Using purchase influence niching for better focus in industrial marketing plans: Observations and examples

Abstract

Drawing on applications with over 100 industrial product companies over the past twenty years, this article suggests that defining product market niches too broadly is a pervasive problem deterring most industrial product firms from developing more transparent and more effective marketing plans. Using numerous examples, a method is proposed for resolving this problem by supplementing traditional niching efforts with “Purchase Influence Niching.” A more narrow, purchase influence-based delineation of target niches reduces the number and the complexities of the strategic interrelationships considered when evaluating alternative opportunities, thus paving the way for the logical and transparent development and communication of more effective marketing plans and strategies. Through examples of previous applications, this article shows how to overlay current niching efforts with purchase influence niching and discusses how to both meet the challenges and reap the significant benefits of this approach.