Wei-Ting Leong's Blog

In classmate, Hannah Martin’s blog post, Martin touches upon an essentialist idea of capturing the under-utilized and profitable market of consumer “introverts.” Yet what of the nature of the product itself? Should a prominent beer brand like Molson Canadian target consumers who are reclusive and withdrawn? Or would a book company like Chapters benefit more from such an approach?

Like my statistics professor likes to say, the answer in short can be summarized in two words: “It depends.”

Delving deeper, Martin explores how personality types can be used as segmentation variables in order to determine undiscovered niches, just as online shopping did to acquire a vast introverted following. Past psychographic segmentation methods so heavily emphasize social and circumstantial class; however, consumer lifestyles can be just as important, if not more. Consumers often use the brands or products they consume to define the lifestyle they wish to portray to others. It becomes an identifier to the very genetic make-up of human nature and personal expression.

Mark Media touches upon 7 distinct lifestyle types: Self Actualizers, Innovators, Esteem Seekers, Strivers, Contented Conformers, Traditionalists, and lastly, Disconnected – each having their own distinctive buying patterns and varying weights in product markets. Then why are we so drawn towards segmenting based on variables such as income and class?

It’s simple. Humans have the tendency and capability to think relatively – more money equating to more spending. The aforementioned typical segments are therefore immediate because they are the segments that provide the greatest share and number of consumers. Truly successful companies, however, are the ones who deliver superior customer value because they realize their products reflect a way of life, and at times, may even be bodily markers. Those who understand the psychological power of personal expression can sincerely capitalize on such markets.

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