MKTG90004 · Marketing Management
Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning
STP is the heart of marketing strategy and of your Marketing Plan Part B. Its logic is simple and ruthless: you cannot serve everyone, so carve the market into groups (segment), choose which to serve (target), and design a distinctive place in their minds (position). The subject teaches the conventional firm-driven ad-hoc routine (four bases, a five-step process, after Wedel & Kamakura) alongside its signature framing — feral segmentation (Diaz Ruiz & Kjellberg, 2020), the bottom-up idea that naturally-occurring cultural groups already exist and are named by cultural intermediaries. Targeting is choosing through three lenses and a breadth spectrum, brought to life with personas. Positioning owns a distinctive, valued place via points of parity and difference, a perceptual map, and a positioning statement written to a template. STP is the densest exam zone, and knowing feral segmentation cold is a genuine differentiator.
What this chapter covers
- 014.1 Ad-hoc (top-down) segmentation — four bases & the 5-step process
- 02What makes a useful segment (measurable, substantial, accessible, differentiable, actionable)
- 03Feral segmentation (bottom-up) — cultural groups named by intermediaries; the 4-step process
- 04Targeting — the three lenses (Gupta, 2014) & the breadth spectrum
- 054.5 Personas — the poster child of a segment
- 06Positioning — POP / POD, perceptual maps, the positioning-statement template, repositioning
Worked example: contrast ad-hoc with feral segmentation
- +1Ad-hoc (top-down): the firm constructs segments using variables + statistics; criticised for treating consumers as if they were strangers — imposing the firm's categories from outside.
- +1Feral (bottom-up): naturally-occurring cultural groups already exist; the marketer's job is to spot and name them, not invent them. They are surfaced by cultural intermediaries (bloggers, influencers, “cool hunters”).
- +2The 4 steps: (1) establishing deviance — a group's distinctive behaviour gets noticed; (2) prototyping — a recognisable archetype/label forms.
- +2(3) anchoring — the segment is tied to meanings, products and identity markers; (4) vaccination — it is defended and stabilised against dilution or mockery.
Key terms
- Ad-hoc segmentation
- The conventional firm-driven, top-down routine: choose bases (demographic / geographic / psychographic / behavioural), aggregate customers, run statistical routines, and profile the segments (Wedel & Kamakura). Powerful, but criticised for treating consumers like strangers.
- Feral segmentation
- Diaz Ruiz & Kjellberg (2020): the bottom-up view that naturally-occurring cultural groups already exist; the marketer spots and names them rather than inventing them. They are surfaced by cultural intermediaries through deviance → prototyping → anchoring → vaccination.
- Targeting
- Prioritising some segments and deliberately ignoring others. Selected through three lenses — segment attractiveness, competition, and company fit (Gupta, 2014) — and a breadth spectrum from undifferentiated (mass) to individual (personalisation).
- POP / POD
- Points of Parity = what you must match to be a credible category member (table stakes). Points of Difference = the attribute(s) you own that rivals can't easily claim — your reason to be chosen.
- Positioning statement
- A precise internal anchor (not a slogan) keeping the whole mix on-strategy: "For [target], [brand] is the [category] that is the [point of difference] so they can [end benefit] because [reason to believe]."
Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning FAQ
What's the difference between ad-hoc and feral segmentation?
Direction of travel. Ad-hoc is top-down: the firm builds the boxes with variables and statistics. Feral is bottom-up: it recognises that cultural groups already exist and are named by cultural intermediaries (influencers, bloggers). Examiners love the contrast — the firm constructs vs the segments emerge in culture; named by the marketing team vs by intermediaries; consumer treated as a stranger vs as a living cultural group.
How do I choose a target — what gets the marks?
Run the three lenses explicitly — segment attractiveness (size, growth, profit), competition (intensity, rivals' strengths), and company fit (objectives, competencies, resources) — then name the breadth you chose (undifferentiated → differentiated → concentrated → micromarketing → individual). The marks come from the trade-off reasoning and from saying what you are not doing, not the pick itself.
How do I read and use a perceptual map?
Plot how the target perceives brands on two attributes that matter to them (ideally ones that reveal your POD). The goal is to stand alone (own a position), not cluster with rivals. Empty space can be an opportunity — but only if customers actually want what sits there. A map on attributes nobody values proves nothing.
What does Part B want for positioning?
Two positioning statements — current vs new — making the repositioning explicit; the gap between them is your strategic recommendation. Write each to the template, then prove each tactic (the 7Ps) delivers the point of difference. A positioning the mix doesn't support is just a claim.
Exam move
STP is the densest exam zone, so over-prepare it. Be able to (1) segment a market on appropriate bases and run the 5-step ad-hoc routine, then check the segment is measurable / substantial / accessible / differentiable / actionable; (2) contrast ad-hoc with feral segmentation precisely — learn the 4-step feral process and have a named wild segment + its cultural intermediary ready, because that is the lecturer's signature framing and a genuine differentiator; (3) target through the three lenses and name a breadth, saying what you ignore and why; (4) build a perceptual map and read POP / POD; and (5) write a positioning statement to the template, then close the loop by showing the 7P mix delivers the POD. Practise the whole chain on a real brand, because the exam hands you a fresh one.
