People are people the world over: The case for psychological segmentation

Abstract

The paper argues that: (i) A successful market segmentation study requires the application of structure and a proper integration of qualitative and quantitative research. Also, that the prime emphasis should be on actionability. (ii) Lifestyle and value-based segmentation are too general to be of great use in category specific studies. Also, their international application is limited as lifestyles vary, internationally. (iii) The growing phenomenon of 'consumer' schizophrenia' makes lifestyle increasingly less useful in market segmentation. (iv) Well-developed psychological segmentations, that relate to a specific market or product category, are more diagnostic, more predictive and more actionable, on a global basis.