Mistaking demographic segments for people: another source of customer abuse

Abstract

PurposeThe article's purpose is to note the misuse of the planning tool of segmentation for a priori improper judgments of individual customers when sales staff in stores treat men and women who walk in the door based on their demographic group membership instead of as people.Design/methodology/approachThe article notes that segments are merely statements of what is “more likely” from certain types of group members, and that dealing with individuals requires a different mind set.FindingsThe pragmatic business need is to understand how to attract and retain customers of all types, not just those that might fit a profile. What might be attractive to many young people could at the same time discourage older customers, or even “different” young people. Certain types of potential customers might appear out of place in a particular store, but that does not translate into them being undesirable parts of store traffic.Originality/valueThis article notes an important observation that many store clerks, restaurant servers, or store specialists in atmospherics might ignore, forget or maybe were never told: all people of any type could be high‐spending customers, regardless of the demographic group that is the business' primary target market. At best, people who quickly walk out the door are lost sales. At worst, they could make complaints of racial discrimination.