Some Consideration Regarding Strategy of Market Planning

Abstract

The heart of future segmentation system for industrial markets lies in the ability to distinguish between buying strategies in customer and prospect firms. The author’s observation that customers’ markets and marketing strategies provide a surrogate for buying approaches gives us the foundation for a usable system. Not one that applies to every industrial sales situation but one that will apply where demand is derived from demand for the customer’s products. Since this represents the majority of industrial sales situation we are able to segment with more effect that with the limited tools available up till now. We can observe how marketing channel strategies and promotions differ across these market types. And, since marketing strategy relates closely to buying, we can segment accordingly. Looking to the future development of industrial segmentation strategies we might add other information of value in targeting. These include: financial information and creditworthiness, ownership information, sector growth and regional growth. The paper provides us with the mean to target on basis of buying strategy as well as firm demographics. Much remains to be done and the authors note limitations to their research, but here is a method for segmentation that will improve industrial marketing planning and targeting.