rice. 1. General scheme of market segmentation

Let us consider in detail the individual stages of the general market segmentation procedure.

Segmentation principles

To carry out successful market segmentation, it is advisable to use proven practical activities five principles:

differences between segments, similarities of consumers, large segment size, measurability of consumer characteristics, reachability of consumers.

Principle differences between segments means that as a result of segmentation, groups of consumers that differ from each other should be obtained. Otherwise, segmentation will be implicitly replaced by mass marketing.

Principle consumer similarities in a segment provides for the homogeneity of potential buyers in terms of purchasing attitudes towards a specific product. Consumer similarity is necessary so that an appropriate marketing plan can be developed for the entire target segment.

Requirement large segment size means that target segments must be large enough to generate sales and cover the costs of the enterprise. When assessing the size of a segment, one should take into account the nature of the product sold and the capacity potential market. Thus, in the consumer market, the number of buyers in one segment can be measured in tens of thousands, while in the industrial market a large segment may include less than a hundred potential consumers (for example, for cellular or satellite communication systems, for consumers of power engineering products, etc.).

The measurability of consumer characteristics is necessary for targeted field marketing research, as a result of which it is possible to identify the needs of potential buyers, as well as study the reaction of the target market to the marketing actions of the enterprise. This principle is extremely important, since the distribution of goods “blindly”, without feedback from consumers, leads to the dispersal of funds, labor and intellectual resources of the selling company.

Principle reachability of consumers means the requirement for communication channels between the selling company and potential consumers. Such communication channels can be newspapers, magazines, radio, television, outdoor advertising, etc. Reachability of consumers is necessary for organizing promotional campaigns, otherwise informing potential buyers about a specific product: its characteristics, cost, main advantages, possible sales, etc.

The basis of the market segmentation procedure, along with the application of segmentation principles, is the informed choice of the appropriate segmentation method.

Segmentation methods

The most common methods of market segmentation are the method of groupings according to one or more characteristics and methods of multivariate statistical analysis. Let us note the features of these methods based on the results presented in.

The grouping method consists of sequentially dividing a set of objects into groups according to the most significant characteristics. A certain characteristic is singled out as a system-forming criterion (the owner of the product, the consumer intending to purchase the product), then subgroups are formed in which the significance of this criterion is much higher than for the entire set of potential consumers of this product. By successive splits into two parts, the sample is divided into a number of subgroups.

In Fig. Figure 2 shows a diagram of sequential breakdowns using the AID (automatic interaction detector) method, which has become widespread in segmentation procedures. Similar methods of enumerating options are often used in market segmentation. For example, in Karpov’s research, a similar approach is proposed as a priority method for selecting a target market.

For segmentation purposes, multidimensional classification methods are also used, when division occurs according to a complex of analyzed characteristics simultaneously. The most effective of them are methods of automatic classification, or otherwise cluster analysis.

Rice. 2. Classification scheme using the AS method

In this case, classification schemes are based on the following assumptions. Consumers who are similar to each other in a number of ways are grouped into one class. The degree of similarity among consumers belonging to the same class should be higher than the degree of similarity among people belonging to different classes.

Using this method, the typification problem is solved with the simultaneous use of demographic, socio-economic and psychographic indicators. As an example, let us note the solution to the problem of market segmentation by constructing a consumer typology, which means dividing consumers into typical groups that have the same or similar consumer behavior. The construction of a typology is the process of dividing the studied set of objects into groups that are sufficiently homogeneous and stable in time and space.

In reality, objectively, there are fairly homogeneous groups (classes) of consumers with a characteristic type of consumer behavior for each of them. Using multivariate statistics methods, such groups can be identified and analyzed.

For example, in Goltsov’s study, the tractor equipment market was segmented using multifactor modeling, which made it possible to adjust the enterprise’s production plans and forms of product sales.

As follows from the above, after determining the principles and methods of segmentation, the main step before carrying out the segmentation itself is the selection of reasonable criteria for this procedure. Obviously, these criteria will be different for consumer and industrial markets. Let's consider them separately.

Criteria for consumer market segmentation

The consumer market is the market of final consumers who purchase goods for personal, household or family use.

Consumer market segments can be identified based on regional criteria, demographic criteria, and consumer lifestyle criteria.

Regional criteria represent the main distinctive characteristics cities, regions, regions. A business may use one or more demographic characteristics to segment its market. Segmentation strategies emphasize highlighting and exploiting geographic differences.

The main regional criteria are as follows.

• Region location may reflect differences in income, culture, social values, and other consumer factors. For example, one area may be more conservative than another.
• Population size and density shows whether there are enough people in the region to provide sales and facilitate marketing activities.
• Transport network of the region is a combination of mass public transport and highways. A region with a limited network of mass public transport is likely to have different specific needs than a region with a well-developed transport and car system.
• Climate can also be a criterion for market segmentation, for example, for companies specializing in heaters and air conditioners.
• Business structure in the region includes targeting tourists, workers and employees, and other persons living in the region. Tourists are attracted by hotels and campsites, workers are attracted by places catering with fast service, city residents - department stores. Large cities usually have shopping districts, while suburbs have shopping centers. Each shopping area or center has its own distinct image and mix of different stores.
• Media accessibility varies by region and has a significant impact on a company's ability to segment. For example, one city has its own television station, while another does not. This will make it difficult retail trade in the second city, targeted access specifically to consumers in the nearby area. Many national publications, especially newspapers and magazines, now have regional editions or inserts to allow companies to advertise to target their respective regional audiences.
• Dynamics of regional development may be characterized by stability, decline or growth. A company will likely face an untapped market in a growing region and a saturated market in a stable or declining region.
• Legal restrictions vary depending on the city and region. A firm may decide not to enter a market in which its activities are limited. However, if she decides to act on it, she must comply with legal requirements.

Demographic criteria represent the basic characteristics of individuals or groups of people. They are often used as a basis for segmentation because purchasing requirements largely depend on them. Personal demographic characteristics may include the following.

• Age categories- this is how you can divide people, for example, into children, adolescents, adults and the elderly. Age is often used as a segmentation factor.
• Floor is also an important segmentation variable, especially for products such as textiles, cosmetics, jewelry, personal services, such as hairdressing.
• Education level can also be used to identify market segments. Less educated consumers spend less time shopping, read less, and prefer well-known brands to a greater extent than consumers with specialized or higher education. The latter are more likely to compare stores, read non-commercial information sources, and purchase the product they consider to be the best, regardless of whether it is well known or not.
• Mobility characterizes how often the consumer changes his place of residence. Mobile consumers rely on national brands and stores, and non-personal information. Non-mobile consumers rely on acquired knowledge about the differences between individual stores and their own information.
• Income differentiation divides consumers into low, middle and high income groups. Each category has different resources to purchase goods and services. The price a company charges helps determine who it is targeting.
• Consumer profession may influence purchases. For example, a construction worker has different clothing and food requirements than those who sell computer equipment. The first ones put on flannel shirts, jeans, work boots and bring their own lunches. The latter wear three-piece suits, fashionable shoes and take clients to restaurants.
• Marital status and family size can also form the basis of segmentation. Many companies target their products either to single people or to family people. Segmentation by family size gives rise, for example, to different product packaging sizes.
• Personal demographic profiles are also often used when planning a segmentation strategy. Such profiles take into account several factors. For example, gender, education, income at the same time (for the sale of cars of a certain class).

Life style consumers determines how people live and spend their time and money. By developing lifestyle profiles, firms can target distinct market segments. Consumer lifestyle criteria that are important in market segmentation may be as follows.

• Social groups and stages of the family life cycle are the first possible criteria for market segmentation.
• Degree of product use refers to the volume of a good or service that a consumer purchases. The consumer can use just a little, a little or a lot. In the 1960s, Dick Warren Tweld coined the term “heavy half” to describe a market segment that accounts for a disproportionate share of total sales of a product or service. In some cases, less than 20% of consumers make more than 80% of purchases.
• Experience of use refers to a consumer's prior experience with a product or service. The behavior of inexperienced consumers differs significantly from the behavior of consumers with significant experience. In addition, the firm must distinguish between non-users, potential users and regular users. Each of these segments has different needs.
• Commitment trademark can have three forms: absent, definite and complete. If it is absent, then the consumer does not prefer anything, he is attracted by sales, he often changes brands and is ready to try new products and services. If there is a certain loyalty, then the consumer prefers several brands, he is attracted by discounts on them, he rarely changes them and usually does not try to try new ones. With full commitment, the consumer insists on one brand, is not attracted by discounts on others, and never changes brands or tries a new one.
• Personality types– a criterion for segmenting the market, for example, into introverts and extroverts, those who are easily convinced and those who are difficult to convince. Introverted consumers are more conservative and systematic in their shopping behavior than extroverted ones. Hard-to-persuade people react negatively to intense personal selling and are skeptical about advertising information. Easily persuaded people can be persuaded to buy with the help of intensive marketing methods; they are amenable to advertising information.
• Attitude towards the company and its offers. Neutral attitude (I've heard of Brand X, but I don't know anything about it) requires intensive information and convincing promotion. A positive attitude (brand X is the best product on the market) requires reinforcement in the form of subsequent advertising and personal contacts with consumers. A negative attitude (brand X is much worse than brand Y) is difficult to change; it requires improving the product and the company's image. The best thing here, apparently, is to ignore this segment and concentrate efforts on the first two; When segmenting, a firm is not required to satisfy all groups at the same time.
• Motives for shopping can divide the market into advantage segments. Benefit segmentation was introduced in 1968 by Russell Haley: “The basis of segmentation is the idea that the benefits that people seek in consuming a given product are the primary reasons for the existence of real market segments.”
• Importance of purchase also different for different consumers. For example, a person living in the suburbs is likely to consider purchasing a car more important than a person living in the city with access to public transport. Buying a refrigerator is more important for the family whose one is broken than for the one for whom it functions well.

As a rule, a combination of demographics and lifestyle factors necessary for a company to identify and describe its market segments. Using a set of factors allows you to make the analysis more meaningful and meaningful.

Let us now evaluate possible criteria for segmenting the industrial market.

Industrial market segmentation criteria

The industrial market is a market of consumer organizations that purchase goods for further production and resale to other consumers.

The criteria for segmenting the industrial market, in principle, can be similar to the criteria for segmenting the consumer market.

Thus, in accordance with the work of Evans and Berman, regional criteria should include characteristics of the region where the consumer organizations are located. “Demographic” criteria may include area of ​​specialization, resources, existing contracts, past purchases, size of orders, characteristics of decision makers. Lifestyle factors include the way the organization operates, brand loyalty, reasons for purchasing, and the social and psychological characteristics of employees. These parameters can provide a basis for market segmentation.

A more rigorous procedure for segmenting the industrial market, based on five groups of criteria operating on the principle of a nested hierarchy, is presented in the work. Moving from external to internal criteria, these groups have the following form.

Industry sector,

Firm size

Geographical location.

2) Performance characteristics:

Technology used,

Use of this product,

Technical and financial resources.

3) Purchasing method:

Availability of a purchasing center,

Hierarchical structure,

Buyer-seller relationship

General procurement policy,

Purchasing criteria.

4) Situational factors:

Urgency of order fulfillment,

Application of the product,

Order size.

5) Personal qualities of the buyer.

As one moves into this hierarchical structure, the observability and stability of the segmentation criteria change. It is recommended that segmentation begin at the outer levels because here the data is more accessible and the definitions are clearer.

In the most general case, the criteria for segmenting an industrial market depend on the type of production and on the end use of a particular industrial product. The functions of the product in the production process are also important, otherwise, the inclusion of this product in the groups of capital equipment, auxiliary equipment, components, consumables, raw materials or production services.

In accordance with the general segmentation scheme, we will now evaluate the actual procedures for selecting the target market and target segment.

Target Market Selection

One of the most important stages of market segmentation, after determining the criteria, principles and methods of segmentation, is the selection of the target market. In Lambin’s monograph, this stage was called macrosegmentation, as opposed to microsegmentation, dedicated to the selection of the target segment. Let us note the main points of such macro-segmentation in accordance with the results of Lambin’s work.

Implementation of a market segmentation strategy must begin with defining company mission, which describes its role and main function in a consumer-oriented perspective. Three fundamental questions should be asked: “What business is the firm in?”, “What business should it be in?”, “What business should it not be in?”

This gives rise to the concept of a firm's target (or base) market, which is a significant group of consumers with similar needs and motivational characteristics that create favorable marketing opportunities for the firm.

According to Abell's work, a firm's target market can be defined along three dimensions:

• technological, describing technologies that can meet market needs (“how?”);
• functional, defining the functions that must be satisfied in a given market (“what?”);
• consumer, which determines the groups of consumers who can be satisfied in a given market (“who?”).

Graphically, this can be represented by a three-dimensional diagram shown in Fig. 3.

Fig 3. Target market structures

Using this approach, a distinction can be made between three different structures: the market for one technology (industry), the market for one function (technology market) and the product market.

An industry is defined by technology, regardless of the function or customer groups associated with it. The concept of industry is the most traditional. At the same time, it is the least satisfactory, since it is focused on supply rather than demand. Thus, such a category is appropriate provided that the functions and consumer groups under consideration are highly homogeneous.

The technology market covers a set of technologies to perform one function and for one group of consumers. This concept is close to the concept of a basic need and emphasizes the interchangeability of different technologies for the same function. Addressing the technology market is especially important for selecting research and development directions.

A product market is at the intersection of a group of consumers and a set of functions based on a specific technology. It is consistent with the concept of a strategic business unit and responds to the realities of supply and demand.

Choice market coverage strategies is made on the basis of an analysis of competitiveness in relation to each segment. An enterprise can choose the following different strategies to reach its target market:

• concentration strategy– the enterprise gives a narrow definition of its field of activity in relation to the product market, function or group of consumers;
• functional specialist strategy– an enterprise prefers to specialize in one function, but serve all groups of consumers interested in this function, for example, in the function of storing industrial goods;
• customer specialization strategy– the company specializes in a certain category of clients (hospitals, hotels, etc.), offering its clients a wide range of products or complete equipment systems that perform additional or interrelated functions;
• selective specialization strategy– release of many goods in different markets that are not related to each other (manifestation of production diversification);
• full coverage strategy– offering a full range that satisfies all consumer groups.

In most real-life cases, strategies for reaching a target market can be formulated along only two dimensions: functions and consumer groups, since enterprises, most often, own only one specific technology, reflecting their industry affiliation.

If the company owns various technologies, then the choice of the target market and the strategy for reaching it will also be determined by the technological dimension of the market.

After choosing a target market, it is advisable to move on to more detailed segmentation.

Selecting a target segment

The selection of the target segment is carried out on the basis of the segmentation criteria for consumer or industrial markets, discussed in detail above.

After selecting the appropriate market segments, the next step is to define a strategy to reach the target segment. In accordance with the results of the work, the following three areas of activity of the enterprise in the target segment can be distinguished:

A) undifferentiated marketing strategy, which consists in ignoring differences between market segments without taking advantage of segmentation analysis. The point of this standardization strategy is to save on production costs, as well as on inventories, sales and advertising;

b) differentiated marketing strategy, implemented in the form of marketing programs adapted for each segment. This strategy allows businesses to operate in multiple segments with a customized pricing, distribution and communication strategy. Sales prices are set based on the price sensitivity of each segment;

V) concentrated marketing strategy, manifested in the concentration of enterprise resources on meeting the needs of one or more segments. This is a specialization strategy that can be based on a specific function ( functional specialist) or on a special group of consumers (customer specialist). The validity of a focused strategy depends on the size of the segment and the level of competitive advantage achieved through specialization.

The choice of any of these three market coverage strategies is determined by:

The number of identified and potentially profitable segments;

Enterprise resources.

If the enterprise's resources are limited, then the concentrated marketing strategy is apparently the only possible one.

Product positioning

Product positioning is the optimal placement of a product in the market space.

It is necessary to distinguish between segmentation and positioning, although the latter parts are included in market segmentation. The result of market segmentation is the desired characteristics of the product. The result of positioning is specific marketing actions to develop, distribute and promote a product to the market.

Positioning is the development and creation of a product’s image in such a way that it takes a worthy place in the buyer’s mind, different from the position of competitors’ products.

Positioning is a set of marketing elements with which people need to convince that a given product is created specifically for them and that it can be identified with their ideal.

Let us note the main strategies for positioning a product in the target segment:

• positioning based on the distinctive quality of the product;
• positioning based on the benefits of purchasing a product or solutions to a specific problem;
• positioning based on a particular way of using the product;
• positioning aimed at a specific category of consumers;
• positioning in relation to a competing product;
• positioning based on a break with a specific product category.

Thus, the positioning of a product in the target segment is associated with highlighting the distinctive advantages of the product, satisfying specific needs or a certain category of customers, as well as with the formation of a characteristic image of the product and/or company.

The implementation of product positioning is directly related to the development marketing plan, which should include marketing research, product development, pricing policy, methods of distribution and promotion of the product. Thus, market segmentation, the result of which is the identification of homogeneous groups of consumers with similar needs and purchasing habits in relation to a specific product, allows the enterprise to concentrate funds on one or several commercial areas of activity.

Literature

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15. Wind J. Y. Product Policy: Concepts, Methods and Strategy. Reading, Mass.: Addison Wesley. 1982. 505 p.

One product cannot please absolutely all people - this is an axiom. Children have no use for decorative cosmetics, women, as a rule, are indifferent to spinning rods, and men do not understand the types of heels on shoes. But even within these large groups there are smaller ones whose needs may vary greatly. This is precisely why there is such a thing as a market segment. What does it mean? And what are the main ones?

Market segments

Essential goods, luxury goods, more expensive or cheaper analogues - all this is available in almost any market. Certain groups of the population always find something suitable for themselves. But how does this happen? The thing is that manufacturers, with the help of marketers, conditionally divide the entire mass of consumers and products into different groups. The criteria can be very different: income, age, place of residence, marital status, interests and hobbies, etc. for buyers, as well as a huge number of parameters when it comes to goods.

The needs of people belonging to certain segments will be different. It is unlikely that residents of northern latitudes will need a car with only air conditioning, but UAE citizens do not need heated seats. As a rule, a market segment is a group of people with similar indicators according to some distinguished criterion. But why do you need to know this? Of course, to identify and satisfy their needs, while receiving maximum income. That is why it is traditional to talk about division in the context of commodity industries. But, of course, it’s worth saying a few words about other sectors of the economy, for example, segments of the financial market are of interest. But more on that later.

Real market

It’s easiest to consider segmentation using the example of the simplest and most familiar area of ​​buying and selling goods and services. Here it allows not only to find out the composition of participants on the buyer’s side, but also to evaluate future competitors. Identifying what products are on the market and what consumer qualities they have, including price category, type of packaging, packaging, etc., helps in finding your own niche. Of course, either one criterion or a whole complex of them can be applied. This allows you to see the main sectors and their relationship. As a rule, it is impossible to take in the whole picture, but focusing only on large and medium-sized players, whose market segment share is more or less significant, gives a very real picture.

Why do you need segmentation?

Dividing consumers into groups is necessary for more efficient functioning of the market and meeting consumer demand. In addition, identifying target segments allows the company to reduce production costs in the long term. In the process of studying the most suitable strategy, market participants go through 3 main stages. However, sometimes a manufacturer acts based on one principle all the time:

• Mass marketing. Here, as a rule, the manufacturer focuses on common features and the needs of its customers. Standardization of goods and the absence of the possibility of customization for a specific client allows you to reduce costs and keep prices at an acceptable level.
• Product-differentiated marketing. Here it is already possible to control the characteristics of the proposed product so that it attracts different categories of consumers. This ensures a low level of risk and a fairly high level of sales.
• Targeted marketing. Concentrating on one or a few segments can be either extremely profitable or completely disastrous. At the same time, the consumer expects that the product will fully meet his needs, which imposes a certain risk on the manufacturer.

Each of these approaches has its own advantages and disadvantages, but the third at the moment seems to be the most effective, although the most costly in terms of human and financial resources. Nevertheless, individual approach is bearing fruit - a variety of choices allows consumers to purchase products that suit them.

A correctly defined target market segment is half the success of a marketing campaign, so you should be very careful in choosing it or entrust this process to professionals. Indeed, the process may require a large-scale survey, study of opinions, etc., especially if we are talking about innovative goods or services. But more on that later. Essentially, the process of segmentation is the structuring of the market according to the degree of priority of capturing a particular suitable audience and with the aim of finding a possible niche. How does this happen?

Stages

Selection and analysis of market segments is a complex process that requires a systematic approach. That is why it is usually divided into several stages:

1. Identifying customer needs and requirements for the product offered. Suggestions and criticism are systematized and analyzed.
2. Identify consumer similarities and differences to develop a marketing plan.
3. Profiling buyer groups. Separating them into a separate market segment. Choice target groups. Characteristics of the market segment.
4. Determining the most profitable option in terms of targeting customers, sales channels, etc.
5. Creating a business plan.

It all seems not so difficult, but in reality it is the wrong solution for small company can lead to bankruptcy, so you should take the analysis process seriously.

Segmentation Criteria

The principles of market division can be completely different depending on the industry. These can be quantitative or qualitative parameters, as well as completely special factors.

And yet, certain general segmentation criteria exist, and they can be used in a variety of combinations:

• Geographical. The location of consumers is taken into account.
• Demographic. Age, gender, belonging to a certain generation, level of income and spending are considered.
• Behavioral. The frequency of purchases, ranking according to the importance of consumer qualities of a product, attitude towards brands, driving forces inducing purchases, etc. are studied.
• Psychological. We are talking about tastes, preferences, interests.
• Consumption style. Identification of patterns, willingness to buy related and complementary products.

But in what form is this implemented in practice? What are the service market segments or how to choose a suitable niche for an innovative product? All this is worth talking about in more detail.

Consumer classification

Any market segment is not numbers on paper, but real life they're just people shopping. Therefore, in order to understand how to sell them your product, you need to know how they behave and why. The traditional classification identifies five types:

• individual, that is, single people making purchases exclusively for personal use;
• households, in this case the wishes and tastes of several people are already taken into account, the volume of consumption is higher;
• intermediaries, that is, entrepreneurs who buy goods for the purpose of subsequent resale;
• suppliers, company representatives;
• civil servants and officials.

It also makes sense to list consumer groups according to the model of their reaction to a new product on the market; it makes it very clear how different each segment of the market for goods or services is:

• innovators strive to be among the first to try a new product;
• adherents popularize the product;
• progressives provide mass sales;
• skeptics join in at the stage of market saturation;
• conservatives show demand only when the product moves into the “traditional” category.

Perhaps it comes down to natural curiosity and a desire to try new things, although sometimes certain consumers find themselves in one of the groups completely unexpectedly. It is always worthwhile to assess the realities very soberly. For example, some segments Russian market are not yet fully formed, and others are in their infancy; of course, when analyzing the business environment, one must take such things into account.

Choice

There are no uniform principles that allow you to accurately answer the question of which market segment to choose - you have to act by trial and error, changing variable values ​​and collecting information on the effectiveness of promoting goods and services. At the same time, various market factors that influence demand come into play: competitors' strategies, market conditions, the degree of homogeneity of the market and the product being produced, company resources, as well as stages of the product life cycle. So the smartest thing to do is to monitor consumers’ reactions to certain changes and vary the promotion method. For all this, such powerful marketing tools as factor, joint, and cluster types of analysis are used.

Multiple segmentation

If the size and financial position of the company allows, it is possible to implement a special method of work. It lies in the fact that the company selects the main market segments for itself, diversifying its activities, and thereby maximizing turnover. There is a certain risk of not being able to cope with the requests of counterparties from different industries, at the same time, the loss of one or two areas will not be critical. As a rule, only large companies, since each market segment of the enterprise requires special attention, which, given the overall scale, is quite costly in terms of financial and labor resources.

Product positioning

Selecting target market segments and promoting goods involves not only careful study and segmentation, but also the creation of a certain image for the good or service offered to customers. Positioning is a subtle tool that must be used quite carefully, because without taking into account the needs of the target audience, you can only alienate them. Ways to promote your product can be different: you can rely on excellent characteristics or environmental friendliness, you can characterize what is being offered as an elite and exclusive item, accessible to a few, or vice versa - create an aura of democracy and friendliness towards the buyer around the brand - in a word, there are methods and directions multitude.

Labor market

In addition to factors common to all areas, there are also special ones at work here. For example, a distinction is made between the primary and secondary market segments. These are two separate parts, characterized in completely different ways.

Thus, the primary market covers relatively higher-paid professions that are in stable demand. At the same time, the secondary part is characterized by high staff turnover, less prestige, unstable employment and low qualifications of participants.

Analysis of labor market segments is a specialty recruiting companies and organizations that are just starting out and are about to recruit staff. The assessment will allow you to calculate the most attractive conditions for job seekers and generally understand what helps people choose a particular company in their job search.

Service sector

If a product is something material, then the next market offers something that is quite difficult to evaluate in terms of qualitative parameters. We are, of course, talking about various services: medical, educational, consulting, etc. At the same time, it is divided into two large parts that are very different in operating principles. The first is the so-called B2B, which covers market segments of services provided to companies. The second one works directly with end consumers. If you do not focus on the intangibility of goods, this market is not fundamentally different from the commodity market.

Financial market

Monetary and banking sectors- These are the most popular sectors of the service sector, so it is not surprising that they are so well developed. The following segments of the financial market are distinguished: credit, foreign exchange, insurance, investment. Sometimes the securities sector is also distinguished separately. Many companies do not limit their work to one segment, while others, on the contrary, prefer to focus on a specific area. In general, what is now observed is rather the consolidation of companies and the diversification of their activities within the industry.

Innovation

There are also completely special situations. Innovative solutions launched on the market is a separate topic that requires much more detailed consideration. Firstly, the absence of competitors provides special conditions. Secondly, the marketing strategy must be built very wisely so that buyers do not treat the product with caution.

New market segments are always a difficult and unpredictable road. History knows examples when even the most successful companies released frankly unsuccessful products. However, any consumer can say that almost any equipment manufacturer has real legendary products in its arsenal; otherwise, there is simply no chance of success. Perhaps, as is the case if the choice of target market segments is made incorrectly.