Marketing Mix And Segmentation

Questions: 1. Identify one specific consumer segment for this product.2. Identify and discuss the characteristics of your chosen segment.3. Show how the marketing mix reflects the characteristics of your chosen segment. Answers: 1. Segmentation is considered as a tool used by the marketers. It can be effective for the company and can help the company to gain higher profits. The markets should be segmented according to the needs and demands of the customers (Verhoef and Lemon 2015). Consumer Market Segmentation can be of three types- Behavioral, Psychographic and Profile. Behavioral market segmentation depends on the purchasing occasion; benefits sought beliefs and perceptions, usage and purchasing behavior of the consumers. Psychographic market segmentation depends on the personality and lifestyle of the consumers. Profile market segmentation depends on the geography, socio-economic status and demographics of the consumers (Cross, Belich and Rudelius 2015). The given product is eco lipstick, which is a make-up product used by women. Therefore, the proper segmentation for this product would be Psychographic market segmentation. It is because the purchase and use of the product are dependent on the lifestyle and personality of a particular gender (female). The product is best suited for women and therefore, the company has used specific strategies to target the women consumers. The market has been segmented according to the needs and demands of the women consumers and the company has gained higher profits because of the segmentation (Park, Ungson and Cosgrove 2015). 2. Psychographic segmentation is a popular form of consumer market segmentation, which uses the interests, lifestyle, activities and opinions of the people to define a particular market segment. This particular segmentation has a similarity to the behavioral consumer segmentation. Psychological segmentation takes into account the different psychological aspects of buying behaviors of the consumers (Tanusondjaja et al. 2015). The psychological aspects may be the lifestyle of the consumers, social standing and the opinions and activities interests of the consumers. The product, eco lipstick is made of certified-organic ingredients with moisturizers like Shea butter, organ oil, macadamia nut oil and aloe vera. It provides perfect shine as well as protection to the lips. This product is in demand by the women and therefore, the company has adopted various strategies to make the product more appealing to the female customers. The company has targeted the product to the female customers because the product is used and demanded by women. Several characteristics help in dividing a population based on the psychographic consumer segmentation (Rahmani, Emamisaleh and Yadegari 2015). They are: Lifestyle- several segments have gained popularity in the retail sector. However, the most popular segment is the segment of lifestyle. The clothing habits and make-up habits of individuals differ according to the needs, tastes and preferences of the customers. The consumer can be a schoolchild, a college-goer or an office-goer. Their choices can be completely different from one another. The use of eco lipsticks may vary from person to person. Some may use a normal lipstick while others may be very conscious about the ingredients of the lipstick. Therefore, they may prefer the use of eco lipstick, which is made of organic ingredients and moisturizers to provide protection to the lips with a perfect glow. On the other hand, the consumers in the rural area do not have any idea about the usage of eco lipstick. They prefer cheap materials according to their convenience and purchasing power (Barrett and Weinstein 2015). Therefore, they may not buy eco lipstick, as it is costlier than othe r cheap lipsticks. Hence, lifestyle is a very important characteristic of market segmentation of this product. The lifestyle of a consumer separates him or her in a separate segment as per the marketer. In this case, the lifestyle of urban and rural women will differ largely. Therefore, the segmentation is psychographic and it is justified (O'Cass and Heirati 2015). Opinions and Activities Interests- the opinions and activities interests of the consumers has an impact on the buying behavior of the consumers. It is considered as a subset of lifestyle. It is used to define the psychographic profile of the individuals. The activities and the interests also differ according to the needs and lifestyle of the customers. The urban and the rural women have a different opinion about the choices of products. The interest may also differ according to the category of women. Some may choose an expensive product while the other may go for a cheaper product according to their level of income (Pels 2015). Therefore, the market segmentation of eco lipstick is psychographic in nature and depends on the psychology of women and interests of women. Lifestyles and attitude values- this is another aspect of market segmentation. The three aspects are inter-related and depend on the lifestyle of the consumers. Attitude varies from person to person and the perspective of products varies. Therefore, the product is segmented according to the lifestyle of categories of women and psychographic consumer segmentation is taken into account. There is a difference between the lifestyle of different women. Some may be very simple while others may have an interest in fashion (Wright 2015). Therefore, the psychographic consumer segmentation is best suited for this product. 3. Marketing is considered as a business tool, which is used in marketing by the marketers. It is very crucial for the marketing mix to determine the offer of a particular product or brand. It has an association with the four Ps of marketing namely place, promotion, price and product. Marketing mix refers to the tactics or set of actions that is used by a company or an organization to promote the brands or products of the company in the target market. The four Ps of marketing needs to be discussed in detail to make out whether the selected segment has a relation with the four Ps of marketing (Lovelock, Patterson and Wirtz 2014). Price- it refers to the value that is assigned to a product. It is dependent on the target segment, cost of production, demand and supply of the product according to the needs of the consumers and the ability of the target customers to pay the amount of the product. The cost of eco lipstick is around US$ 33 and therefore, it cannot be afforded by most of the consumers. The sophisticated and the rich people have the ability to buy the product. It is not recommended for the rural consumers who do not have an affinity to buy the product (eco lipstick at such a price). The pricing strategies depend on the purchasing behavior of the consumers. The usage of the product by the target or potential consumers has a direct impact on the price of the product. When the product has a good demand in the target market, the company will use different strategies to increase the sales of the product and gain higher profits (Andrews et al. 2014). This might result in an increase in the price of the prod ucts. Therefore, the price of the product will have an effect on the psychographic segmentation. The price of the product and the purchasing behavior is often determined by the lifestyles and tastes of the customers (Armstrong et al. 2014). Product- it refers to the items that are being sold in the target market to the potential customers. It is very important for the product to deliver a minimum performance level or else, it will not have an impact on the target customers. The given product, eco lipstick has an impact on the women consumers, who live in the urban areas. It is because the product is of high quality and the price of the product is also quite high. Therefore, it does not become possible to the consumers of the rural areas to afford the said product. Hence, the product is recommended for the sophisticated people, who lead a posh lifestyle and has an affinity towards products like eco lipstick. It has a connection with the psychology of women depending on the choices, tastes and preferences (Lee et al. 2014). Therefore, the chosen segment, psychographic consumer segment has a relation with the type of product sold in the target market. Place- it is referred to as the point or place of sale of the products or services. It is very important for the companies to sale the products at the right place to the right customer to gain high returns on investment. The products must be distributed and sold at the right place according to their needs and demands. In this case, the product, Eco Lipstick is a product preferred by women. The customers can range from people attending school, colleges, working people as well as homemakers. It is not a seasonal product and therefore, it is not necessary for the product to be sold in regions with different weathers. However, the only requirement in the product to select a target market is the type of customers. As earlier discussed, women of the urban areas prefer the said product because of several factors like the lifestyle of people and price of the product. Therefore, the product is usually sold in the urban areas (in retail shops and malls), where the target customers are sophisti cated women with a high social status and lifestyle. The placing of products helps the companies to gain a competitive advantage in the target market (Boone and Kurtz 2013). It is because the main mantra of any successful business is location of the product. Promotion- Promotion is very important for any product or service. Promotion refers to the activities or works undertaken by the companies or firms to make the products or the services known to the consumers of the product, as well as to the traders. Promotion includes activities like advertising, press reports, word of mouth, commissions, and incentives and by giving awards to individuals, who can popularize the product in the target market to the target customers (Shimp and Andrews 2013). Promotion can also include prizes, contests, direct marketing and consumer schemes. This helps in attracting new customers and retaining existing customers. The said product is enriched in organic products and it is beneficial to the consumers of the product. Therefore, the company can adopt various advertising strategies that are related to the benefits of the product. The consumers can know about the benefits of the product through effective advertising and this can lead to the sale of the produ cts. This will further help the company to gain higher returns on investment. The elements of the marketing mix are closely related to one another and they influence each other largely. They help in making up the business plan for a company or an organization and if the company can use marketing mix in a proper way, the company can gain high profits and high returns on investment (Andrews et al. 2014). Psychographics is the study of values, personality, attitudes, opinions lifestyles and interests. The psychographic segmentation depends on the above-mentioned factors. The product, eco lipstick is a preferred product for the high-class women. They are habituated to posh lifestyles and their attitudes are different from that of ordinary women. Therefore, the psychographic segmentation is best suited for this particular product. The product aims the women with social status and high income. It is a specialized product and is beneficial for use. The ordinary people can also try the product. Everybody loves to experiment with new things. It can be new products, services, assignments and so on. There is a possibility for other women to switch to the product if the product offers genuine characteristics. The product is made of organic ingredients and is suitable for every skin type. It provides protection to the lips. The product is unique and therefore, it can appeal to many people. It c an gain more consumers because of its uniqueness in the manufacturing process. The price of the product is little high and this can be the sole reason for the product to expand its target market. If the company undertakes few measures like sampling and offers, it will help the company to gain more customers from other markets. 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