Page 50 - Marketing the Basics 2nd

42 Marketing: the Basics
LIFE-CYCLE SEGMENTATION
There are a number of marketers who believe that dividing markets according to their stage in their life-cycle provides better insight into predicting a consumer’s behaviour versus traditional methods of demographic segmentation. The argument is persuasive. For the first time in recorded history, there are five different generations living on the earth at the same time. Colloquially known as Seniors, Baby-boomers, Generation X, Nexters and Gen-Zs, their size, income, values and personal experiences greatly vary from each other. They therefore have different needs, and if they are a large enough group, will greatly influence which products are sold and when. We think this a new and particularly important new form of segmentation so we will spend a bit of time on it.
Beyond just the normal difference in age that takes place with every generation we believe that how they view the world is at times fundamentally different between the five generations. It is this worldview that marketers have got to get their heads around in order to successfully tailor their message to each generation. For example, if you are trying to sell luxury to the seniors you may wish to stress the fact that the luxury good is the best buy because it lasts the longest and you will be able to pass it onto one of your grandchildren in your will. Boomers tend to be more interested with showing people that they are successful and will wear their luxury on their sleeves, so talking about how respected the brand is will be more successful an approach. Xers tend to roll their eyes at the Boomers showing off so you point out how it is a private indulgence for them. Nexters and Gen-Zs prefer indirect forms of marketing. They prefer to avoid communication with sales people, preferring instead to researching specific products on their own.
Table 3.1 Demographic cohorts
Demographic
Seniors Boomers Generation X Nexters Gen-Zs
Years
before 1945 1946–1964 1965–1979 1980–1995 1996 and after