Why Are Key Success Factors So Important to Know When Target Marketing

A while back you may remember that I did a post on the key criteria for determing how you know what potential market segments are the most viable for you, as an important preface to choosing which segments your business will and wont target.

As a key step to effective target marketing, you need to be able to isolate what the key success factors (KSFs)are for each potential segment and match these up with your businesses ability to deliver this aspect of product or service.

So in other words the KSFs are essentially must haves that if you don't have or can't arrange to have, means you will lose if you compete in that segment against rivals that can provide those essential aspects of the product or service being sought after by the target market audience.

For example if you are looking to start a restaurant and are seriously considering a pizza style parlour, you will certainly need to provide the following KSFs. To begin with you will need to provide a large assortment of pizzas. They will need to come in a least 3 or 4 sizes. You will need to be able to buy soft drinks with those pizzas and probably even desserts. Etc.

Failure to consistently provide these will mean you are not providing the minimum acceptable level of service expected by your would be clients.

Now of course doing all this, still will not mean you have a meaningful point of difference to differentiate you from other rivals but at least you are in 'the ball game'.

Differentiation is another important topic which we will look at in future blog posts.

What about you and your business what are the the KSFs for you.

I hope this is of help to you and until next time, good luck and good marketing.

Daniele.

Segmentation is (Still) Not a Dirty Word

It's amazing how often segmentation gets brought up during marketing workshops or generally by clients these days. Years ago the question would be along the lines of: 'should we be segmenting our market?' I think people with greater business insight these days know that with ever increasing levels of competition and in an attempt to remain relevant to your preferred audience,the answer is most certainly yes, so the more likely question being raised these days is normally along the lines of: 'how do we know whether to pursue a specific niche or not?'

Much, much better question to be asking. And the key to answering it is to know what the key criteria for evaluating market segments are.

The criteria most commonly used to evaluate whether or not to target selected market segments are:

(1.) Ability to be quantified - A market segment must be quantifiable, e.g., what is the potential number of customers? How much are they willing and able to spend?

(2.) Ability to identify groups with similar needs – For market segmentation and subsequent target marketing to be done successfully, it is vital that you are able to identify and group together people with similar needs that the business can fulfill.

NOTE: These needs can be based on product usage, product attributes, location of business, benefits sought by customer or on any other appropriate dimension.

(3.) Actual size - A market segment must be big enough i.e. are there enough customers? Do they have enough money to spend?

(4.) Ability to communicate with the segment - With few exceptions, most market segments can be reached on both a promotional and distribution level. The critical factor is whether the net cost to achieve and sustain this communication is within acceptable levels, so that your business can effectively communicate with this segment.

When these criteria are used individually and collectively, the business will be able to gain additional insight into the respective viability of different segments.

I'd be interested to know if you have done any evaluation of segments that exist in your market place.

And until next time, good luck and good marketing.

Daniele.