Spidering password attack

Glencoe Marketing Series:

III. Marketing Hospitality

9. Market Information and

© The McGraw−Hill

Hospitality and Tourism

and Tourism

Research

Companies, 2006

9.1

Target Markets

YO U W I L L L E A R N

To explain the purpose of market segmentation.

To identify the methods used to segment markets.

To explain product positioning.

W H Y I T ’ S I M P O R TA N T

Understanding how to segment markets and position products in the minds of consumers is critical for successful marketing.

K E Y T E R M S

market segmentation

psychographics

geographics

behavioristics

positioning

competitive advantage

Describe why it might be important to segment markets.

market segmentation a way of analyzing a market by specific characteristics to create a target market

The Importance of Market Segmentation

Market segmentation is a way of analyzing a market by spe-cific characteristics to create a target market. As you learned in Chapter 1, market segments are groups of consumers categorized by those characteristics because a group may have similar needs and wants. Researchers can use different characteristics, such as age, in-come, ethnic background, gender, education, and marital status, to seg-ment a target market of consumers. The goal of any segmentation strategy is to understand the different markets and the unique needs and wants within each market. No particular strategy works better than another strategy. In fact, by using a number of market-segmentation strategies, marketers can get a more precise picture of the buying

behavior of each group.

Some of the typical market segments are based on demographics, psy-chographics, geographics, behavioristics, and frequency of product use.

Demographic Segmentation

As discussed in Chapter 8, demographics are statistics that describe a population in terms of personal characteristics, such as age, gender, income, ethnicity, or education. Using demographics is one of the most common ways of segmenting customer groups because demographic characteristics are objective and easy to measure. Most local, state, and national governments take routine census surveys that reveal the size and makeup of its residents. The survey results are available to anyone, including marketers.

AGE GROUPS Knowing the size of a particular age group within a society can be useful for product planning because the needs and wants of customers are often age specific. For example, think about what is important to teenagers. The needs and wants of teens are not the same as those for senior citizens. Marketing campaigns by McDonald’s for teens differ from campaigns designed for senior citizens.

INCOME People with similar income levels sometimes have similar needs and wants. For example, a company offering vacation homes and pleasure boats would not market to a target market with low income.

GENDER Another demographic factor is gender. Besides differences in preferences for clothing and toiletries, men and women have dis-tinctly different buying behaviors. In recent years, hotel operators have noticed an increase in the number of female business travelers. They responded to this demographic shift by focusing on women’s needs when planning new properties or remodeling old facilities.

186

Unit 3 Marketing Hospitality & Tourism

Glencoe Marketing Series:

III. Marketing Hospitality

9. Market Information and

© The McGraw−Hill

Hospitality and Tourism

and Tourism

Research

Companies, 2006

Psychographic Segmentation

Psychographics are studies of consumers based on social and psy-chological characteristics, such as attitudes, interests, and opinions. In Chapter 2, you learned about Plog’s theory of psychographics as it related to people’s choices in travel destinations. In marketing, psy-chographics refer to how people spend their leisure time, the way they live, and their personal preferences—all of which define their lifestyles. Lifestyle preferences are determined by activities people pursue, what is important to them, and how they feel about themselves and the world. For example, psychographic segmentation can be used to identify people interested in theme cruises, murder-mystery parties, or family reunions.

CLASSIFYING AMERICANS The VALS Segmentation System, de-veloped by SRI International, classifies people into eight American lifestyle segments. (See Figure 9.1.) These segments are based on psy-chological characteristics. The VALS survey receives answers such as “I like to try new things” or “I like to make things with my hands.” Based on these responses, participants are segmented into one of eight groups: innovators, thinkers, achievers, experiencers, believers, strivers, makers, and survivors. For example, MAKERS are practical and self-sufficient. They value things with a functional purpose. T HINKERS are ma-ture, reflective, well educated, and informed. They value knowledge and seek professional occupations. Thinkers are open to new ideas but want durability and functionality in products. Psychographic segments, such as those identified by the VALS survey, represent consumer groups that marketers may target for hospitality or tourism.

psychographics studies of consumers based on social and psychological characteristics such as attitudes, interests, and opinions

“CRUISE” DU SOLEIL

Imagine setting sail on the sea and finding “a place that invites guests to cross the mirror to another universe.” This is the world Celebrity Cruises and Cirque du Soleil created to cross-market these organizations. The cruise line discovered that the demographic characteristics of their customers match those of Cirque du Soleil fans. So on a few select ships, venues and lounge areas are unique and magical places.

Figure 9.1

VALS Segments

VALS FRAMEWORK

INNOVATORS

High Resources

High Innovation

Ideals Achievement Self-Expression

THINKERS ACHIEVERS EXPERIENCERS

PSYCHOGRAPHIC SEGMENTATION The VALS Framework places American