Segmentation Positioning Assignment Segmentation is often t

Segmentation & Positioning Assignment

Segmentation is often the key to developing a sustainable competitive advantage. In a strategic context.

Segmentation means grouping individuals in a product market (e.g., dentists) in such a way that companies understand how each group might respond differently based on wants, benefits sought, lifestyle differences, or demographic differences.

3 Questions to consider:

First, can a competitive offering be developed and implemented that will be appealing to the target segment?

Second, can the appeal of the offering and the subsequent relationship with the target segment be maintained over time despite competitive responses?

Third, is the resulting business (sustained sales and profits) from the target segment worthwhile, given the investment required to develop and market an offering tailored to it?

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Week 6 Assignment –

Go to this site for this analysis and discussion questions: http://www.polacekplasticsurgery.com/about-us/plastic-surgeon-rhode-island-ri-lori-polacek/   - Please take some time to read about the doctor and the services. Next, take a look at the sidebar; go down to “Select procedure of interest” – take a look at all the services offered!

Q1. Pick one of the procedures and do the customer analysis (below). Please do not stress! I want you to become familiar with this type of thinking; NOTE: I’m NOT looking for the ‘right’ answers; this is about learning, not perfection. I think you will find this helpful in training your mind to think like a marketer J -            JUST ONE PARAGRAPH FOR EACH OF THE 3 SECTIONS BELOW.

CUSTOMER ANALYSIS

In most strategic market-planning contexts, the rst logical step is to analyze the customers in a product-market (e.g., Liposuction for obese people). Customer analysis can be usefully partitioned into an understanding of how the market segments, an analysis of customer motivations, and an exploration of unmet needs.

SEGMENTATION

Who are the biggest customers? The most protable? The most attractive potential customers? Do the customers fall into any logical groups based on needs, motivations, or characteristics (demographics, attitudes, opinions, activities, interests)?

How could the market be segmented into groups that would require a unique business strategy?

CUSTOMER MOTIVATIONS

What elements of the product/service do customers value most?

What are the customers’ objectives? What are they really buying?

How do segments differ in their motivation priorities?

What changes are occurring in customer motivation? In customer priorities?

UNMET NEEDS

Why are some customers dissatised? Why are some changing brands or suppliers?

What are the severity and incidence of consumer problems?

What are unmet needs that customers can identify? Are there some of which consumers are unaware?

Do these unmet needs represent leverage points for competitors or a new business model?

Q2 – Which basis (bases) of segmentation should the doctor use for the procedure you selected? One paragraph explanation.

Q3 – Which basis (bases) of positioning would you recommend for the selected (just one) target segment? Explain in one paragraph.

Solution

The service selected is Liposuction that involves removal of extra fat from the body.

Q1 : Segmentation - The customers include obese individuals of any age group. The typical age ranges from 15-60 years. They are of diverse backgrounds, from all races and educational levels. Most of them belong to the middle class and beyond. The most profitable ones are middle aged ladies that want to shed off those extra pounds and look young at any cost.They are potential targets for cross selling of other products also. Most of them live a sedantary lifestyle and have bad eating habits. A stong correlation can be seen between the eating habits and purchase of fast food and the obesity. Another group is the elderly and others, who want to undergo liposuction due to medical reasons.

Motivations: The customers are motivated by the prospects of being in shape with help of therapy and lead a better quality of life, both medically and socially, through weight loss. The motivation priority is higher for those who urgently need it, like patients,or the ones who seek it due to special reasons like wedding or a modelling assignment. The contemporary social environment focusses more on the looks of an individual, and everyone wants to be as attractive as possible for his / her age, hence the strong motivation for use of liposuction as a weight reduction measure.

Unmet Needs : These may result due to unsatisfactory results in comparison to expectations, or a procedure gone awry. It may also happen due to side effects of the procedure or the medical complications occuring after the therapy. In some cases they may be extremely severe. The reason behind the dissatisfaction may be incompetence of the therapist and this may create opportunity for someone with super specialization in this particular therapy and having state of the art equipments.

Q2 The segments should be based on the age and motivating factors ( Obese Youngsters, middle aged people who want to look good and elderly who go for it due to health reasons), the paying capacity of customers ( Middle to upper classes of society) and their education levels ( school level to college degree or more)

Q3 liposuction should be positioned as an alternative to full fledged surgical procedure to remove excess fat that has developed dangerously in elderly patients, who are too old to undergo surgery and can\'t run the risk of living with the fat for a healthy life.