Do you think that all prospects are the same? If so, then your marketing strategy is probably not working. It's time to get specific about who you're targeting with your content and why they should buy from you. With this guide, we'll show you how to segment your customer base into different groups in order to market more effectively.
People in our lives have different methods and expectations for how we communicate them. We may chat with family differently than coworkers, but they all want the same thing: good communication! And when it comes to customers? Well you know there's always one goal that matters most - helping them reach theirs too (and their goals!).
You can build a stronger customer relationship by understanding their preferred style of communication and what they need. Customer segmentation will allow you to reach the right people at the right time with helpful content, all while creating better customer relationships!
What is email segmentation?
Segmentation is the division of email subscribers into smaller segments based on set criteria., or traits (ex: personality, interests, habits, demographics, industry) they share.
When you’re able to segment your leads and customers, it’s easier to tailor and personalize your marketing, service(s), and sales efforts to the needs of specific groups.
Remember: the goal of inbound marketing is to attract new prospects to your company, engage with them at scale, and delight them individually.
Why should you segment your leads and customers?
When you learn about your leads and customers on a more in-depth level, you are able to tailor your content to their unique needs and challenges.
You’re able to create targeted campaigns and ads that will resonate with certain segments of customers, which will nurture leads to customers and customers to promoters.
Improve your customer service and customer support by understanding the challenges various groups are facing.
What are the different types of segmentation?
The above table doesn’t cover every type of customer segmentation, but it can be a good starting point for organizing your leads and customers. Interested in more examples? Download a more comprehensive list of customer segmentation examples here.
Segmentation Strategy
- Determine your lead/customer segmentation goals. Why are you creating a segmentation strategy? What do you hope to gain from this process? What outcomes are you looking to achieve, so that you can develop a strategy in a way that will help you to accomplish them?
- Segment your leads/customers into groups. This is independent of your business, your customers, and your goals.
- Target and reach your lead/customer segments. Now that you’ve segmented your leads and customers, it’s time to think about how you will target them. Think about your various departments:
- Your Marketing team tailors and customizes content to attract, teach, and meet the needs of your customers.
- Your Sales team identifies common traits shared by your most qualified customers (and can also communicate with them).
- Your Service department can use your segments to prep materials and resources based on challenges your customers are likely to encounter.
- Analyze Customer Segmentation. You can do this by reviewing analytics in HubSpot, checking in with all of your teams to get their opinions on any segmentation adjustments they may have thought about, and you can also conduct surveys. Analyzing your segmentation efforts will provide insight into the way you’ve organized your customers so that you can make updates and changes if/when needed.
What are some customer segmentation examples?
- Gender
- Age
- Occupation
- Marital Status
- Household Income
- Location
- Preferred Language
- Transportation
- Workspace
- Lifecycle Stage
When you’re able to segment your leads into groups that are more in line with their interests, needs, and values, it becomes easier for you to communicate in a way that will resonate. This is why we recommend working on your customer segmentation strategy today!
We have created an easy-to-follow guide of the benefits of customer segmentation as well as some examples you can use when creating yours. Download our free guide today and start creating a better marketing strategy!
