In my previous article, we looked at segmentation and how does it help us selling translation. This week’s much more practical. I’d like to walk you through the process of segmenting your customers. It’s very hands-on and practical, so just follow it step by step. No woolly introductions this time.

1) Identifying real segments

Customer segmentation is not about creating segments, but about finding the needs and values that certain customer share that make them different from each other. This is why customer segmentation starts with thorough market research to first identify these needs and values for all of your existing or potential customers. Then it’s much easier to say lawyers value reputation, while business owners value quick delivery, and put them into two distinct segments. However you decide to divide up your prospects, make sure that all segments are homogenous and different, measurable, accessible, substantial and viable. In other words, creating a segment for Polish poetry readers may be doable, but not necessarily measurable or viable for my business.

2) Setting an objective

Segmentation is just a tool to help you achieve your objectives, therefore it’s paramount to establish clear goals you want to achieve with each segment. For example, in my business segment, I may want to gain more high profit customers, while in the legal translation sector I may want to boost customer retention (so make sure they keep coming back for more). More.

See: WantWords

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