A target
market is a group of customers that the business has decided to aim its marketing efforts and ultimately its merchandise towards. A well-defined target
market is the first element to a marketing strategy.
The target market and the marketing mix variables of product, place(distribution),
promotion
and price are the four elements of a marketing mix strategy that determine the
success of a product in the marketplace.
Once these distinct customers have been defined,
a marketing mix strategy of product, distribution, promotion and price can be
built by the business to satisfy the target market.
Market
segmentations
Target markets are groups of individuals
separated by distinguishable and noticeable aspects. Target markets can be
separated into:
• Geographic segmentations, addresses (their
location)
• demographic/socio-economic segmentation (gender, age,
income, occupation, education, household size, and stage in the family life
cycle)
• psychographic segmentation (similar
attitudes, values, and lifestyles)
• behavioral segmentation (occasions, degree
of loyalty)
•
product-related segmentation (relationship to a product)
Strategies
for Reaching Target Markets
Marketers have outlined four basic strategies to
satisfy target markets: undifferentiated marketing or mass marketing, differentiated marketing,
concentrated marketing, and micromarketing/ nichemarketing.
Mass marketing is a market coverage strategy in
which a firm decides to ignore market segment differences and go after the
whole market with one offer. It is the type of marketing (or attempting to sell
through persuasion) of a product to a wide audience. The idea is to broadcast a
message that will reach the largest number of people possible. Traditionally
mass marketing has focused on radio, television and newspapers as the medium
used to reach this broad audience.
For sales teams, one way to reach out to target
markets is through direct marketing. This is done by buying consumer database
based on the segmentation profiles you have defined. These database usually
comes with consumer contacts (e.g. email, mobile no., home no., etc.). Caution
is recommended when undertaking direct marketing efforts — check the
targeted country's direct marketing laws.
Examples
CVS Caremark’s target market is women since
they make up 80 percent of the pharmacy chain’s customers. CVS has marketed its
stores to aid women who are constantly multitasking. They recently redesigned
1,200 of its 6,200 stores to women, including shorter wait times for
prescriptions, wider and better-lit shopping aisles, and more beauty products.
The Oreo cookie is a popular
cookie in the U.S., known for its two discs of chocolate with a white cream
filling. The Double Stuf Oreo
cookie is also marketed to U.S. consumers. However, Kraft has formulated a different version of
the Oreo to target consumers in China. The Chinese version consists of four
layers of long, thin biscuits coated in chocolate. Kraft CEO, Irene Rosenberg,
trusts her executives who live and work in China to know what consumers would
prefer in order to maximize their profits. In Germany, Kraft is appealing to
the tastes and preferences of German consumers by creating dark chocolate
products. It is also introducing premium instant coffee in Russia, which is a
beverage that is popular to consumers.
World
Wrestling Entertainment’s (WWE) target market is young
males. Monday Night RAW
is the number one entertainment program on primetime cable among male viewers
(2 million+) including the male demographics of 18-34, 18-49 and 25-54. It is
shown at 9:00 PM ET to reach its target market.
Kohl’s department store has a target market
consisting of consumers buying for themselves and their families.
The
psychology of target marketing
A principal concept in target marketing is that
those who are targeted show a strong affinity or brand loyalty to that particular brand.
Target Marketing allows the marketer / sales team to customize their message to
the targeted group of consumers in a more focused manner.
Research has shown that racial similarity, role
congruence, labeling intensity of ethnic identification, shared knowledge and
ethnic salience all promote positive effects on the target market. Research has
generally shown that target marketing strategies are constructed from consumer inferences of similarities between
some aspects of the advertisement
(e.g., source pictured, language used, lifestyle represented) and
characteristics of the consumer (e.g. reality or desire of having the
represented style). Consumers are persuaded by the characteristics in the
advertisement and those of the consumer.
My opinion about this article :
A target market is a group of customers
that the business has decided to aim its marketing efforts and ultimately its merchandise towards. A well-defined target
market is the first element to a marketing strategy.
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