Segmentation and targeting

Segmentation and Targeting in Harry and David’s Today’s markets are characterized by differences in consumer tastes, needs and purchasing power. This makes it impossible to appeal to all consumers in the entire market. Marketers succeed by dividing the total market into small homogeneous consumer segments. Segmentation involves identification of the factors that influence the purchasing decisions in a particular consumer group after which the consumers are grouped on the basis of the identified factors. Consequently, the marketing strategies are adjusted to cater for the needs of each consumer segment. The major consumer characteristics influencing market segmentation include geographic, psychographic, behavioral and demographic characteristics.
Harry and David, a leading internet-retail store that deals with delivery of fruit gifts exemplifies a successful marketing segmentation strategy. In the Harry and David site, segmentation has been achieved through development of a product mix consisting of;
Gift baskets
Flower and plant gifts
Gift boxes
Spring entertaining gifts
Fruit of the month club gift collections
Moose munch gift snacks and
Royal Riviera gift pears
The market for the gift products is segmented into various gift groups including;
Birthday gifts
Top rated gifts
Sympathy gifts
Business gifts
Thank you gifts
Flower gifts and
Gifts under $30 segments
Among the various gift segments, the products are targeted to the needs of specific customers using different messages. For instance, the birthday gift segment allows personalization of the gifts by adding a free gift card where the customer can write a specific message. Flower gifts are also tailored to specific occasions like May Day (May 1st), Administrative professional day (April 25th), Earth day(April 22nd) and Nurses Week (May 6th– May 12th) among other occasions. Some of the Promotional messages used in the product mix include;
“ Give a healthy gift that’s good for the body and the earth”-Earth day
“ Show your appreciation for all they do with a tasty treat”- Administrative professional day
“ Put a little spring in their step with a floral bouquet”-May Day (Harry and David, 2012).
The segmentation choice and the messages used in each category are suitable as they are tailored to provide a personal touch to the customers. However, I would include messages that appeal to the tastes of different age groups like teenagers, young adults and middle-age groups if I was responsible for marketing the Harry and David e-retail site.
Reference
Harry and David’s (2012). Retrieved April 13, 2012 from www. harryanddavid. com/gifts/store/home___