In fact, marketing segmentation is inclusive in most strategies. When a marketer loses all hope, all that they need is a good plan to relook at how they have segmented their audience — who, where, age group etc — it’s a sure fix!

With the introduction of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, there has been improvement in the way that marketers create messages. From hardcopy ads, to digital billboards, to personalised digital marketing  — the change has affected almost every aspect of the world of marketing. 

media update’s Nakedi Phala reveals the most relevant segmentations that marketers should consider in their strategies. 

Marketing segmentation is the compass in your marketing strategy; it tells you who your possible consumer is, why you should go for them and whether or not they will welcome your product or service. 

Without wasting any time, let’s head into the three vital marketing segments: 

1. Geographic segmentation in 2020

Technology has undoubtedly changed the way we see geographic boundaries. It has made ZIP codes both visible and invisible, depending on your trade of business of course. In the early 1990s, if you wanted a car, it meant that you had to visit dealerships all over—  a real hassle, right?

Well, those days are gone. Now, there’s the Internet! If you need a car, you can find one and even complete the actual transaction through your smartphone device. But what does this mean for marketers? Well, a marketing team working in the motoring industry can now use smart tech to choose their target buyers by their region or climate, allowing them to find an audience that best suits their vehicle’s compatibility. This way, they don’t need to fit their cars with snow features if it comes to a country like South Africa; so there’s an opportunity to save manufacturing costs in this regard. 

It is good to think things through again and again before creating a product that might flunk in certain regions, simply because it does not synchronise with your audience’s lifestyle. 

2. Behavioral segmentation in modern times

Behaviour segmentation is very important to implement before creating and sharing a message with your audience; You need to study their attitudes first. Consumers need to feel special, so how do you make them feel like they are the only ones you have? Tailored messaging is your answer! 

Once you have learnt your audience's behaviour, you can move swiftly into creating a personalised marketing strategy that will help you understand what kind of conversation you need to create to capture your current and prospective consumers, as well as play right to their likes, needs, interest and routine behaviors. 


Audience behavioural patterns need to be forecasted on a long-term basis, as people tend to outgrow certain things. In this regard, it’s important to keep identifying trends that can give you insight so that you can plan effectively for the future. 

Understanding behavioural segmentation has benefits such as: 
  • understanding both the negative and positive sentiments consumers have towards your brand, and
  • recreating effective marketing messages for the right audience.
Once you know that people all have different behaviours and attitudes towards your brand, the data you gain can help you in your approach in marketing your product or service.

3. Psychographic segmentation with a sprinkle of imagination

This is probably one that is most useful for digital marketers. This is about diving right into the mindset of the consumer in order to understand and shape the way that they think. 

For example, before a person buys a house, they have a picture in their mind of the type of house they are looking to buy. Whichever house the buyer chooses must fit the image they have in their mind and give them that sentimental feeling. 

So, what does this mean for marketers? Well, it means that you need to tap into your consumers’ emotions, thoughts and desires in order to understand what they need. Once you understand them, you will be more likely to select consumers who are willing to buy the house you have on offer; and it’s all because you studied their interests, lifestyle and activities. 

Market segmentation is a great way to analyse current and potential audiences. What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments section below. 

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The marketing landscape in South Africa requires brands to be diverse, eager to learn and adjust with ease. With that in mind, here’s A marketing strategy to capture the South African audience.