Marketing Communications

MARKET SEGMENTATION 123

Markets can be divided into diff erent geographic segments such as continents, climate,

nations, regions or neighbourhoods. Consumer behaviour and buying patterns oft en denote

cultural diff erences and therefore the place where consumers live may require other marketing

mix approaches. For instance, Starbucks Corporation has faced some challenges when opening

international franchises in several European countries that have strong traditions of coff ee

bars, such as Italy and Spain. Locals were not accustomed to Starbucks’ core concept of take-

away coff ees. Th is segmentation method is oft en combined with other criteria. A marketing area

is fi rst defi ned geographically and subsequently other segments within this broad geographic

area are identifi ed.

Demographic segmentation divides the market on the basis of sex, age, family size, religion,

birthplace, race, education or income. Th ese segmentation variables are frequently used, not

only because they correlate with other variables such as consumer needs, but also because

they are less diffi cult to measure than others.

A Belgian study found that families with children account for 46% of fast-moving consumer purchases, although

they are only 37% of the population. Moreover, the more children in a family, the higher the ticket price per store

visit. Young children under 12 influence not only the type of products bought, but also the brands chosen. They

identify needs, they also provide information and advice, and they put pressure on parents (‘pester power’). For

instance, the penetration of new technologies such as flat-screen TVs is higher than average in families with young

children. Due to the decreasing number of children, co-shopping occurs more frequently than before, leading to on

average a more than 17% increase in shopping value. This is due to not only more different products bought, but

also larger quantities per product type. Moreover, the impact of each child increases when there are fewer children

in the family (‘little-prince effect’). Families also tend to become more ‘democratic’: children are increasingly

allowed to have a say in family decisions. Single or divorced parents tend to feel guilty and compensate for this by

giving in to their children’s requests. Families with young children also have a lower-than-average perceived strong

loyalty, less than 20%, as opposed to up to 40% for families without children and retired persons. They also shop

more in discount stores than other groups. Children predominantly form their preferences and attitudes about

products and brands through TV advertising. In general, they are more sensitive to emotional messages than to

rational ones. In families with children, in-store decision rates are 25% lower than in families without children. In

other words, purchases are more often planned in advance at home, probably due to the impact of children on

shopping intentions.^5

BUSINESS INSIGHT

Children have a strong impact on buying behaviour

Since its introduction in 2002, 's body spray brand Axe (Lynx in the UK) has been pitched squarely at young

men, with commercials depicting women getting a whiff of Axe users and then aggressively pursuing them. In 2012,

Axe introduced a fragrance for women. The new scent, Anarchy, is being marketed in different versions for women

BUSINESS INSIGHT

Axe introduces a fragrance for women

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